Last week I commented on a news story about the new Independent Assessment Service (IAS). For those that missed that post, it can be viewed here http://goo.gl/6GBa9l

Following that post, I spent some time trying to find any formal confirmation of the points raised in the news article. And after failing to find anything on this, I contacted the DWP press office to get the official view.

And the official answer is that there is not yet an official answer. It was evident that the information that has so far become public was not intended to be released at this point in time.

Yet, after some gentle prodding, I was able to get the DWP to confirm:

That the service will indeed be launched in some areas before others (late in 2014)

&

That the service will be a voluntary one “as always intended”.

The first point is interesting, but not surprising, given the proximity to 2014 and the lack of progress to date. Although, and as per my previous post, I’m not sure where this leaves the proposed tax incentive for medical interventions.

The second one though represents, in my humble view, something of a spinning of the facts, and a U-turn in this legislation.

One of the principle tenet’s of the Government’s response to The Sickness Absence Review earlier this year can be summed up in the following sentence (cut and paste from that very document):

“At the core of the service is the requirement that GPs will refer those patients who have been on sick leave for four weeks, unless there are very clear and well-defined reasons for not doing so.”

The key word in the above sentence is “requirement”. The proposal sought to side-step any potential conflicts of interest for the GP, by mandating referrals after 4 weeks. This was sensible and pragmatic, and would ensure that anyone off for more than a few weeks was assessed. And early assessment is a key factor in returning employees to the workplace.

Yet this proposal now seems to have been watered down. A shame, and I only hope that the official announcement from the DWP (when it comes) provides evidence of a replacement provision to trigger referrals to the IAS.

Best regards

Steve