ESA

Michelle wrote: Prescriptions not perceptions.

You can buy a Prescription Prepayment Certificate or you may qualify for free prescriptions due to low income.

www.nhs.uk/nhsengland/Healthcosts/pages/Prescriptioncosts.aspx

Gordon

Michelle

You'll need to maintain a Fit Note from now on until a new Decision is made, so don't forget to go back for a new one in about a week, hopefully you will see your usual GP and they will issue a longer one next time.

Our understanding is that PIP reports cannot be used for ESA claims by the DWP and vice versa, however, this does not stop you doing so, but you must highlight the areas that they overlap, your difficulty will be that even though they may be testing the same area, for example "grip" (ESA refers to this as dexterity), the wordings of the test will be different so you need to show that your problems are consistent for the two definition.

I don't know how PIP assessors measure the anxiety that a claimant is experiencing during the assessment, but for ESA it is very simplistic and usually revolves around the claimant being unable to maintain eye contact and rocking in the chair. I don't know what percentage of claimants with mental health issues experience these symptoms, it's probably more than half but could easily be just 51%.

Gordon

Michelle wrote: Yes I am having a telephone conversation with my usual doctor Monday and will let him know what is going on then and ask for a letter of support. To be honest I can rock back and forth. Shake my legs. Fidget with my fingers. Numerous stuff really. In my PIP report it says, '' She did come to the assessment with her son and she was fidgeting and seemed tense during the assessment. She is also noted to be taking fluoxetine which is a medication for low mood and anxiety which would be consistent with needing prompting too mix with others.

This is a good example of where you will need to be careful with the language you use, PIP refers to "prompting", ESA does not.

Gordon