§ Mr. Alasdair MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the medical examination given to claimants of industrial injuries benefits. [100257]
§ Mr. BayleyDecisions on claims for Industrial Injuries benefits are made by decision makers, taking into account the medical evidence provided by medical advisers trained in Disability Assessment Medicine. It is for the decision maker to judge whether the medical examination report is adequate for the purpose of deciding a claim. The on-going medical quality monitoring of the medical advisers' examination reports suggests that they are maintaining the same standards as pertained when the doctors were responsible for decision making. However following the introduction of lay decision making in July this year the quality of the medical report is further enhanced by a requirement that medical advisers give clear, unambiguous and jargon-free reasons for their opinion.