The Disability Application

Disability insurance claimants who have been denied their long-term disability benefits frequently ask whether the insurance company is permitted to deny their benefits based on the opinions of hired physicians who have never even examined them, but have only reviewed their medical records. They ask, how can they possibly know my true condition without examining me? Unfortunately, paper reviews by hired gun doctors are a common practice by disability insurance companies as they tend to get away with this abusive tactic since many courts deem a paper review as reasonable. However, in a recent disability lawsuit against The Standard Insurance Company, the Sixth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals disagreed.
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Language in disability insurance policies can vary from being very favorable for the insured to being so unfavorable that even the severely disabled would have difficulty qualifying for benefits. Most disability policies, for at least some period of time, provide disability benefits in the event that the insured is not able to perform the substantial and material duties of their “own occupation” or “regular occupation”. The definition of “own occupation” can vary depending on the state where the policy is issued and the insurance company that issues the policy. Most people believe that their “own occupation” disability policy insures them in the event that they cannot perform the specific duties of their specific job at their specific employer, however, that is not always the case, and certainly not the case in some group disability policies issued by The Standard Insurance Company.
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It is no secret that disability insurance companies will often seek out the same medical consultants that they have used hundreds of times before to perform “independent” medical reviews of disability claims. This would not pose a problem if the medical consultants (i.e., physician, nurse, therapist) were fair, unbiased and not affected by the huge financial rewards which come with maintaining a steady stream of business flowing from a client that is a multi-billion dollar insurance company.
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Three Plaintiffs have filed separate lawsuits against Standard Insurance Company (Standard) for the wrongful denial of long term disability benefit payments as defined by the terms of their respective Plans. The Plaintiffs filed these lawsuits in the States of South Carolina and Florida (two cases).
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The Plaintiff, Barbara M., with the help of her Florida Disability Lawyer, filed this lawsuit against Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company and Hope Hospice & Community Services, Inc. for the wrongful denial of short term and long term disability benefits.

In Barbara M. Vs Reliance Standard and Hope, Plaintiff seeks rightful reinstatement of Short Term and Long Term Disability Benefits as defined by the Plan.
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