Marie Curie responds to Government’s announcement on review of benefits system for terminally ill people
Comment published
Commenting on today’s announcement, Matthew Reed, Chief Executive of Marie Curie, said: “We welcome the review announced by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) today. However, the DWP statement does not make it clear that you can only have your benefit fast-tracked if you have six months or less to live.
Our campaign with Motor Neurone Disease Association has highlighted too many incidents of terminally ill people being denied fast-track access to benefits because they can’t prove they meet the arbitrary rule of having six months or less to live. It is vital that their voices are heard in this process.
“While it is encouraging that the DWP is looking at international best practice, this is also an opportunity for the Government to turn the UK into a world leader in delivering compassionate and timely financial support to people who are dying. It is vital that this opportunity be seized.
“However, the solution is a very simple one. It is one that the Scottish government has already taken on board in a new benefits law - that fast, easy access to benefits should be available to everyone a clinician says is terminally ill.
“People should not have to wait until a clinician thinks they only have six months left to live.
“The review must be focussed and quick and the Government in turn must act at pace when the review is concluded. Time is crucial for dying people. Every day 10 people die while waiting for the benefits they need.”
Notes to editor
Marie Curie and the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association are calling for a change to the law. The change would give everyone with a terminal illness quick and easy access to the benefits they need. For the latest news on the campaign, follow #Scrap6Months on Twitter
For further information:
The All Party Parliamentary Group for Terminal Illness
Published on 3 July 2019, the report contains the findings from this inquiry and gives recommendations to policy makers on ways to improve the legal definition and guidance to healthcare professionals.
About Marie Curie
Please note – we are now called ‘Marie Curie’ (not Marie Curie Cancer Care)
Marie Curie – care and support through terminal illness
Marie Curie is the UK’s leading charity for people with any terminal illness. The charity helps people living with a terminal illness and their families make the most of the time they have together by delivering expert hands-on care, emotional support, research and guidance.
Marie Curie employs more than 2,700 nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals, and with its nine hospices around the UK, is the largest provider of hospice beds outside the NHS.