Disability status determination checks begin in Kazakhstan - more than 1,000 suspicious cases identified

Tengrinews.kz — Approximately 1,133 suspicious disability certification cases have been identified in Kazakhstan, with 167 of them referred to law enforcement. This was announced by Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Population, Askarbek Yertayev, in an interview with Tengri Health.

According to the minister, the department has been conducting selective audits of cases involving disability status assignments since February.

"To date, approximately 1,133 suspicious cases have been identified. Of these, we have handed over 167 files to law enforcement agencies," Yertayev stated.

In some instances, medical advisory commission reports for different patients were virtually identical.

"It is obvious that documents were simply copied. Therefore, we held talks with the Ministry of Health and agreed to a systemic change in our approach," the minister explained.

What will change for patients

The Ministry of Health plans to consolidate its information systems by the end of the year. Following this, the databases of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labor will be integrated. This will allow specialists to track patient examinations, see which tests were conducted, and review the data used to justify disability certifications.

Furthermore, a digital model is being developed to automatically detect duplicate or suspicious medical reports. Simultaneously, the department is conducting internal preventative work and reminding staff of their professional liabilities.

For 63 specific medical conditions, disability status is granted indefinitely. In such cases, individuals are not required to undergo re-examination every few years.

Rehabilitation over formal status: The state's new approach

The minister noted that the state's goal is not merely to assign a disability group, but to ensure the individual's subsequent rehabilitation.

If doctors believe a patient's condition can improve, rehabilitation is prescribed. According to Yertayev, there have been cases where individuals moved from a Group II disability to Group III, and eventually had their disability status fully revoked after recovering and returning to work.

If a citizen disagrees with a commission's decision, they can request a re-examination. A new medical board is then convened to re-evaluate the patient's condition.

Currently, about 40 percent of applications are processed via a proactive remote format, meaning these citizens do not need to appear before the commission in person. In all other cases, in-person examinations are still required.

Once digitalization is complete, patients will no longer need to collect a large volume of paperwork manually; the necessary information will be processed electronically.

Context

In May, the Ministry of Labor reported identifying 167 cases showing signs of falsification regarding disability certification, work capacity assessments, and social benefit assignments. All materials were forwarded to law enforcement agencies.

Askarbek Yertayev previously confirmed the existence of systemic issues within medical and social expertise services. According to him, audits revealed reports with identical lab results and conclusions where only the patients' names had been changed.

Commission inspections were intensified after potential violations were uncovered in the Atyrau region regarding the referral of citizens for proactive remote assessments. Signs of falsified data entry into documents were found in the actions of certain medical professionals.

Meanwhile, Kazakhstani citizens with genuine illnesses often complain about the difficulties of registering for disability status. We previously reported on an Astana resident weighing only 36 kilograms who spent months struggling to obtain disability certification and necessary social support.