The social and medical characteristics of persons retiring early in Odense before and after the Danish legislation on social pensioning in 1984
Hasle, H.; Johnsen, I.; Lurie, M.; Olsen, J.
Ugeskrift for Laeger 149(15): 1024-1028
1987
ISSN/ISBN: 0041-5782 PMID: 3576804 Document Number: 288931
The social and medical characteristics of persons applying for early pensions on the first occasion before and after the Danish pension reform (law nr. 217 of 16. V. 1984) were investigated in the region of Odense. The investigation includes 158 persons from a district with single-family houses and 163 persons from a region with social housing. The investigation revealed that approximately 15% were awarded pensions without any medical diagnosis being recorded. After the pension reform, more numerous housewives and more persons from the group of long-term unemployed were awarded pensions. The economic circumstances were poorer after the pension reform than before it for the region dominated by social housing. At the time of investigation, the pension reform had not resulted in briefer proceedings but the percentage of refusals was less after the pension reform. The pension reform has involved progress towards more social assessment of the working capacity as compared with the purely medical assessment. Nevertheless, there is still a tendency to award medical diagnoses highest priority.