Written answers

Tuesday, 17 April 2018

Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection

Partial Capacity Benefit Scheme Eligibility

Photo of John CurranJohn Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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1483. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if the operation of the invalidity pension and the payment of partial capacity benefit with regard to a person being assessed for PCB that is only able to get insecure casual work will be reviewed (details supplied); if the scheme will be reviewed to allow for variations in earnings resulting from casual work; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16727/18]

Photo of Regina DohertyRegina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Partial Capacity Benefit (PCB) is a scheme which allows a person return to employment if they have a reduced capacity for work while continuing to receive a payment from my department. A person who applies for PCB will, in the first instance, be assessed by a medical assessor who assesses the degree of capacity. If awarded, PCB will allow them to continue to receive a percentage of their Illness Benefit (IB) or Invalidity Pension (IP) payment while working. Participation in the PCB scheme is voluntary and to apply a person must be in receipt of either IP or IB (for at least six months at the date of application). Payment of PCB lasts for as long as the customer has an underlying entitlement to payment of IB or IP.

The rate of payment depends on the personal rate of the qualifying scheme (IB or IP) from which the customer originates and the medical assessment of the customer’s capacity for work. A person medically assessed as profound will qualify for 100% of the qualifying payment while, a person medically assessed as severe or moderate will qualify for 75% or 50% , of the underlying payment respectively.

PCB is paid in addition to and is independent of a person’s income from employment and given the objectives of the scheme, it would not be appropriate to vary the payment by level of earnings.

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