By: Lawrence Pierce
When you become disabled because of illness or injury, you should apply to C.P.P. for a disability pension.
These pensions are becoming increasingly difficult to get, because the rules changed recently. If you are lucky enough to get the pension, you will receive about $ 750 per month. When you have disability insurance, you must use all efforts to get the C.P.P benefits, because if you do not, your insurance company will deduct what you might have gotten from C.P.P. from the amount they give you.
The new test for total disability at C.P.P. is whether your condition is ' severe and prolonged,' and disables you. It would be good to tell your doctor about the test, and have her write on your behalf, keeping the test in mind.
C.P.P. has also been denying claims because the medical evidence is ' subjective' only. Fibromyalgia (FM) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) are generally considered by C.P.P. as subjective ailments because the diagnosis of these conditions relies in large part on the report of the patent. For some funny reason, if a psychiatrist reports that a person has a mental illness; it is not considered ' subjective' even though the psychiatrist's opinion is based solely on what the patient says. A Rheumatologist has just as clear a set of guidelines to diagnose FM as a psychiatrist has to diagnose mental illness.
Your doctor should make it clear that , for example, if you have FM, it has been diagnosed by a Rheumatologist, but that more importantly, it is his/her opinion, exercising clinical judgment , that you present as totally disabled. The best doctor's letter these days is no guarantee of a successful application, but there are several appeals from the first decision.
File you appeal in time, and get legal advice. It is critical to keep filing appeals until you are successful, and it is critical to get the correct medical evidence before the Appeal Tribunal.
About the Author:
Lawrence Pierce is a Vancouver lawyer, with Pierce Law Group, specializing in disability insurance cases. He has recently won judgments against Sun Life, Great West Life, and Unum Life for aggravated damages
Vancouver, B.C. 850 475 W. Georgia Street, Call Lawrence Pierce now: 604 681 4434 http://www.bcdisabilitylaw.com Fees by Percentage No Money Required In Most Cases
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