BMJ  2008;336:735 (5 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.39535.460289.1F

Letters

Report calls for shake up in management of sick notes

Incapacity, work, and benefits

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Incapacity benefit should not be seen as a payment for being unable to carry out any work at all owing to illness.¹ Instead it is seen by most claimants as a form of income support and as a gateway benefit to other state support such as housing and council tax benefits. This package can typically amount to over £700 each month. It is easy to claim and requires only a medical certificate to allow payment by direct bank transfer. No further evidence is initially required, and recipients do not need to sign on at regular intervals. There are powerful incentives to continuing the claim as benefit levels increase after one year, and returning to paid work may entail a drop in income or at best a small increase as all benefits are lost.

It is extremely difficult for a general practitioner to refuse a sick note request for incapacity benefit . . . [Full text of this article]

¹ Oxford

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