ME/CFS: PVA also receives criticism from FPÖ

Social spokesperson Dagmar Belakowitsch described it to the APA as an "undignified game." And: The problem does not only affect people with the diagnosis of ME/CFS, she emphasized.

"The PVA often does what it wants here"

"The issue with the PVA is unfortunately very large. Severely ill people are repeatedly rejected by the PVA. This does not only affect people with the diagnosis of ME/CFS," Belakowitsch also saw problems for those affected by other health limitations. "The PVA often does what it wants here. It is an undignified game that people who are classified as unfit for work by the AMS are classified as fit for work by the PVA and sent back," she said.

And the deputy pointed to the subsequent problems: "The affected people then have to go to a labor and social court because there is no arbitration board at the PVA. Many, especially severely ill people, often cannot do this."

From the FPÖ's perspective, the PVA must "rethink its policy." "I understand the fundamentally legitimate interest of the PVA to keep people in the labor market until retirement age. However, this is not always possible because people are different and their medical conditions are also individual. 'Long Covid' seems to be important to many responsible parties at the current time. Perhaps this will also lead to a rethinking and improvement of the situation."

SPÖ Points to Planned Steps by Government

Already on Thursday, calls for changes had been made. From the side of the Social Democrats, health spokesperson Rudolf Silvan pointed to planned steps by the ÖVP-SPÖ-NEOS government in this area. The government program includes a revision of rehabilitation benefits and the disability pension. The Greens speak of "systematic harassment" by the PVA. Health spokesperson Ralph Schallmeiner was "shocked" by the research results and called on the PVA to "fundamentally rethink" their approach to chronically ill patients. Ombudsman Bernhard Achitz (SPÖ) also complained about problems and demanded from the PVA, as well as from the Social Ministry Service SMS (where the degree of disability is determined, note) among other things, better training for the assessors, and that they should "place more trust" in the patients.

Social Law Issues for ME/CFS Affected Individuals

A joint survey published on Thursday by APA, ORF, and the research platform Dossier had previously shown that individuals affected by ME/CFS or Post Covid not only struggle with inadequate healthcare but also with social law issues. Applications for disability/invalidity pensions (or rehabilitation benefits) and care allowances are rarely granted by the PVA.

In the cases provided by affected individuals, a total of 79 percent of the applications were rejected. In the assessments, outdated diagnoses were sometimes made, and the original diagnosis of ME/CFS or Post Covid was adopted as the main diagnosis in only about 23 percent of the PVA assessments. In the majority of the assessments (56 percent), these diagnoses were not considered at all, and in the rest, only as secondary diagnoses. The diagnostic criteria for ME/CFS (Canadian consensus criteria or others) were not included in the assessments - and the cardinal symptom of ME/CFS (the severe exertion recovery disorder PEM/Post-Exertional Malaise) was hardly considered.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.