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

This matter concerned an appeal by Mr Rade against a decision by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services regarding his eligibility for a disability support pension. The central dispute revolved around whether Mr Rade’s medical condition, Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH), was fully diagnosed, fully treated, and fully stabilised during the relevant assessment period, and whether he suffered from a severe impairment that prevented him from working. The case was heard by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were twofold: firstly, whether Mr Rade’s impairment, arising from his PAH, could be assigned 20 points or more under the Impairment Tables during the assessment period; and secondly, if this threshold was met, whether he had a continuing inability to work. The Tribunal was required to consider the condition of his PAH, the treatment he received, and the prognosis for his condition in determining these issues.

The Tribunal reasoned that while the diagnosis of PAH was accepted as complete, the question of whether the condition was fully treated and stabilised required careful consideration of the legislative criteria. Section 6(6) of the Impairment Tables defines a condition as fully stabilised where further reasonable treatment is unlikely to result in significant functional improvement enabling the person to undertake work within the next two years. The Tribunal noted that Mr Rade's PAH diagnosis and aggressive treatment commenced shortly before his claim for the disability support pension. The treatment regime, which was ongoing and complex, was deemed reasonable. Medical reports indicated that the condition remained incurable and the prognosis was poor, suggesting that further reasonable treatment was unlikely to lead to significant functional improvement. The Tribunal applied the principle that the assessment of stabilisation must be forward-looking, considering the likely effect of treatment at the time of the claim and in the subsequent 13 weeks, rather than relying solely on hindsight.

Ultimately, the Tribunal was satisfied that Mr Rade had a continuing inability to work. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the decision under review and determined that Mr Rade was qualified to receive the disability support pension from 17 February 2015.