As a doctor, you’ve likely encountered many troubling, difficult-to-treat cases that lead your patients to take time off work. In some cases, these situations lead to denied Disability claims and that opens up a new set of challenges, not only for the patient but for you. Now you not only have to deal with the patient, but also with the disability insurance company.  

What Are the Reasons Long-Term Disability Claims Are Denied?

Many denied disability claims are due to what insurance companies consider a lack of proof.

Here are some general recommendations and advice for how best to manage the disability forms that you complete on behalf of your patient.

1. Refrain from rewriting discussions that you have had with your patient in which they tell you the details of their discussions with the disability insurance company or their lawyer. These notes will inevitably be seen by the insurance company when they request your clinical notes and records. 

2. If you haven’t firmly established a diagnosis but you’re certain that your patient is unable to work, clearly say this in the disability insurance forms for doctors. Disability insurance companies tend to use the lack of a definitive diagnosis as a reason to deny the client based on insufficient medical evidence. You may believe your patient’s symptoms are legitimate but need additional testing to make a precise diagnosis. This doesn’t mean that your patient is not disabled; it presumably means that establishing the next steps for treatment remains unclear.

3. When you provide narrative reports to the disability insurance company, make sure you give your opinion so that the insurer won’t interpret the notes unfavorably. 

4. Although suggesting that your patient work from home or take on lighter duties might keep your patient’s mind active and engaged and benefit them overall, it may backfire. The insurance company will focus on those comments and ignore whatever else you may have to say about your patient’s ability to work.

For Your Patients: Other Disability Benefits Programs

There are also federal programs that offer monetary relief and other benefits to workers with short term and long term disabilities, such as Canada Pension Plan disability benefits and Veteran benefits for those whose disability is in some way related to their service in the military. 

In addition, there are also provincial and territorial programs that offer monetary relief and other benefits to workers with short term and long term disabilities. Check with your provincial board to find out more about the workers’ compensation benefits in your area. You may also be eligible for disability support programs in your province.

The Benefits Finder can suggest benefits from federal, provincial or territorial governments, and does not collect or track your information. The more questions you answer, the more customized your results will be.

For Your Patients: What To Do if Your Claim Is Denied

Many cases for denied disability claims can take over a year to be resolved, which means your patient is suffering through not only the ailment itself, but also with the added stress of fighting with the insurance company.

More often than not, the patient keeps returning for help that you may not be able to provide, and the time arrives when the best thing you can do is refer the patient to someone that can actually help. The easiest way out is to refer the patient to a law firm with experienced disability lawyers who can help support your patient during this difficult time in their life. That’s where Share Lawyers can help you.

At Share Lawyers, we have been focusing on Disability Law for over 30 years. We understand that the legal battle is not the only battle that the patient is fighting; they are also fighting a personal battle that is uncompromising. Refer your patients to a firm that truly understands what the disability fight is all about, a firm that makes numerous patient resources available to help them get through the entire case with support and a faster success rate.

How Share Lawyers Can Help Your Patients

When you refer your patients to Share Lawyers you don’t have to deal with the patient time after time on your own as they battle with the disability insurance company. You immediately give them access to multiple resources that will support  the patient on numerous fronts, including multiple disability lawyers (not just one), additional medical resources that can help to verify and validate the claim, financial resources, plus a network of recommended support services and trusted physical and mental health therapists, all within a streamlined workflow that is built to accelerate the case progress. 

It’s called Life reBUILDER, exclusively from Share Lawyers. It offers unique add-on services to help rebuild a patient’s life and get them back on track. That is why we are truly different. 

If you have had your claim for long-term disability denied, contact the long-term disability insurance lawyers at Share Lawyers. Our experienced team of long-term disability (LTD) lawyers can help.   We have recently settled cases against Canada Life, Desjardins, Manulife, RBC Insurance, Sun Life, and many more. We offer free consultations and there are no fees unless we win your case. Find out if you have a disability case.

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