EPN304 - Ill Health retirement – Updated Guidance for Employers.

Date posted: 01/07/2011

Audience: This Notice will be of particular interest to: 

• Staff responsible for referring cases to the Scheme Medical Adviser
• Occupational Health providers 
• Staff responsible for paying the Scheme Medical Adviser

Action: To note the contents of the updated guidance including new arrangements for handling enquiries and complaints, the provision of new checklists, and a revised flowchart in the Appendices.

To note a change to the title of the guidance formerly entitled ‘Medical Advice Contract Employer Guide’ to a new title ‘Ill Health Retirement - Procedural Guidance for Employers – Aug 2011’.

To note the replacement of the former ‘Medical Advice Contract Employer Guide’ in the Scheme Medical Adviser Section for Employers on the CS Pensions Website with a link to the updated guidance entitled ‘Ill Health Retirement - Procedural Guidance for Employers – Aug 2011’ which will form Annex 6J in the Employer Pension Guide, Section 6.

To note in particular, new arrangements for handling enquiries and complaints. These are summarised below for ease of reference.

Timing: All employers will be expected to apply the revised guidance with effect from 1 September 2011 so please circulate this EPN as necessary within your organisation as quickly as possible. 

Ill Health Retirement Procedures – Updated Guidance for Employers - August 2011

Attached is a copy of the updated ‘Ill Health Retirement – Procedural Guidance for Employers – August 2011. This updated guidance will be incorporated as annex 6J to Chapter 6 of the Employer Pension Guide. Revisions include the provision of new checklists and a revised flowchart. The guidance has been revised in consultation with employer representatives and other stakeholders. 

Readers should take particular note of the new arrangements for handling different types of enquiries (see section 6.3 of the revised guidance), or complaints (see section 11 of the revised guidance) about ill health retirement procedures or active cases. These arrangements are summarised below for ease of reference.

Routes for enquiries – See Section 6.3 of the Guidance: Enquiries about ill health retirement procedures 

If you have a general enquiry about the ill health retirement procedures you should contact your department’s Pension Service Centre (see below for instructions on where to look up contact details for your PSC). Enquiries about retrospective ill health retirement or extensions to appeal deadlines  If you have an enquiry about a request for retrospective ill health retirement (see section 5.8 in the guidance), or an extension to an appeal deadline (see section 9 in the guidance), you must ask your department’s Pension Service Centre for advice and authorisation (if agreed), before referring such a case to the Scheme Medical Adviser. Your Pension Service Centre will tell you if your request has been approved or not within 10 working days of receiving your enquiry. If your request has been approved your Pension Service Centre will forward written authorisation confirming that the request has been authorised. You should then enclose a copy of the written authorisation with the submission to the Scheme Medical Adviser. The Scheme Medical Adviser will not be able to consider any application for retrospective ill health retirement or an extension to an appeal deadline without receipt of written authorisation from the appropriate body

The contact details of your department’s Pension Service Centre can be found on the website.

Enquiries about active cases 

If you have an enquiry about an active case you should contact the Scheme Medical Adviser either by telephone on 02476 500766 or email at chshelpdesk@capita.co.uk. For complaints about the service provided by the Scheme Medical Adviser, see below.

Routes for complaints – See Section 11 of the Guidance: Complaints about the service provided by the Scheme Medical Adviser

1. If you or your employee have a complaint about the service provided by the Scheme Medical Adviser, you should submit a completed Med 9 form to:

Administration Team
Capita Health Solutions
10 Queen Victoria Road
Coventry
CV1 3PJ
Email: OHfeedback@capita.co.uk

Escalation route for unresolved/unanswered complaints

1. If you or your employee is dissatisfied with, or do not receive a response from the Scheme Medical Adviser within the notified timeline, you should escalate the complaint to Chantal McDonald, Account Manager, Capita Health Solutions by email: Chantal.McDonald@Capita.co.uk.

Escalation route for complaints that remain unresolved 

• If your or your employee’s complaint remains unresolved after the above routes have been exhausted and 10 working days have passed since escalating the complaint to the Account Manager, you should escalate your complaint to your Pension Service Centre with a note of previous action taken and any response from the Scheme Medical Adviser. Your Pension Service Centre will arrange for your complaint to be investigated by the appropriate authority in My CSP who will aim to give a response within 10 working days.

The complaints process does not cover the medical appeals procedure about Scheme Medical Adviser recommendations. The appeals procedure is explained in the Medical Reviews and Appeals Guide available on the Civil Service pensions website. The complaints process is also separate from the Internal Dispute Resolution procedure, please see the leaflet ‘If you have a complaint about your pension’, which is on the Civil Service pensions website.

Contacts

Enquiries about content, distribution or to receive in a different format

employerhelpdesk@cabinet-office.x.gsi.gov.uk
01256 846414
Employer Helpdesk
Civil Service Pensions
Grosvenor House
Basing View
Basingstoke
RG21 4HG