Survivors outraged at ACC's proposed guideline changes

An article from Voxy

Widespread dissent at the proposed changes to ACC's funding criteria for help for sexual abuse and assault survivors can be felt throughout New Zealand with a national day of action against the changes planned for Monday 19 October.
Marches will take place in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.
"People up and down New Zealand are outraged", said Felicity Perry, spokesperson for the Wellington group that has formed to challenge ACC's proposed guidelines. Rape Crisis New Zealand estimates that one in four women and one in eight men are survivors of sexual abuse and assault.
"All New Zealanders know someone who is affected by sexual abuse and assault. ACC should be supporting them, not abandoning survivors when they need help most", Perry said.
The proposed changes mean that in order to get ACC support survivors must be diagnosed with an illness from the American Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, version four.
"Having to be diagnosed with a mental illness in order to receive treatment will further traumatize abuse survivors", said Perry.
Such survivors will have this diagnosis on their medical records for the rest of their lives and will be required to declare it if asked by insurance companies, banks and prospective employers, to name a few.
"It already takes on average 16 years for survivors of abuse to summon the courage to seek help. The proposed changes will mean that less and less survivors will ask for the help that they need," Perry said.
"It is hard enough living with the stigma of being an abuse survivor, let alone having the added stigma of being declared mentally ill," said Perry.
The effects of such stigma have already been witnessed with the recent suicide of a woman who was told by ACC that she needed a psychiatric report before they would approve further counselling.
The Injury, Prevention and Rehabilitation Act 2001 states that ACC is to reduce the incidence and severity of personal injury and minimise both the overall incidence of injury in the community, and the impact of injury on the community (including economic, social, and personal costs).
"According to its governing legislation, ACC should be helping survivors, not marginalizing them. Denying survivors who refuse to be labeled as mentally ill the help they need means that everyone suffers," Perry said.
"For most people ACC is the only agency to turn to in their time of need. Other agencies are underfunded and in short supply. If ACC is shirking from its responsibility to society, it needs to fund other counselling agencies," said Perry. "Instead ACC has shown that it is not committed to helping abuse survivors by creating obstacles for survivors to get help and cutting its funding of the Auckland Sexual Abuse Help Foundation's 24-hour crisis line and call-out service," said Perry.
Marchers will gather on Monday 19 October at the Albert Park Band Rotunda in Auckland at 12 noon; at the Cenotaph in Wellington at 12.30pm; at the Speakers' Corner, Cathedral Square in Christchurch at 12.30pm; and at the ACC offices on the corner of Maclaggan and Clark Streets in Dunedin at 3pm.

http://www.voxy.co.nz/national/survivors-outraged-acc039s-proposed-guideline-changes/5/27493