1 We have an MEA information leaflet that covers all aspects of Blue Badge applications as they relate to ME/CFS:
www.meassociation.org.uk/shop/benefits-leaflets/blue-badge-scheme/
2 We also have an MEA ‘To Whom It May Concern’ letter, signed by myself, that can be used to support a Blue Badge application or renewal:
www.meassociation.org.uk/shop/to-whom-letters/blue-badge-evidence/
3 It can also be helpful to provide some research evidence relating to Prognosis and Permanency in relation to ME/CFS to back up an application. We have another MEA information leaflet that could be used for this purpose.
All of these leaflets can be ordered from the MEA on-line shop, or the literature order form in ME Essential magazine:
MEA literature order form:
www.meassociation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/MEA-Order-Form-Feb-2016.pdf
MEA on-line shop:
www.meassociation.org.uk/shop/
4 We also work with the Countess of Mar on issues relating to DWP benefits and disability aids for people with ME/CFS, and the following parliamentary question was tabled in relation to Blue Badges and ME/CFS:
www.meassociation.org.uk/2012/05/parliamentary-question-blue-badge-eligibility-15-may-2012/
5 A number of MEA members have successfully challenged Blue Badge refusals using the above information, and I was recently involved in one such case.
6 We are also aware that people with ME/CFS are facing increasing difficulty when it comes to obtaining a Blue Badge or renewing an existing Blue Badge.
Whilst it is CORRECT to say that ME/CFS is not an illness that automatically qualifies a person for a Blue Badge, it is INCORRECT to state, as some local council officials are now doing, that people with ME/CFS are not eligible for a Blue Badge.
People with ME/CFS can be eligible for a Blue Badge – provided their mobility and walking problems satisfy the eligibility criteria that have been produced in relation to this scheme.
Dr Charles Shepherd
Hon Medical Adviser, The ME Association
Thank you Dr Shepherd. I don’t know how I would manage without my blue badge