In part three of our series on disability claims and COVID-19 (see Part 1 here and Part 2 here), we turn our focus to claims for mental health conditions during the current health crisis.
Cannabis (marijuana) has been a hot topic recently as Canada has legalized recreational use of cannabis as of October 17, 2018. The legal framework for medical cannabis was previously outlined in the Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations under the Controlled Substances Act. This legal framework has stayed the same after the legalization of recreational cannabis, but, it is now outlined in the Cannabis Regulations under the Cannabis Act.
You may have heard of medical cannabis and are wondering if it is right for you. In this article, I will give an overview of what cannabis is, the risks and side effects of use, the legal framework for medical cannabis, who can prescribe medical cannabis, and insurance coverage.
Courtney Mulqueen, Partner at MK Disability Lawyers, was interviewed and quoted by CBC News regarding life insurance and mental illness. The article is about a man in Elmira, Ontario who says that his application for life insurance was denied by Sun Life Financial because he has generalized anxiety disorder.
A while back we wrote an article about the use of surveillance by insurance companies in Long-Term Disability (LTD) claims (“Surveillance and LTD Claims: Are They Watching Me and Why?”). The article provided disabled individuals with useful information to help them understand how surveillance may be used in their LTD claims and lawsuits. Since then, one of the most frequently asked questions we have had from clients and others about surveillance has been whether insurance companies use surveillance in Mental Health Long-term Disability (LTD) insurance claims.
A large proportion of disability cases we see at MK Disability Lawyers is due to mental illness. We have helped clients suffering from a range of mental health conditions including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, panic disorder, social phobia, addictions, and many others.
Unfortunately, many disability claims resulting from mental illness are denied by insurance companies. There are many reasons for this. Mental illness is an “invisible” disability and it is not always obvious when someone is suffering from mental illness. Compounding this problem is that there continues to be a stigma associated with mental illness, which further causes people to hide the illness from family, friends, co-workers, and sometimes even health care practitioners.
In this blog article, I am going to explore the main reasons why mental health disability claims get denied and how you can help your case.
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