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Matthew Vella
The majority of workers who have been medically “boarded out” – and receive an invalidity pension – hail from the private sector, according to latest statistics from the Ministry for the Family and Social Solidarity.
Over 61 per cent of boarded out beneficiaries in 2005, a total of 1,380 persons, hailed from the private sector, whilst those working in government departments numbered 637. Another 210 hailed from government agencies and other companies owned by the state.
Reforming the invalidity pension scheme is currently being debated in parliament, as Ministry Dolores Cristina is proposing an overhaul of the medical “board” which would instead be made up of a small group of doctors engaged by the department of social security.
Government spending on invalidity pensions rose to Lm16 million from Lm9 million in 1999 with the number of beneficiaries having reached 9,000.
In 2005 alone, 1,181 applications for invalidity pensions were accepted out of 1,203. The highest number of applications was received in 2003: over 1,700 applications were received, and 1,477 accepted.
The number of workers in the civil service who have been medically boarded out has been decreasing since 2002, from 350 workers, to 210 in 2005.
But in an interview with MaltaToday, Cristina said there was “rampant abuse” in the rate of workers being boarded out. The government wants to review existing beneficiaries, and pay invalidity pensions according to the extent of the impairment.
According to Cristina, over 60 per cent of invalidity beneficiaries are boarded out for psychiatric reasons. In parliament she questioned how a 28-year-old woman was given invalidity pension for life for post-natal depression.
A bill presented by Cristina gives new powers to the Benefit Fraud Directorate to stamp out abuse of invalidity pension. The bill proposes that an invalidity pension should not be given for life and that there would be periodic reviews and medical audits.
mvella@mediatoday.com.mt
Social Security – Applications for Invalidity Pension
(source: House of Representatives)
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