News item | 06-10-2023 | 15:45
There is a cautious change visible in the size of the backlogs in the socio-medical assessments at UWV. This improvement appears to continue in the coming years, but the forecasts remain uncertain. In order to continue to do the maximum at this time, the temporary measures previously taken to reduce waiting lists are being extended. There will also be a new temporary measure. Minister Van Gennip of Social Affairs and Employment wrote this in a letter to the House of Representatives.
The sickness and disability system is under great pressure. This is due to the mismatch between supply and demand in UWV’s socio-medical assessments. As a result, there are long waiting times, causing people to be insecure about their income for an unacceptably long time. Waiting times have become increasingly longer in recent years. The mismatch also means for employers that there is uncertainty for too long about the financial consequences of a possible benefit.
Over the past two years, the government has therefore taken several measures to stabilize and reduce the mismatch. Such as the simplified WIA claim assessment for people over 60 and the setting up of Social Medical Centers (SMCs). In addition, the cabinet has asked the OCTAS committee to issue advice for the longer term. OCTAS provides advice on a sustainable system for illness and disability that is affordable, feasible and explainable. The committee will soon present its problem analysis.
The first effects of the measures now appear to be visible. The last months of 2022 showed a slight stabilization of the backlogs and there was a slight decrease in the first half of 2023. To know how large these effects are in the longer term, monitoring must be carried out over a longer period. It is expected that with the temporary measures and working in SMCs, the number of WIA claim assessments that UWV can carry out will increase in the coming years.
In particular, the simplified WIA claim assessment for people over 60 has contributed to reducing backlogs. This measure has broad support. The client satisfaction survey conducted by UWV shows that employees and employers find the services surrounding the simplified assessment good and that they feel that they have been well informed about the advantages and disadvantages of the simplified assessment. UWV will continue to focus on the transition to working in SMCs in the near future. This is a cultural change that takes time. The evaluation shows that the insurance doctor is deployed more effectively. In other areas, time is still needed to properly estimate what the total effect of the working method in SMCs will be.
Due to the seriousness of the problems, Minister Van Gennip believes it is necessary to continue to take action, accelerate where possible and take new actions where necessary, including during the cabinet’s outgoing period. She therefore wants to extend the temporary 60-plus measure. This also applies to the waiver of advances during the waiting period. Money has been reserved for the extended measures in the spring memorandum.
The minister is also taking a new temporary measure, practical assessment. This measure means that for people who work at the WIA claim assessment, an assessment of their disability percentage is made based on only their actual earnings. And no longer also based on a theoretical estimate, as is now the case. This measure is expected to result in savings of approximately 2,000 to 3,000 claim assessments. And the working method is also easier to understand for everyone involved because it is based on actual earnings instead of a theoretical earning capacity.