New ESA50 form

I'm just filling in my new ESA50 form. I was put into WRAG last year before the changes- scoring 12 on mental health and 12 on physical health. I have lupus and also suffer from depression. The depression pre-dates my lupus diagnosis, is not caused by lupus and is not a side effect due to medication. Will the points still be combined? As I've just realised I wouldn't have passed if they weren't.

Hi Panther,

The limitations arising from your lupus should be recorded in the physical health section and those causes by depression in the mental health section - in theory. In practice, life is not always that clearly defined. Fill in every relevant section as fully as you can, DWP can always ignore anything they consider irrelevant but you could miss out something important if you try to make that deciusion yourself.

Thanks I was just a bit concerned and confused as I saw from your new ESA info sheets that in Jan they'd changed it, so that in some circumstances physical and mental functions couldn't both be used together to score for ESA eg. if depression was a side effect of a lupus medication. So, so long as they are separate conditions they both still count- have I understood this right?

panther50 wrote: Thanks I was just a bit concerned and confused as I saw from your new ESA info sheets that in Jan they'd changed it, so that in some circumstances physical and mental functions couldn't both be used together to score for ESA eg. if depression was a side effect of a lupus medication. So, so long as they are separate conditions they both still count- have I understood this right?

Hi p50,

What MHB is basically saying is that even though the ESA Regs were amended in Jan 2013, in that limitations as a result of MH conditions could only be considered under the MH section/descriptors, and only limitations as a result of physical conditions could be considered under the physical health section/descriptors, that you should fill each question in on the ESA50 pertinent to how you feel relevant limitations affect you personally.

In other words, don't do the DWP DM's job for them, let them "pick the bones out of it".

As MHB also states if you fail to inform them of any limitations suffered in The ESA50, they cannot possibly take said limitations into account.

bro58

Thank you for clarifying that Bro!

Panther, you also said that your depression pre-dates the lupus, so it should be considered as an entity in itself.

Got you!- Fill it out as i would anyway and let them worry about it!