The NSSRN has conducted research into the experience of claiming for the Disability Support Pension after changes were made to the medical assessment process in 2015. We have produced two reports from this research that are available for download.
Our Disability Support Pension (DSP) Project: A snapshot of DSP client experiences of claims and assessments since the 2015 changes analyses the DSP claim experience from a snapshot of legal cases from our member centre, Basic Rights Queensland Inc. The snapshot included 22 clients who appealed the Department of Human Services’ decision to reject their DSP claim to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. Our report found that the 2015 changes made it more difficult for these clients to obtain the information required to demonstrate that they met the criteria to medically qualify for DSP. Our recommendations focus on improvements in communication with claimants and improvements to the medical assessment process.
Our NSSRN Member Centre Survey: Client experiences of claiming DSP further explores the impact of the 2015 changes. We surveyed clients of our member community legal centres to find out about their experiences of claiming DSP post-2015. The results of our survey established that these clients faced a range of obstacles in claiming for DSP.