P A R T C D e c i s i o n u n d e r A p p e a l T h e d e c i s i o n u n d e r a p p e a l i s t h e M i n i s t r y o f S o c i a l D r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n d a t e d J a n u a r y 1 4 , 2 0 1 4 w h s u p p l e m e n t t o c o v e r t h e c o s t o f a s c o o t e r . T h e m i n S c h e d u l e C o f t h e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e f o r P w e r e n o t m e t : t h e a s s e s s m e n t b y a n o c c u p a t i o n a l t h e r a p i s t d o p u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n 3 ( 2 ) ( b ) ; a n d , t h e m i n i s t r y i s n o t s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e s c o o t e r i s m m o b i l i t y , p u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n 3 . 4 ( 3 ) ( c ) . P A R T D R e l e v a n t L e g i s l a t i o n E m p l o y m e n t a n d P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b i l i t i e s R e g u l a t i o S e c t i o n s 3 a n d 3 . 4e v e l o p m e n t a n d S o c i a l I n n o v a t i o n ( m i n i s t r y ) i c h d e n i e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s r e q u e s t f o r a i s t r y f o u n d t h a t t h e f o l l o w i n g r e q u i r e m e n t s o f e r s o n s W i t h D i s a b i l i t i e s R e g u l a t i o n ( E A P W D R ) e s n o t c o n f i r m a m e d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e s c o o t e r , e d i c a l l y e s s e n t i a l t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c n ( E A P W D R ) , S e c t i o n 6 2 a n d S c h e d u l e C ,
P ART E -Summ ary of Facts The ev idence be fore t he mini stry at th e tim e of th e 1) Qu ote from a he alt h p r oduc t com pany dat ed amoun t o f $3,500; 2) M e dical Equ i pme n t Reques t a nd Jus ti ficat ion appel l a nt's m e dical con d i tion is th at he ha s ch oste oarthri ti s ) with ref r a ctor y sciat i ca / leg weakn i s a m o t o ri zed sco ote r ; 3) Let ter d ated July 29, 2013 fr om an occup a tional therap par t that : • The appellant h as c hroni c de gene r a ti ve dys lexia, a nd h ad a L5-S1 d isce c t o my • The appellant ha s sig n ifican t bac k pa in He h as frequ e nt fa lls both insi d e hi s home an • The app e llant l o oks aft er hi s s o n 50 % c a r e givi ng acti viti es, i nc lud ing a c companyin • The appellan t also strug gles w it h g r o c f aci lities. • The appellan t is in dependent w it h t r ansfers an his home. • Fo r ou tdoor mob il ity, hi s weakness tolerance is ar t h e a p pella nt had s low ed ga i t and increa actin g pa in med ic a t ion and lie down. • The appellan t has t r ie d a wheel ed walk • The appellan t has fun c t ional rang e of • For l ow er extremi ty fu ncti on , the app el bo th legs. H i s l eft side has greater weakness r e por ts he ha s fallen over 20 t imes in the past pins a nd nee dles i n bot h legs . • The a p pella nt r e p orts th at he ha s sig nificant when he sp e nds mo r e time on his fe et. sp e nds the rest of t h e d ay lyin g d ow n due to pain. • It is recommended that the appellant us impro ve his safety. He would also be able to use it on the HandyDART bus and whe elchair taxi; 4) S upp le m ent al M e di cal O p inion from th e OT dated November 22, 2013 wh appellant's impairments make it very difficult fo He gets very tired e asily and often fe els fatigued and sore. scooter is medically essential for the appellan h an dwritten comm en t add ed: "a scooter is ne 5) Supplemental Medical Opinion from a physician dated December 30, 2013 which includes the same comments as t h at of th e OT's opinion and the p is medically essential for the appellant to achieve or maintain basic mobility with a handwritten comment added: "has severe lumbar disc osteoarthritis/ degenerative disease-can only ambulate 5 minutes b efore having to stop and rest. for longer trips/ outings and improve quality of life." 6) Letter faxed Januarv 8, 2014 in which the aooellant's son wrote that a scooter would helo the L recons id eratio n d ecision inc luded: Ju ly 1 2, 20 13 for a S hop ri der scooter in the total da ted July 22, 2 013 w hich s tates in pa rt tha t th e r on ic de g e ne rat ive di s c di sease (lum bar s p ine ess an d t he medical equipmen t rec ommend ed i st (OT) to th e ministr y wh ich stat es i n b ack pain , depres si o n , o st eop orosis a nd i n 2 000 . an d t roubl e wi th a ll mobi li ty outside of hi s ho me. d outdoo r s . of the time and is u na bl e to p a rt icipat e i n ma n y g him on acti v i ti es ou ts i de the h ouse. ery s hop ping an d accessing othe r com munity d is abl e to w a l k sh or t d i stan ces inside o u n d 4 00 m e t e rs. Af ter 200 met er s, sed l impin g and bac k fl exion, h a d to take fast er bu t repo rts it ag gravated his b ack p ain. movement and strength in b oth arms. lant h a s fu nc t ional ran ge bu t mu sc le wea k n ess in a nd his legs often g iv e ou t o n hi m. H e 3 m ont hs. He reports t h e sensati on o f pain on a dail y bas i s . H i s pa in incr eases He sta tes tha t after grocery s ho ppin g he e a scooter to a ssist with ou tdoor mobil ity and ich states that the r him t o move about both i ndo ors and outd oo rs. The OT agrees that an electric t to achieve or maintain basic mobility, with a cess a r y f o r basic mo b ility outside his home. " h ys ician agrees that t h e electric s co oter Scooter w ould gr eatl y facilitate am bulation
appellant because he would be able to be his coach for cross-country running, he would be able to go out more and go for walks; and, 7) Request for Reconsideration dated November 22, 2013. In his Notice of Appeal, the appellant expressed his disagreement with the ministry's reconsideration decision. The appellant wrote that he believes he has met the criteria for a scooter because he has the support of his OT and his family physician. At the hearing, the appellant and his advocate stated that: • He has provided a prescription from his family physician which was not included as part of the ministry's materials. • An assessment has also been provided from his OT which confirms his medical need for the scooter. The OT sets out that the appellant has significant back pain and trouble with all mobility outside of his home, including accompanying his son outdoors and going grocery shopping or to other places in the community. • He has a friend who he calls to do his grocery shopping for him. Some stores provide a scooter for the customers and he can do his shopping with the use of a scooter. For doctor appointments, he will either take a cab or drive his own vehicle. • The OT reported that the appellant has significant pain on a daily basis. He has muscle weakness and frequent falls. • The appellant's physician and his OT have signed additional letters expressing a professional opinion that the scooter is medically essential for the appellant to achieve basic mobility. • The ministry suggested that remedial measures such as pain medications can be used, but this is a subjective assumption and the ministry is not in a position to prescribe medications and it is not reflective of the requirements in the legislation. • He has to go for regular tests to determine the amount of drugs in his system and, if there are any other drugs, he will not be given his narcotics. His family physician is under strict guidelines and must restrict the amount of pain medication prescribed so that the appellant can only take the medication twice daily. His physician is even encouraged to reduce the dosage of the medication rather than increase it, as has been suggested by the ministry, • The appellant's functional mobility is very limited. His walking tolerance is around 400 meters but after 200 meters his gait is slowed, he has increased limping and back flexion. He has to take fast-acting pain medication and to lie down. • While public transit may assist the appellant with outdoor mobility, he can only walk a short distance. He could possibly use public transit to get to a store, for example, but he "cannot take the bus into the store." • He tried a wheeled walker for a period of 4 to 5 months and it aggravated his back pain. The angle of the walker requires him to bend forward too much which stresses his thoracic and lumbar spine. • Although the ministry suggested that the appellant use a cane to steady himself, it is reasonable to assume that this option will also aggravate the appellant's back pain. • He had surgery on discs at L5-S1 and he now has problems with other discs down his back as his condition is getting worse. • His physician is getting "fed up" with filling out forms and will just answer the one question put to him rather than providing further information to explain. • The advocate has observed that the appellant is visibly in significant pain after travelling to the advocate's office for his interviews.
T h e m i n i s t r y r e l i e d o n i t s r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n d e c i s i o n . a p p e l l a n t w a s r e q u i r e d t o p r o v i d e b o t h a p r e s c r i p t i o a s s e s s m e n t c o n f i r m i n g t h e m e d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e s c o t h e E A P W D R , l i k e l y b e c a u s e a s c o o t e r i s a m o r e c o p r e s c r i p t i o n h a s b e e n p r o v i d e d b y t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p h m a n u a l w h e e l c h a i r o r a c a n e t o a s s i s t w i t h t h e a p p e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t c a n n o t u s e p u b l i c t r a n s i t . A t t h e h e a r i n g , t h e m i n i s t r y c l a r i f i e d t h a t t h e n f r o m a m e d i c a l o r n u r s e p r a c t i t i o n e r a n d a n o t e r , p u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n 3 ( 2 ) o f S c h e d u l e C o f s t l y i t e m . T h e m i n i s t r y i s s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e y s i c i a n . T h e O T d i d n o t r e v i e w t h e o p t i o n s o f a l l a n t ' s m o b i l i t y , a n d t h e m i n i s t r y i s n o t s a t i s f i e d P a g e 5 o f 1 0
P A R T F R e a s o n s f o r P a n e l D e c i s i o n T h e i s s u e o n t h e a p p e a l i s w h e t h e r t h e m i n i s t r y ' s d e s u p p l e m e n t t o c o v e r t h e c o s t o f a s c o o t e r b e c a u s e : t h e a s s e s s m e n t b y a n O T d o e s n o t c o n f i r m a m e t h e m i n i s t r y i s n o t s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e s c o o t e r i s m e m o b i l i t y , a s r e q u i r e d b y S c h e d u l e C o f t h e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A R e g u l a t i o n ( E A P W D R ) , i s r e a s o n a b l y s u p p o r t e d b y a p p l i c a b l e e n a c t m e n t i n t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s o f t h e a p P u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n 6 2 o f t h e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s ( E A P W D R ) , t h e a p p l i c a n t m u s t b e a r e c i p i e n t o f d i s i n r e c e i p t o f d i s a b i l i t y a s s i s t a n c e i n a v a r i e t y o f s c e n E A P W D R s p e c i f i e s a d d i t i o n a l c r i t e r i a t h a t m u s t b e m v a r i o u s i t e m s . I n t h i s c a s e , t h e m i n i s t r y h a s n o t d i s p m e t i n t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h _ a s b e e n a p p r o v e d a s a r e A t i s s u e i s w h e t h e r t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s r e q u e s t f o r a s c o t h e E A P W D R , i n c l u d i n g : M e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t a n d d e v i c e s 3 ( 1 ) S u b j e c t t o s u b s e c t i o n s ( 2 ) t o ( 5 ) o f t h i s s e c t i o n , t h e m e d i c o f t h i s S c h e d u l e a r e t h e h e a l t h s u p p l e m e n t s t h a t m a y b e ( a ) t h e s u p p l e m e n t s a r e p r o v i d e d t o a f a m i l y u n i t t h a t i s e l r e g u l a t i o n , a n d ( b ) a l l o f t h e f o l l o w i n g r e q u i r e m e n t s a r e m e t ( i ) t h e f a m i l y u n i t h a s r e c e i v e d t h e p r e a u t h o r i z a t i o n o f ( i i ) t h e r e a r e n o r e s o u r c e s a v a i l a b l e t o t h e f a m i l y u n i t t o ( i i i ) t h e m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e i s t h e l e a s t e x p e n ( 2 ) F o r m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e s r e f e r r e d t o i n s e c t i o n s t h o s e s e c t i o n s a n d s u b s e c t i o n ( 1 ) o f t h i s s e c t i o n , t h e f a m f o l l o w i n g , a s r e q u e s t e d b y t h e m i n i s t e r : ( a ) a p r e s c r i p t i o n o f a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r o r n u r s e p r a c t i t ( b ) a n a s s e s s m e n t b y a n o c c u p a t i o n a l t h e r a p i s t o r p h y s i c e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e . . . . M e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t a n d d e v i c e s s c o o t e r s 3 . 4 ( 1 ) I n t h i s s e c t i o n , " s c o o t e r " d o e s n o t i n c l u d e a s c o o t e r w i ( 2 ) S u b j e c t t o s u b s e c t i o n ( 5 ) o f t h i s s e c t i o n , t h e f o l l o w i n g i o f t h i s S c h e d u l e i f a l l o f t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s s e t o u t i n s u b ( a ) a s c o o t e r ; ( b ) a n u p g r a d e d c o m p o n e n t o f a s c o o t e r ; ( c ) a n a c c e s s o r y a t t a c h e d t o a s c o o t e r . ( 3 ) T h e f o l l o w i n g a r e t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i n r e l a t i o n t o a n i t e m c i s i o n , w h i c h d e n i e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s r e q u e s t f o r a d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e s c o o t e r ; a n d , d i c a l l y e s s e n t i a l t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c s s i s t a n c e f o r P e r s o n s W i t h D i s a b i l i t i e s t h e e v i d e n c e o r a r e a s o n a b l e a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e p e l l a n t . i s t a n c e f o r P e r s o n s w i t h D i s a b i l i t i e s R e g u l a t i o n a b i l i t y a s s i s t a n c e , o r b e a d e p e n d a n t o f a p e r s o n a r i o s . I f t h a t c o n d i t i o n i s m e t , S c h e d u l e C o f t h e e t i n o r d e r t o q u a l i f y f o r a h e a l t h s u p p l e m e n t f o r u t e d t h a t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t o f S e c t i o n 6 2 h a s b e e n c i p i e n t o f d i s a b i l i t y a s s i s t a n c e . o t e r m e e t s t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s u n d e r S c h e d u l e C o f a l e q u i p m e n t a n d d e v i c e s d e s c r i b e d i n s e c t i o n s 3 . 1 t o 3 . 1 2 p r o v i d e d b y t h e m i n i s t e r i f i g i b l e u n d e r s e c t i o n 6 2 [ g e n e r a l h e a l t h s u p p l e m e n t s ] o f t h i s t h e m i n i s t e r f o r t h e m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e r e q u e s t e d ; p a y t h e c o s t o f o r o b t a i n t h e m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e ; s i v e a p p r o p r i a t e m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e . 3 . 1 t o 3 . 8 o r s e c t i o n 3 . 1 2 , i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i n i l y u n i t m u s t p r o v i d e t o t h e m i n i s t e r o n e o r b o t h o f t h e i o n e r f o r t h e m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e ; a l t h e r a p i s t c o n f i r m i n g t h e m e d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e m e d i c a l t h 2 w h e e l s . t e m s a r e h e a l t h s u p p l e m e n t s f o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f s e c t i o n 3 s e c t i o n ( 3 ) o f t h i s s e c t i o n a r e m e t : r e f e r r e d t o i n s u b s e c t i o n ( 2 ) o f t h i s s e c t i o n :
( a ) an asse ssmen t by an oc cupation al t hera pi s t or a physi pe rson f o r whom the sc oote r h a s b een pre scribed w following the assessmen t; ( b) th e to tal cost o f the scoote r and a ny accessor ies atta sub sectio n (3.1) ap plies, $4 5 00; (c ) th e mini ste r is sa tisf ied that t he it em is medically ess Me d ical Need The mi n i str y 's po s i tion is that the a ppel lant i s e l igi b l of the EAPWDR, bu t the app e lla n t's request for a s upplem m e et all of the appl icable criteria of Schedul e C of the EAP r equirements in Section 3(2)(b) ha v e not be en me t as, wh app e ll an t's p hysic i a n, the a sses sment by the OT d o The mi n i str y argued that the a ss e s sme nt by the OT indicated th the appellant's mob il ity issues an d rem edia l me asures amel ior ate pain a nd a l lo w fo r better functionality . Th perform the majori ty of h i s act iviti e s o f d aily li ving and the di in strumental activ ities o f daily l iving s u c h as g r ocery s and s ports activitie s. The m i n i stry argued tha t the r e is use p ublic trans portatio n an d the a p pella n t c urrently s te a dy him self an d r educ e t he amo unt of fa l ls he r e ass ess t he use of equipment o ther than a s coo ter , suc medicat i ons , or a man u a l wh eelcha i r, to mee t the a ppellant's Th e advo cate a rg ued that the ministr y ackn owledged med ical practi ti o ner a nd this me ets the r e q ui r em ent prescript i o n or the assessment, as set out in Section 3 alternative tha t the requirem ents o f t he section h a ve minis try by his OT and his family ph ys ician. The physi Opini on that the appel lant has c hronic d egen erative faci litate ambul a tion and the OT report e d that the app all mobility ou t si de of his h ome. The advocate arg ued tha significant pain on a daily basis and frequent falls both inside his home and outdoors. argued that the OT is of the opinion that the appellant needs a scooter to maintain his independence with accessing basic dai l y needs such as ob t ai ning a nd acco mpa nying his s on on activities ou tside the Panel decision The ministry clarified that the appellant was required to provide both a prescription from a medical or nurse practitioner and an assessment by an OT confirming the medical need for the scooter, pursuant to S e cti o n 3 (2 ) o f Schedule C of the EAPWDR. prescription has been provided by the appellant's physi assessment by the OT does not confirm the. medical need for the medical equipment. finds that, while the assessment by the OT identifies impacts from the appellant's medical conditions that dictate a medical need for equipment or a device to assist with mobility, the assessment confirm the medical need for a motorized scooter in particular. c a l t h e r a p is t has confirm ed tha t i t i s unlikel y that the ill h a v e a medica l nee d f or a wheelchair during the 5 years c hed to th e scooter does no t exc eed $3 500 o r, if e nti al to achieve or ma intai n b a sic mobi lity. . .. e to re c e ive health supplements u n de r Sectio n 6 2 e n t to cover the cos t o f a sc ooter doe s n ot W DR. Firstl y, the minist ry argu ed that the ile a presc r ipti o n has b ee n prov i ded by the es not confir m t h e medical need f o r the sc o ote r. a t pain is the limi ting fac tor af fecting a r e a vaila b le in the f orm of analg e si cs to e m inist ry a r gued t h at the ap pel lant is ab l e to f ficul t y arises wi t h the n eed to perform hopping a nd accomp anyin g his son on sc h ool n o i n dication that t h e appel lant is u n abl e t o uses n o assis tive de v ices, not e ven a ca ne, t o port s. T h e m inis try ar gued t h at the OT did not h as a cane, a 4 -wheele d walk er w ith pain n ee ds. t h at a prescr iption had been provi ded by a o f the section for "o ne o r bo t h " of e it h er t h e (2) of S ch e d u le C . The advocate argu ed in the be en me t by the inform ation p rovi ded t o the c i an c on f ir med in the Su pp l eme nt al Medic al disc dise a se an d the sc ooter wo uld grea t ly e lla nt has signi ficant back pain and trouble with t t he OT ind i ca ted that the a ppellant has The advocate groceries, a c cessin g other community facilities house . The ministry is satisfied that the cian but takes the p o si tion that the The panel does not
T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n s a r e i d e n t i f i e d b y p a i n " w i t h " s i g n i f i c a n t b a c k p a i n " a n d , c o n s e q u e n t l y o u t s i d e o f h i s h o m e " a n d " f r e q u e n t f a l l s b o t h i n s i d e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s f u n c t i o n a l r a n g e o f m o v e m e n r a n g e b u t m u s c l e w e a k n e s s i n b o t h l e g s a n d h i s l e g t h e a p p e l l a n t r e p o r t s s i g n i f i c a n t p a i n o n a d a i l y b a s i m o r e t i m e o n h i s f e e t ; a f t e r g r o c e r y s h o p p i n g , f o r e x d u e t o p a i n . T h e r e i s n o i n d i c a t i o n b y e i t h e r t h e p h y a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e o r e q u i p m e n t t o a i d e i t h e r h i s i n F o r o u t d o o r m o b i l i t y , t h e a p p e l l a n t s t a t e d t h a t h e e i t a c k n o w l e d g e d t h a t h e c o u l d p o s s i b l y t a k e p u b l i c t r a m o b i l i t y u p o n r e a c h i n g h i s d e s t i n a t i o n . T h e O T i n d i w h e e l e d w a l k e r " b u t r e p o r t s i t a g g r a v a t e d h i s b a c k p t r i e d t h e w a l k e r f o r 4 o r 5 m o n t h s a n d t h e a n g l e o f t w h i c h s t r e s s e d h i s t h o r a c i c a n d l u m b a r s p i n e a n d a t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p a i n i n c r e a s e s w h e n h e s p e n d s m o r a s s e s s m e n t o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m a x i m u m w a l k i n g t o l i m p r o v e d h i s s a f e t y . T h e O T d i d n o t p r o v i d e a n a s s a n d , a l t h o u g h t h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h a t i t i s r e a s o n a a l s o b e a g g r a v a t e d b y t h i s o p t i o n s i n c e t h e a p p e l l a n S c h e d u l e C s p e c i f i c a l l y r e q u i r e s t h a t t h e O T c o n f i r m w h i c h r e a s o n a b l y r e q u i r e s a c o m p a r i s o n w i t h o t h e r T h e O T d i d n o t p r o v i d e a n a s s e s s m e n t o f t h e a p p e l e s p e c i a l l y i m p o r t a n t g i v e n t h e a d v a n t a g e f o r t h e a p p r e p o r t e d s t r e n g t h i n b o t h o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a r m s . T h d o e s n o t f u l l y c o n s i d e r o t h e r t y p e s o f e q u i p m e n t o r r e s t r i c t i o n s t o f u n c t i o n i n g i n o r d e r t o s h o w t h a t t h e s c a n n o t b e m e t b y o t h e r e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e s . T h e r d e t e r m i n a t i o n t h a t t h e a s s e s s m e n t b y t h e O T h a s n o p u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n 3 ( 2 ) ( b ) o f S c h e d u l e C o f t h e EA M e d i c a ll y e s s e n t i a l t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c m o T h e m i n i s t r y ' s p o s i t i o n i s t h a t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s i n S e i s n o t s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e s c o o t e r i s m e d i c a l l y e s s e n t i a m o b i l i t y . T h e m i n i s t r y a r g u e d t h a t a t t h e p r e s e n t t i m t h e O T h a s n o t a s s e s s e d t h e p o s s i b i l i t y o f t h e a p p e l c o m b i n a t i o n w i t h m e d i c a t i o n t o a m e l i o r a t e p a i n , a m a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s b a s i c m o b i l i t y . T h e a p p e l l a n t a r g u e d t h a t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s o f t h e s e t o t h e m i n i s t r y b y h i s O T a n d p h y s i c i a n b y s p e c i f i c a l O p i n i o n l e t t e r s t h a t a n e l e c t r i c s c o o t e r i s m e d i c a l l y e b a s i c m o b i l i t y . T h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l s t r u g g l e s w i t h g r o c e r y s h o p p i n g a n d a c c e s s i n g o t h e t o l e r a n c e i s 4 0 0 m e t e r s . T h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h a t a a a r a v a t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p a i n s i n c e h i s p a i n i n c r e a t h e O T a s i n c l u d i n g " c h r o n i c d e g e n e r a t i v e b a c k , t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s " t r o u b l e w i t h a l l m o b i l i t y h i s h o m e a n d o u t d o o r s . " T h e O T a l s o r e p o r t e d t a n d s t r e n g t h i n b o t h o f h i s a r m s , f u n c t i o n a l s " o f t e n g i v e o u t o n h i m . " T h e O T i n d i c a t e d t h a t s a n d t h a t h i s p a i n i n c r e a s e s w h e n h e s p e n d s a m p l e , h e s p e n d s t h e r e s t o f t h e d a y l y i n g d o w n s i c i a n o r t h e O T t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t c u r r e n t l y u s e s d o o r o r h i s o u t d o o r m o b i l i t y . h e r d r i v e s h i s o w n v e h i c l e o r t a k e s a c a b b u t n s i t i f h e h a d a s o l u t i o n t o a s s i s t h i s i n d o o r c a t e d i n t h e a s s e s s m e n t t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t t r i e d a a i n . " T h e a p p e l l a n t s t a t e d a t t h e h e a r i n g t h a t h e h e w a l k e r r e q u i r e d h i m t o b e n d f o rw a r d t o o m u c h g g r a v a t e d h i s p a i n . W h i l e t h e O T i n d i c a t e d t h a t e t i m e o n h i s f e e t , t h e O T d i d n o t p r o v i d e a n e r a n c e w i t h t h e w a l k e r a n d w h e t h e r t h e w a l k e r e s s m e n t o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o u s e a c a n e b l e t o a s s u m e t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p a i n w o u l d t w o u l d r e m a i n o n h i s f e e t , S e c t i o n 3 ( 2 ) o f t h e m e d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e s c o o t e r i n p a r t i c u l a r , t y p e s o f m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e s . l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o u s e a m a n u a l w h e e l c h a i r , e l l a n t t o r e m a i n s e a t e d a n d i n l i g h t o f t h e e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e a s s e s s m e n t b y t h e O T d e v i c e s a v a i l a b l e t o a d d r e s s t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s c o o t e r a d d r e s s e s p a r t i c u l a r r e s t r i c t i o n s t h a t e f o r e , t h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y ' s t c o n f i r m e d t h e m e d i c a l n e e d f o r t h e s c o o t e r , P W D R , w a s r e a s o n a b l e . b i l i t y c t i o n 3 . 4 ( 3 ) ( c ) h a v e n o t b e e n m e t a s t h e m i n i s t r y l f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c e t h e a p p e l l a n t i s a b l e t o w a l k i n d e p e n d e n t l y a n d l a n t u s i n g a 4 w h e e l e d w a l k e r o r a c a n e i n a n u a l w h e e l c h a i r , a n d p u b l i c t r a n s p o r t a t i o n t o c t i o n h a v e b e e n m e t b y t h e i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i d e d l y c o n f i r m i n g i n t h e S u p p l e m e n t a l M e d i c a l s s e n t i a l f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n a n t ' s f u n c t i o n a l m o b i l i t y i s v e r y l i m i t e d , t h a t h e r c o m m u n i t y f a c i l i t i e s s i n c e h i s o u t d o o r w a l k i n g t h e O T r e p o r t e d t h a t u s e o f t h e w a l k e r s e s w h e n h e s p e n d s m o r e t i m e o n h i s f e e t , a n d
i t i s r e a s o n a b l e t o a s s u m e t h a t u s e o f a c a n e w o u l d i n c r e a s e d p a i n m e d i c a t i o n i s n o t f e a s i b l e i n t h e a p p m i n i s t r y t h a t h e u s e m e d i c a t i o n t o a m e l i o r a t e h i s p a r e f l e c t i v e o f t h e l e g i s l a t i o n . T h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h r e q u i r e d f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t t o a c h i e v e h i s b a s i c m o b i P a n e l d e c i s i o n T h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e s h o w s t h a t t h e a p p e rf o r m i n g h i s g r o c e r y s h o p p i n g a n d a c c e s s i n g o t h c a r e g i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s f o r h i s s o n , i n c l u d i n g a c c o m p a t o s i g n i f i c a n t b a c k p a i n , m u s c l e w e a k n e s s i n b o t h l e a s a r e s u l t o f h i s l e g s g i v i n g o u t o n h i m . T h e a p p e l l h e l p t h e a p p e l l a n t b e c a u s e h e w o u l d b e a b l e t o b e h a b l e t o g o o u t m o r e a n d g o f o r w a l k s . I n t h e S u p p l e 2 0 1 3 , t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p h y s i c i a n w r o t e t h a t t h e a p p e l d e g e n e r a t i v e d i s e a s e , t h a t h e c a n o n l y a m b u l a t e 5 m s c o o t e r " . . . w o u l d g r e a t l y f a c i l i t a t e a m b u l a t i o n f o r l o n H o w e v e r , i n t e r m s o f i d e n t i f y i n g a s c o o t e r a s m e d i c a m o b i l i t y , t h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t a n a s s e s s m e n t o f a v a n e c e s s a r y t o t h i s a n a l y s i s , i n o r d e r t o s p e c i f y t h e e q p a r t i c u l a r r e s t r i c t i o n s a n d p r o v i d e s f o r " b a s i c " m o b i l ( w i t h ' n o m o b i l i t y ' a t o n e e x t r e m e a n d ' p e r f e c t m o b i l i T h e a p p e l l a n t s t a t e d t h a t h e d r i v e s h i s p e r s o n a l v e h t a k e p u b l i c t r a n s i t i f h e h a s a s o l u t i o n t o a s s i s t w i t h h o u t a b o v e , t h e r e i s n o i n d i c a t i o n b y t h e O T o r t h e a p u s e s a n y m e d i c a l e q u i p m e n t o r d e v i c e s . . T h e r e i s n w h i l e t h e O T i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t f o u n d t h e u n o t e l a b o r a t e t o p r o v i d e t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m a x i m u m t o a d d r e s s e d t h e s a f e t y i s s u e s b y a l l e v i a t i n g f a l l s . T h e m a n u a l w h e e l c h a i r a n d , a s s e t o u t a b o v e , t h i s d e s p s e a t e d . A l t h o u g h t h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h a t t h e a p p t h e S u p p l e m e n t a l M e d i c a l O p i n i o n l e t t e r s t h a t a n e l e a p p e l l a n t t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c m o b i l i t y , t h e p a n d a s s e s s a l l o f t h e e v i d e n c e t o b e s a t i s f i e d w i t h t h d e t e r m i n e d t h a t t h e r e i s i n s u f f i c i e n t s u p p o r t i n g i n f o r m T h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y ' s d e t e r m i n a t i o n t h a m o t o r i z e d s c o o t e r i s m e d i c a l l y e s s e n t i a l t o a c h i e v e o 3 . 4 ( 3 ) ( c ) o f S c h e d u l e C o f t h e E A P W D R , w a s r e a s o C o n c l u s i o n I n c o n c l u s i o n , t h e p a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y ' s d e c m e e t i n g t h e l e g i s l a t e d c r i t e r i a o f S c h e d u l e C , S e c t i o r e a s o n a b l y s u p p o r t e d b y t h e e v i d e n c e a n d c o n f i r m s a l s o i n c r e a s e h i s p a i n . T h e a d v o c a t e a r g u e d t h a t e l l a n t ' s c i r c u m s t a n c e s a n d t h i s s u g g e s t i o n b y t h e i n a n d t a k e p u b l i c t r a n s i t i s s u b j e c t i v e a n d n o t a t t h e e v i d e n c e d e m o n s t r a t e s t h a t a s c o o t e r i s l i t y . p e l l a n t h a s a n e e d f o r e q u i p m e n t t o a s s i s t i n e r c o m m u n i t y f a c i l i t i e s , a s w e l l a s p a rt i c i p a t i n g i n n y i n g h i s s o n o n a c t i v i t i e s o u t s i d e t h e h o u s e , d u e g s , a n d f r e q u e n t f a l l s b o t h i n d o o r s a n d o u t d o o r s a n t ' s s o n w r o t e i n h i s l e t t e r t h a t a s c o o t e r w o u l d i s c o a c h fo r c r o s s c o u n t r y r u n n i n g , h e w o u l d b e m e n t a l M e d i c a l O p i n i o n d a t e d D e c e m b e r 3 0 , l a n t h a s s e v e r e l u m b a r d i s c o s t e o a r t h r i t i s / i n u t e s b e f o r e h a v i n g t o s t o p a n d r e s t , a n d a g e r t r i p s / o u t i n g s a n d i m p r o v e q u a l i t y o f l i f e . " l l y e s s e n t i a l t o a c h i e v e o r m a i n t a i n b a s i c r i e t y o f t y p e s o f e q u i p m e n t i s r e l e v a n t a n d u i p m e n t f e a t u r e s t h a t a d d r e s s t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i t y a l o n g t h e r a n g e o f v a r i o u s l e v e l s o f m o b i l i t y t y ' a t t h e o t h e r ) . i c l e o r t a k e s a c a b a n d t h a t h e c o u l d p o s s i b l y i s m o b i l i t y u p o n r e a c h i n g h i s d e s t i n a t i o n . A s s e t p e l l a n t ' s p h y s i c i a n t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t p r e s e n t l y o d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e p o t e n t i a l u s e o f a c a n e a n d , s e o f a w a l k e r a g g r a v a t e d h i s p a i n , t h e O T d i d l e r a n c e w i t h a w a l k e r a n d w h e t h e r t h e w a l k e r r e i s a l s o n o d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e p o t e n t i a l u s e o f a i t e t h e a d v a n t a g e f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t t o r e m a i n e l l a n t ' s O T a n d p h y s i c i a n s p e c i f i c a l l y c o n f i r m e d i n c t r i c s c o o t e r i s m e d i c a l l y e s s e n t i a l fo r t h e a n e l f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y i s r e q u i r e d t o w e i g h i s c o n c l u s i o n a n d t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l y a t i o n p r o v i d e d b y t h e m e d i c a l p r o f e s s i o n a l s . t t h e e v i d e n c e d o e s n o t e s t a b l i s h t h a t t h e r m a i n t a i n b a s i c m o b i l i t y , p u r s u a n t t o S e c t i o n n a b l e . i s i o n t o d e n y t h e r e q u e s t f o r a s c o o t e r a s n o t n s 3 ( 2 ) ( b ) a n d 3 . 4 ( 3 ) ( c ) o f t h e E A P W D R , w a s t h e d e c i s i o n .
You are being directed to the most recent version of the statute which may not be the version considered at the time of the judgment.