PIP: the system of ignorance

Hey guys!

I hope you're all having a good week!

I thought I should write a little post (well it's more of a rant) about the government's PIP system.


Recently in the news it was announced that everyone claiming PIP would have their claims reviewed. Naturally with any review of payments like PIP or benefits, opinions come flying from both sides of the fence. For me luckily I don't have to rely on PIP or any disability benefits or aids but Matthew does so he's been affected by this. My dad was disabled also with Parkinson's disease so he was reliant on DLA until he died. With people close to me being disabled, I have too seen and at times experienced second hand the treatment, and at times prejudice, they faced. Matthew got his forms to fill in and immediately came across a problem, a problem that when he told me, made my blood boil. I realised that treatment has not changed at all towards the disabled. While many would like to think it has- it hasn't, it's just been hidden behind a veil of red tape and fancy words. What these government bodies, and those who indeed even write the PIP review form, don't realise is that disabilities are not easily put into nice neat tick boxes; they're not simple to explain and they sure as hell aren't a matter of do/don't, can or can't. A disability is more than a wheelchair, more than a mental illness or an aid like a walking stick, a disability is an active thing where circumstances can change with or without notice. So, with that in mind I bring you one of the questions from the PIP form "can you walk 20 metres?" This question seems to then set the tone for the rest of the form which is based on a points system. How absolutely ridiculous! Someone with a disability may be able to walk that far but with excruciating pain, What about when you rely on a prosthetic to walk? Yes, with the prosthetic (which by the way the government doesn't count) that person could walk, but then what if they slipped or the prosthetic went wrong? They then can't walk. What then? This is why I find this so unbelievable! As if just filling out the form wasn't upsetting enough, you may even have to undergo a separate assessment. I find it utterly disgraceful that people with a disability are forced to humiliation to get the help they are owed and do deserve.

I appreciate it can be difficult but why should someone in genuine need have to worry and fret because they didn't on paper seem to be disabled enough? What the fuck is wrong with society where we score points on how disabled you are or are not? It's disgusting. You know who is to blame? The people who falsely claim. The ones know how to play the system and play it like a fiddle and seem to get away with it. It always seems to be these people who get off lightly while someone in genuine need is left without the help they need because they scored a few points less. Disability is not a game. My dad was reduced to panic and confusion when they threatened his eligibility. Parkinson's by it's very nature is a degenerative and highly changeable disease where every day is different from the last. This certainly couldn't be put in a nice neat box for the government. Depending on his medication, my dad may be able to walk a few metres one hour and then not even be able to hold his own weight the next. So you can imagine how he felt when he was being challenged. Thankfully with appeals he got the help he needed. That was over 15 years ago. It's 2018 now where many in society are on their way to getting equality, yet people with a disability still have to face people treating them differently.

I don't want this to be all rant with no offer or mention of potential solutions. I think instead of the barbaric points system, there should maybe be a tailored benefit system whereby if you are indeed more impaired in a certain area, your benefits can be tailored to what you need the most, so you get more of what you do need instead of the government saying "0 points= no benefits at all". At least with this, people with a disability will at least feel like they're being actively understood and cared about. That's all that is needed- care. They want to know someone at the other end of the system actually cares about them and their needs, and not just adding up points to stick on a system to tick a box somewhere on a government database.

Please, if anyone in power ever happens to read this, please change the current system. Realise the current points system is a ridiculous way of assessment and that disabilities are not as easy to define as just merely ticking a box.

Thankyou.