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A chance for independence. The Act on Personal Assistance entered to the government's work schedule

29.11.2024

A draft Act on Personal Assistance developed on the initiative of the Government Plenipotentiary for Disabled People, Łukasz Krasoń, has been added to the legislative work schedule of the Council of Ministers. In particular, it assumes a higher number of assisted hours than guaranteed under the current legislative arrangements, as well as a possibility of determining the right to support for several years rather than just one year. This is an important step towards ensuring greater independence for persons with disabilities.

A chance for independence. The Act on Personal Assistance entered to the government's work schedule

The Act on Personal Assistance is a response to the social expectations of the community of disabled people and their relatives. The solutions implemented so far under the annual programmes were insufficient.

The lack of systemic support in the form of personal assistance places a significant burden on families and carers of persons with disabilities. Consequently, supporting persons with disabilities in their daily life becomes the main and often the only social role undertaken by carers - usually women. The introduction of the Act will relieve the burden on these people and offer a chance to live more independently to the persons affected.

Main assumptions of the draft

The key elements of the draft Act on Personal Assistance are as follows:

  • personal assistance also available to young people with disabilities;
  • freedom for the person with disability to choose the entity providing personal assistance to him or her - from the local government, various NGOs, as well as a possibility for the person with disability to employ a personal assistant himself or herself;
  • freedom to choose the personal assistant;
  • possibility for a personal assistant to perform nursing and medical tasks - after training and with the mutual agreement of the assistant and the user;
  • introducing a mechanism to customise the support of a person with a disability fully through personal assistance.

Why is it so important? A possibility of being supported by an assistant allows persons with disabilities to be more active in community life, including cultural, sport activities or maintaining social contacts. Personal assistance provides the basis for many persons with disabilities to be able to work or engage in social activities. It also provides opportunities for families and relatives of people with disabilities to live independently.

The Act will affect the lives of approximately 100,000 persons with disabilities and approximately 500,000 of their relatives and those who provide ongoing support to persons with disabilities.

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

The need for such regulations stems, among others, from the obligations contained in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, ratified by Poland in 2012, in particular Article 19 of the Convention, which guarantees the right of persons with disabilities to live independently and be fully included in the community.

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