What does the term “own occupation” mean in disability insurance coverage? The answer to that question was recently provided by a federal court in New Jersey. The case of Patterson v. Aetna Life Insurance Co., 2017 WL 4786562 (D. N.J., Oct. 23, 2017), involved Christopher Patterson, who became disabled in 2007 following spine surgery and […]
That question was answered in a recently reported federal court ruling from Michigan, Sun v. United of Omaha Life Ins. Co., 2017 WL 3050477 (E.D. Mich. July 19, 2017). The case involved Julia Sun, who worked as a registered nurse caring for quadriplegic patients. After she injured her foot in 2010, and because she also […]
Awareness of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has increased in recent years, especially in light of news reports about veterans and warriors suffering from the condition after serving our country. What many people are not aware of is the fact the PTSD is not solely linked to military service. Any terrifying or traumatic event can serve […]
A cynical observer once commented that “no good deed goes unpunished.” Unfortunately for the plaintiff in Boyles v. American Heritage Life Insurance Co., 2016 WL 7489048 (W.D. Pa. Dec. 28, 2016), that expression dictated the outcome in this case. The plaintiff, Robert P. Boyles Jr., worked as a commercial insurance producer for an agency that had […]
The determination of a claimant’s physical exertional capability is critical in cases involving occupational assessment. The U.S. Department of Labor has created specific categories, “sedentary,” “light,” “medium” and “heavy,” to define the physical requirements of various jobs; and the Social Security Administration utilizes the same terminology in its disability insurance program.
Short-term and long-term disability plans are supposed to provide workers and professionals with coverage to make ends meet when a serious medical impairment or injury takes the person away from work. Not everybody participates in these insurance plans. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says the roughly 39 percent of people working in private […]