Badita and Secretary, Department of Social Services (Social services second review)

This matter concerned an application for review of a decision by the Secretary, Department of Social Services, to reject the applicant's claim for a Disability Support Pension (DSP). The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to determine whether the applicant met the criteria for a DSP under section 94(1) of the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth).

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant suffered from a physical, intellectual, or psychiatric impairment during the relevant qualification period, whether this impairment was fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised and attracted a rating of 20 points or more under Table 12 of the impairment tables, and whether the applicant had a continuing inability to work. The qualification period was established as 3 November 2016 to 2 February 2017, meaning only evidence pertaining to the applicant's condition within this timeframe was relevant.

The Tribunal applied the principles established in *Gallacher v Secretary, Department of Social Services* and *Harris v Secretary, Department of Employment and Workplace Relations*, which confirm that an applicant's entitlement to a DSP must be considered as at the date of their claim and for a period of 13 weeks thereafter, with any subsequent changes in health being irrelevant unless they shed light on the condition during the relevant period. The Tribunal also referred to the "Introduction to Table 12," which outlines the requirements for using the table, including the need for a diagnosis by a qualified medical practitioner with supporting evidence from an ophthalmologist, and that self-reporting of symptoms alone is insufficient. The applicant's claim was based on blindness in her right eye due to Wyburn Mason Syndrome.