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

This matter concerned an appeal by Ms Collett against a decision of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) which affirmed the Secretary of the Department of Social Services' decision to reject her application for a Disability Support Pension (DSP). The core of the dispute revolved around whether Ms Collett's various medical conditions met the criteria for receiving a DSP, specifically whether her impairments resulted in a total of 20 or more impairment points.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether Ms Collett suffered from impairments that were fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised, and whether these impairments, when assessed under the Social Security (Tables for the Assessment of Work-related Impairment for Disability Support Pension) Determination 2011, accumulated to at least 20 impairment points. The Tribunal was required to apply the definitions of "permanent" and "fully stabilised" as set out in the Determination, which consider not only the diagnosis and treatment of a condition but also the likelihood of functional improvement and the availability and reasonableness of further treatment.

The Tribunal reasoned that for an impairment to be considered permanent and eligible for rating under the Impairment Tables, it must be fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised, and more likely than not to persist for two years. The Tribunal found that Ms Collett's conditions, including her upper limb and spine conditions, obstructive sleep apnoea, obesity, and mental health conditions, did not meet these stringent criteria. For instance, her shoulder condition was not considered fully treated due to ongoing treatment options and potential surgery, and her obesity was complicated by issues with a gastric band. Ultimately, the Tribunal concluded that Ms Collett's conditions could only be assigned a total of 10 impairment points.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the AAT's decision, which in turn affirmed the Department's decision to reject Ms Collett's application for DSP. The Tribunal also noted, for completeness, that even if the impairment points threshold had been met, Ms Collett's application was likely to have failed due to an assessment indicating she had a work capacity of at least 15 hours per week within two years with intervention.