More than 25 health charities and welfare advice groups have warned that dying people in Northern Ireland are ‘falling through the cracks’ in the welfare system and are calling on Stormont to reform ‘cruel’ benefit laws for terminally ill people.
Today marks a full year that terminally ill people have been waiting for a review to be published by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on how they access benefits.
Dr Briony Hudson, Senior Research Manager at Marie Curie comments on ONS figures released on Friday 10th July showing the number of identified deaths involving the coronavirus (COVID-19) of people who were homeless.
Over three thousand deaths mark grim anniversary of absent DWP benefits review for terminally ill
- Charities demand a deadline for publication
- Drawn out review is causing unnecessary hardship for terminally ill
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- Scotland and Nort
Marie Curie has warmly welcomed a successful High Court challenge to the legal definition of terminal illness in Northern Ireland benefits law.
The current definition states that a dying person can only apply for fast-track access to welfare benefits like Personal Independence Payments (PIP) and Employment and Support