Persons with disabilities represent one of the largest vulnerable groups in Ukraine, with over 3 million people as of mid-2024. This number is expected to grow due to ongoing war, highlighting the need for improved social protection mechanisms for these individuals. The core of the respectful governmental policy is a definition of “disability”, which determines who qualifies for services or benefits, including those services and benefits and their amount. The approaches to defining disability vary globally, often leading to inconsistent recognition across countries. Disability assessments can be based on medical conditions, physical or mental impairments, or functional capacity, each with its own criteria and evaluation methods.
From January 1, 2025, Ukraine replaced the outdated Medical-Social Expert Commissions (MSEC) with digitalised assessment teams focusing on individuals' everyday functioning. This reform aims to simplify the disability recognition process, ensure transparency, and reduce corruption by introducing digital assessments and public dashboards with data. In Ukraine over 1,450 expert teams, comprising more than 4,000 medical practitioners, now handle disability assessments in major medical centres.
Although the reform focuses on improving procedural transparency, the medical approach remains dominant in defining disability, mostly ignoring the other aspects of disability and social inclusion. The reform does not involve a conceptual shift towards a more holistic understanding of disability and does not include all medical, economic, psychological and social factors. To align with European social standards and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Ukraine must eventually move beyond medical definitions and develop policies that promote full social and economic inclusion for people with disabilities, empowering them to fulfil their potential.
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