17-year-old David F. is being treated at Vienna General Hospital for epilepsy and an autism spectrum disorder. He has also registered his main residence with his uncle in Vienna. And in Vienna, he wanted to do an apprenticeship at the "On the Job" vocational qualification programme run by Wien Work. In Lower Austria, where his parents live, there is no suitable option that is accessible by public transport, according to David's parents. "But because the federal states are responsible for people with disabilities, and because the regulations from Vienna and Lower Austria don't match, nobody felt responsible for funding David's training - and he has been sitting at home waiting for a year," criticises Ombudsman Bernhard Achitz. This has already led to depression for David, say his parents.
Vienna and Lower Austria should have found a solution more quickly
It is only now, after the Ombudsman's Office has intervened and the ORF programme "Bürgeranwalt" has started to investigate, that a solution is emerging: Lower Austria will cover the costs until David comes of age, after which they will be borne by the Vienna Social Fund (FSW). Ombudsman Achitz: "I am pleased that Vienna and Lower Austria are no longer blocking David's path to employment. He has many talents, such as technical understanding and a perfect ear. However, I criticise the fact that this solution was not possible right from the start. David has spent a year of his life waiting."
States should coordinate so that those affected are not caught between two stools
The background to this is that Lower Austria stipulates a main residence in Lower Austria as a condition for eligibility - which David does not have. According to Viennese law, however, it is not David's main place of residence that is decisive, but that of his parents - because they live in Lower Austria, there is no Viennese funding. "As with the issue of care home funding, this example shows that the federal states make their own laws, and they don't fit together. More coordination is urgently needed here so that those affected are not caught between two stools," says Ombudsman Achitz.
"As with the issue of care homes, it is clear that the laws of the federal states do not fit together. More coordination is needed so that those affected are not caught between two stools," says Ombudsman Bernhard Achitz.