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

This matter concerned an application for a second tier review of a decision to refuse a disability support pension. The applicant, Mrs Flynn, claimed her eligibility for the pension was based on several conditions: fibromyalgia, nausea/dizziness, frontal lobe atrophy, bowel disturbance, and a mood disorder. The dispute centred on whether these conditions were fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised within the qualification period, and whether they attracted a sufficient impairment rating under the relevant Impairment Tables.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to determine if Mrs Flynn's claimed medical conditions met the criteria for a disability support pension. Specifically, the Tribunal had to assess whether each condition was permanent, meaning it was fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised, and likely to persist for more than two years from the date of claim. This involved considering whether reasonable treatment had been undertaken and if further treatment was unlikely to result in significant functional improvement enabling the applicant to work.

The Tribunal found that while some conditions, such as frontal lobe atrophy, were diagnosed, they were not fully treated and stabilised within the qualification period. Similarly, suspected vestibular dysfunction and migraine were not considered fully diagnosed, treated, or stabilised. The applicant had not participated in a program of support, and her mood disorder had not been diagnosed by a specialist. Furthermore, recommended further investigations for her nausea and dizziness had not been completed within the relevant period. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded that the applicant's conditions did not meet the necessary threshold for the assignment of impairment ratings under the Impairment Tables. The decision affirmed the previous refusal of the disability support pension.