Faster benefits and support for people with ALS and similar diseases

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The law aims to improve quality of life and access to specialized services for people with ALS and other diseases or processes of high complexity and irreversible course. It applies to people with ALS and, through a future regulation, to other processes meeting certain criteria of severity and speed.
2. People covered by the law are deemed to have a disability of at least 33 percent if they receive a permanent disability pension or a retirement pension for disability, or if they have recognized dependency status at any level. This avoids having to prove it again.
3. The disability degree review can be requested at any time and must be decided within three months. The same deadline applies to the dependency degree assessment, which grants Level I from diagnosis, and to the review of the individual care program.
4. Caregivers who stopped working to care for a person with Great Dependency can keep the contribution base of their last job, with IMSERSO paying half of the increase. They are also treated as a priority group in employment policy.
5. Within twelve months, the Government must equalize travel and lodging aid for treatment in other regions, expand rehabilitation and home physiotherapy, create a state registry of neurodegenerative diseases, and improve health worker training. It will also study new aid for people with electrodependency, such as no power cuts.
6. Several laws are amended to adapt sociosanitary care, speed up processing of contributory permanent disability, and include people with electrodependency among those eligible for the electricity social discount.

Who it affects

• People with ALS: Faster disability and dependency procedures and automatic recognition of 33 percent disability in certain cases.
• People with other high-complexity, irreversible diseases: May be included in the law if they meet the severity criteria, through a regulation to be approved within one year.
• Caregivers of people with Great Dependency: Better contributions toward their pension and priority in employment policies.
• People with electrodependency: May qualify for the electricity social discount.

Words worth knowing

ELA

Esclerosis Lateral Amiotrófica, known in English as ALS, a neurodegenerative disease that weakens the muscles and has no cure today.

Electrodependencia (electrodependency)

The situation of someone who needs electric devices, such as a ventilator, to live, so a power outage endangers their health.

Bono social eléctrico (electricity social discount)

A discount on the electricity bill for households in a vulnerable situation.

Incapacidad permanente contributiva (contributory permanent disability)

A Social Security pension for people who cannot work due to a serious illness or injury.

Grado III de dependencia (Dependency Level III)

The highest level of dependency recognized by law, called Great Dependency: the person needs help with almost everything.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries