In 2022 almost 1900 WIA assessments due to long-term corona complaints
In 2022, UWV carried out 1883 WIA assessments on people with long-term corona complaints as their primary diagnosis. In the majority of cases, they were declared fully incapacitated for work. In the healthcare sector, the share of WIA assessments due to corona is higher than in other sectors. This is evident from an initial analysis of the figures by UWV.
Employees who have been ill for two years and are therefore unable to work or are less able to work may be entitled to a disability benefit under the Work and Income (Capacity for Work) Act (WIA). UWV determines whether people are eligible based on a social-medical assessment.
Most people completely incapacitated for work
The figures for the whole of 2022 are in line with the previous figures that UWV announced about the WIA assessments that UWV has carried out on people who have been ill for two years due to corona complaints. After five months, 736 assessments had been carried out, in September the counter was at 1239 assessments at the end of September, at the end of 2022 there were 1883. March 2022 is still the month with the most assessments, 240. After that, the number of assessments dropped to 85 in June, but there now seems to be an increase again, with more than 200 assessments in the months of October (223), November (217) and December (204).
The picture regarding the outcome of the assessments is also virtually unchanged compared to the previous figures. In over 83 percent of the cases, a partial or full disability benefit was awarded. In a small number of cases, 9 percent of the total, this concerns a so-called IVA benefit due to full and permanent disability. In most cases, 50 percent of the total, this concerns a so-called WGA 80-100 benefit, whereby someone is currently fully disabled, but improvement of the resilience is not ruled out. In 24 percent of the people, a benefit is awarded due to partial disability (WGA 35-80).
About 17 percent of people are less than 35 percent disabled and therefore not entitled to a WIA benefit. This does not mean that these clients do not have complaints, it only means that they can earn at least 65 percent of their old salary with the work opportunities that are still available. The law stipulates that there is no right to a disability benefit if the decline in salary is less than 35 percent.
Collaboration with C-support to share knowledge
'The figures show a fairly consistent picture throughout the year,' says Chantal Gielen, director of Labor and Health at UWV. 'Our insurance physicians have done a lot to gain knowledge about this new and complex disease, both through their training and further and refresher courses. We have also organized meetings for this together with C-support, the organization that supports people with long-term corona complaints. That has been very useful.'
Insurance doctor Diny van der Geest: 'We have achieved that many doctors deal with the assessment of long-term corona complaints in the same way, no matter how difficult that may be at times. We have been able to find each other well in that. What I also see in the consultation room, and what you do not yet see in the figures, is that some of the people who ultimately do not receive benefits are already partly back to work at their old workplace and are therefore really on the road to recovery.'
Healthcare workers overrepresented
A preliminary analysis of WIA decisions in the first ten months of 2022, which UWV conducted at the request of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, shows that corona is more often a diagnosis in the healthcare sector than in other sectors. In the Healthcare and Welfare sector, 6,2 percent of WIA decisions mention corona as the main or secondary diagnosis, while in other sectors this applies to an average of 3,7 percent of decisions. Corona is also more often a main diagnosis in the Healthcare and Welfare sector than in other sectors. Almost a third of people with a WIA assessment and a corona diagnosis work in the healthcare and welfare sector. These results were reported in December in a letter to Parliament from Minister Helder (VWS).
UWV is currently conducting a more extensive analysis of the results of the WIA assessments of people with long-term corona complaints. This includes looking at the differences between men and women, age groups and sectors. The UWV Knowledge Report with the results of this analysis is expected in April.
The number of WIA assessments due to corona is approximately 3 percent of the total. The expectation is that UWV will also have to deal with a considerable number of WIA assessments of people with corona complaints this year, also because UWV, as is known, has been dealing with backlogs for some time, which means that waiting times for clients can increase considerably.
