The reach of disability benefits: An examination of the disability living allowance

Key objectives in the 1992 reform of disability benefits were improvements to the scope of benefits and better targeting of funds to those most in need. This paper questions the success of the disability living allowance (DLA) in achieving these aims. Examination of (non-)recipients of the higher rate mobility component of DLA reveals considerable unpredictability in the extent to which the benefit is reaching its eligible population. The OPCS severity scales are used to describe an overall measure of disability and to generate mobility scores for a cohort of people with disabilities. Analysis of these results suggests that anomalies persist in the award and reach of benefits