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

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Kosturski against a decision of the Secretary of the Department of Social Services regarding his eligibility for a disability support pension. The appeal was heard by Dr Damien Cremean, Senior Member.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Mr Kosturski satisfied the statutory requirements under section 94 of the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth) for a disability support pension. Specifically, the Tribunal was required to determine if Mr Kosturski’s impairments, namely cervical spondylosis and L5 disc protrusion, constituted a severe impairment under Table 4 of the Impairment Tables, and whether these conditions had been fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised.

The Senior Member found that the evidence before the Tribunal did not sufficiently demonstrate that Mr Kosturski's conditions had been fully diagnosed, treated, and stabilised. While the medical evidence indicated the presence of cervical spondylosis and an L5 disc protrusion, there was a lack of clarity regarding the extent to which these conditions had been treated and whether they had reached a point of stability. Consequently, the Tribunal could not be satisfied that the severe impairment threshold under the relevant Impairment Table had been met.

The decision of the Secretary was set aside, and the matter was remitted to the Secretary for reconsideration in accordance with the findings of the Tribunal.