Department for Work and Pensions written question – answered am ar 26 Mawrth 2024.
Ellie Reeves
Deputy National Campaign Co-ordinator
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of the eligibility criteria for people with long covid to access (a) Universal Credit and (b) Employment and Support Allowance.
Mims Davies
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
No assessment has been made.
People living with a condition arising from exposure to the Covid-19 virus can access the financial support that is available through Statutory Sick Pay, Universal Credit, New Style ESA or Pension Credit depending on individual circumstances.
Disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment or Attendance Allowance do not include or exclude by condition, instead they look at the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability. Therefore people living with a condition arising from exposure to the Covid-19 virus are also able to access these benefits in the same way as other people with long-term conditions or disabilities.
Yes2 people think so
No2 people think not
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Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.