Belated happy Thanksgiving.  Always a refuge of feast, family and festivity in the rush to the end of the year work and celebrations.  In Northern California and Lake Tahoe it's been a long extended Fall season, with winter reluctant to arrive.  Lots of sun, some cool, some cold, some mild, but little rain or snow.  Not even sure if the bears at Tahoe have seriously thought of hibernation yet. The coyotes have been a bit more visible, probably taking advantage of easier hunting of various rodents.  They know it'll get considerably more challenging when several hundred inches of snow blankets the forests and mountains.  Best to fatten up now. 

Unfortunately, this time of year serves to underscore the hardship of so many individuals with work disabilities who have been denied long term disability insurance benefits.  Anecdotal evidence from my practice suggests an ever increasing number of disabled and uninsured are at critical risk for losing their housing, along with health care.  And even more unfortunately, little can be done to lessen the extreme hardships many are enduring.  What I  can do is respond quickly to every client concern, and always be available to talk to clients and explain the claims and federal court appeal process for a long term disability insurance (erisa) case.  A realistic understanding and knowledge of the legal process provides a basis for making many of hard decisions required when  facing a work disability and income crisis. 

Those of you currently involved in a long term disability insurance claim, where benefits have been denied, are gaining an understanding of the grossly uneven playing field on which you find yourself with the insurance company or large corporation.  I have focused on this area of law for some years now, and have wondered how extreme can it get.  Just how far will an insurance company push the very forgiving limits of ERISA?  The blind individual should be able to learn brail within 12 months and be fully fit for sedentary employment.  Really?  How about someone who is dead?  Are they also fit for sedentary employment?  I'll find out and let you know in future posts.  My client, very ill with numerous serious conditions, was on long term disability benefits for some years, and then cut off, since it was reasonsed that she was actually malingering so she could stay home and take care of her children.  Sedentary employment would be well within in her capacity according to the insurance company doctors.  So big insurance company sends her their final benefits denied letter and she dies just days later of medical complications.  More to come on this later. 

If you have any useful advice or resources for disabled people facing eviction or forclosure, please feel free to contact me so I can pass it along to disabled individuals I work with.  Regards, Randy Noah