Unfortunately not an isolated case

Family has to fight for care allowance in court

The PVA now has to pay more.

(Bild: Gina Sanders - Fotolia)

Trouble again with the pension insurance institution. The PVA only wanted to pay 354 euros a month for a seriously ill nine-year-old from Upper Austria who was in need of care. His family fought back and won their case in court, receiving around 500 euros more. This is not an isolated case, as the results of the Chamber of Labor show.

The nine-year-old from the Braunau district suffers from heart failure, a metabolic disorder and has a developmental delay. Despite all this, he attends school and is lovingly cared for by his parents at home. However, his mother had to give up her job because her son needs a lot of care. They have applied to the pension insurance institution for care allowance.

Only received care level 2
But disappointment followed: the child only received care level 2 - that's 354 euros a month. "Far too little", the parents thought and turned to the AK Upper Austria, which filed a complaint against the decision.

With success: "According to the medical report that was drawn up during the court proceedings, the boy requires around 160 hours of care per month. This means that the family is retroactively entitled to care level 4," reports the AK. Instead of 354, the family now receives 827.10 euros per month.

710 cases in just one year
"When decisions do not do justice to the state of health and care needs of those affected, our members can count on the legal support of the AK," says President Andreas Stangl. This example is not an isolated case: in 2023 alone, the Chamber of Labor had to intervene in 710 care allowance cases, winning 5.3 million euros for those affected.

Our members can count on the legal support of the AK.

AK-Präsident Andreas Stangl

PVA sees itself in the right
When asked by the "Krone", the PVA is rather reserved: "The pension insurance has the legal mandate to have those affected examined by experts. The results of the examination are recorded in the report and the necessary care requirements are determined in accordance with the legal requirements." However, you can file a complaint ...

Kommentar

Es sind keine Almosen

Anyone who applies for care allowance from the Pension Insurance Institution (PVA) is not doing it for fun and games. After all, caring for relatives at home is not only an emotional challenge, but also a financial one.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV, Alexander Schwarzl, Markus Wenzel)

However, it is a mystery to me why the PVA then makes life even more difficult for many people and "forces" them to take legal action in order to receive sufficient financial support. Because if there are 710 appeals in Upper Austria alone in one year, the PVA should perhaps question its own guidelines and decisions.