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

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Hermann against a decision by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services to refuse him a disability support pension. The dispute centred on whether Mr Hermann met the legislative requirements for the pension, specifically concerning his physical and psychological conditions and their impact on his capacity to work. The case was heard by I Thompson M.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether Mr Hermann's conditions were fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised, as required by the Impairment Tables for the allocation of an impairment rating. Furthermore, the Tribunal had to determine if Mr Hermann had a continuing inability to work, which was contingent on his active participation in a program of support as stipulated by the relevant legislation.

The Tribunal considered the Impairment Tables, which assess functional capacity rather than diagnosis, and noted that a pre-requisite for assigning an impairment rating is that the condition causing the impairment is permanent, meaning it has been fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised. While the Secretary conceded that Mr Hermann met the threshold for impairment ratings for his shoulder and knee conditions, the Secretary contended that Mr Hermann failed to demonstrate a continuing inability to work due to a lack of participation in a program of support. The Tribunal ultimately found that Mr Hermann had not qualified for the disability support pension at the time of his claim and during the assessment period.