If current policy remains unchanged, Belgium could have almost 600,000 people registered for disabilities by 2035, De Tijd reports on Thursday, citing projections by Mutualités Libres.
Currently, Belgium has half a million long-term sick people. According to figures from the National Institute for Sickness and Invalidity Insurance (Inami), 80% of the increase in the number of long-term sufferers are over-55s. But the upward trend is also being seen among younger people.
Mutualités Libres is sounding the alarm, given that the long-term sick represent the third-largest part of social security expenditure, after pensions and healthcare. The cost now exceeds €10 billion.
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For Xavier Brenez, Director General of Mutualités Libres, getting incapacitated people back to work is fundamental, not only for the social security accounts but also for patients.
"We need a paradigm shift. We live in a society where more and more people have to reconcile their illness with a job. We need to move away from the work/illness binary and instead highlight the abilities that people still have. The working population is growing but the average age is also rising, along with the chronic illnesses that go with it."
"If we want to continue to increase the employment rate, we will invariably have to deal with these pathologies and find solutions to reconcile the two. In this context, the resumption of part-time work is an excellent example,” the executive told L'Écho.
