Health - Almost one in four people in MV live with a disability
Almost one in four people in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is disabled. The number of people affected is growing, as Social Affairs Minister Stefanie Drese (SPD) explained on Friday in view of the International Day of People with Disabilities on Sunday. While seven percent of the population in the north-east were disabled in 1997, the figure is now 24 percent. The main reason for this is the ageing of society.
Against this background, social organizations and politicians are calling for more efforts to improve the living conditions of disabled people in the country. The Paritätische Wohlfahrtsverband and Lebenshilfe MV pointed out that there is a nationwide shortage of housing suitable for the disabled. There are also deficits in public spaces. A visit to a restaurant, cinema or even the doctor can be difficult or even impossible for people with disabilities if buildings or means of transport are not barrier-free, according to a joint statement from the two organizations.
FDP member of the state parliament Barbara Hornickel criticized that there were gaps between the existing laws and reality. Comprehensive accessibility is still a long way off, neither in infrastructure, traffic and public transport nor in housing construction.
Steffi Pulz-Debler, social policy spokesperson for the co-governing Left Party in the state parliament, criticized employers who preferred to make compensation payments rather than employ people with disabilities. "Either companies shy away from the integration effort or they still know too little about existing support options. We need to educate and advertise here."
In this context, Minister Drese referred to the free advice provided by the four recently established single points of contact for employers (EAA) in the north-east. According to the ministry, they are still underutilized. Apparently, the EAAs, which are financed by the equalization levy, are not yet well enough known. They are located in Stralsund, Rostock, Neubrandenburg and Schwerin. The contact points belong to the State Office for Health and Social Affairs, an agency of the Ministry of Social Affairs.
EAA in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania
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Source: www.stern.de
