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

This matter concerned an application for a second review of a decision by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services to refuse MRZN’s claim for a Disability Support Pension (DSP). The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was required to consider whether MRZN met the eligibility criteria for a DSP, specifically whether she had a continuing inability to work by accumulating 20 or more impairment points under the relevant Impairment Tables.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether MRZN’s various physical and mental health conditions were fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised during the qualification period, and whether the available medical evidence sufficiently demonstrated the functional impact of these conditions to warrant the allocation of impairment points. A further issue was whether MRZN had undertaken a program of support, which is a mandatory requirement if an applicant accumulates 20 or more points under more than one Impairment Table.

The Tribunal noted that while the Secretary accepted MRZN had impairments, a significant number of her conditions could not be assigned impairment points due to a lack of mandatory diagnostic requirements under the relevant determination. For instance, there was insufficient evidence from a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist to confirm diagnoses for her mental health conditions within the qualification period. Furthermore, although her pain conditions were accepted as diagnosed, treated, and stabilised, there was a lack of corroborative medical evidence regarding their functional impact. The Tribunal also observed that MRZN had not undertaken any program of support, a prerequisite for eligibility if 20 or more points were accumulated across multiple Impairment Tables.

Ultimately, the Tribunal affirmed the decision of the Social Services and Child Support Division, finding that MRZN was not eligible for a DSP based on her claim made on 28 January 2022. The Tribunal suggested that MRZN gather comprehensive medical evidence detailing how her conditions affect her daily living and ability to work to support any future application.