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

This matter concerned an application for a disability support pension by Mr Coutsournas, which had been rejected by the respondent and confirmed by an authorised review officer. The applicant sought a second review by the Tribunal after a previous review had affirmed the rejection decision. The core of the dispute revolved around whether the applicant met the legislative requirements for the pension, particularly concerning the stabilisation of his medical conditions and the application of relevant impairment tables.

The Tribunal was required to determine which version of the Impairment Tables Determination should apply, given that a new determination commenced during the applicant's qualification period. Specifically, the Tribunal had to consider whether the applicant's bilateral hip condition was "fully stabilised" according to the criteria in rule 6(6) of the relevant Determination, and whether there was a medical or other compelling reason for him not to undertake reasonable treatment.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant had not undertaken reasonable treatment within the terms of rule 6(6)(b)(ii) of either the 2011 or 2023 Determination. While the applicant presented evidence of deferring hip replacement surgery to pursue alternative therapies and expressed fear of the operation, there was no corroborating medical correspondence to support the claim that a specialist had advised against surgery or recommended alternative treatments. The Tribunal found that the applicant's deferral of surgery to November 2024, after being contacted by the hospital in May 2024 to arrange a date, did not satisfy the requirement for a medical or compelling reason not to undertake reasonable treatment.

Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision under review. The Tribunal noted that it was open to the applicant to lodge a fresh application for a disability support pension, provided he could amass strong medical evidence regarding his treatment and its impact on his functional ability to undertake work.