Politics
Fit notes and economic inactivity: reforming the form is not enough
Key Points
Economic inactivity linked to ill health has become one of the UK's most substantial socioeconomic challenges. Around 2.9 million people are now economically inactive because of long term sickness, around 70% of those economically inactive overall.1Although the disability employment gap increases as people get older, the challenge extends beyond an ageing population.2 The interim Milburn report on young people and work highlighted that almost one million young people aged 16-24 are not in...
Economic inactivity linked to ill health has become one of the UK's most substantial socioeconomic challenges. Around 2.9 million people are now economically inactive because of long term sickness, around 70% of those economically inactive overall.1Although the disability employment gap increases as people get older, the challenge extends beyond an ageing population.2 The interim Milburn report on young people and work highlighted that almost one million young people aged 16-24 are not in education, employment, or training.3 Nearly half of them report having a disability, a proportion that has more than doubled over the past decade, mirroring broader trends in disability prevalence.3 Deteriorating health and functioning are increasingly contributing to declining labour market participation and productivity.The government recently announced pilots of multidisciplinary alternatives to what it described as the “broken” fit note system.4 The pilots involve general practitioners referring patients to a new support service, either before or after an...