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 R e c o n s i d m i n i s t r y d e t e r m i n e d t h e a p p e l l a n t w a s i n e l i g i b l e f o r M u l t i p l e B a r r i e r s ( P P M B ) b e c a u s e s h e d i d n o t m e e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e R e g u l a t i o n . T h e m i n i s r e c e i p t o f i n c o m e a s s i s t a n c e f o r a t l e a s t t w e l v e ( 1 2 ) a p p l i c a t i o n s h e m e t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s u n d e r S e c t i o n s c o r e d t w e l v e ( 1 2 ) o n t h e e m p l o y a b i l i t y s c r e e n , h e r a s s e s s e d u n d e r S e c t i o n 2 ( 3 ) . T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a p p ( 2 ) a n d ( 4 ) o f t h e E A R . T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p h y s i c i a n c l a s t e d a t l e a s t o n e ( 1 ) y e a r a n d t h a t t h e c o n d i t i o n i s H o w e v e r , i n t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e m i n i s t r y , t h e a p p e l l a n a r e n o t a b a r r i e r t h a t p r e c l u d e s h e r f r o m s e a r c h i n g e m p l o y m e n t a n d t h e r e f o r e s h e d o e s n o t q u a l i f y f o r 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 A s s i s t a n c e R e g u l a t i o n ( E A R ) S e E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )I A P P E A L 7 e r a t i o n D e c i s i o n o f J u l y 2 8 , 2 0 1 4 i n w h i c h t h e t h e q u a l i f i c a t i o n o f P e r s o n s W i t h P e r s i s t e n t t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s s e t o u t i n S e c t i o n 2 o f t h e t r y f o u n d t h a t b e c a u s e t h e a p p e l l a n t h a s b e e n i n o f t h e p a s t f i f t e e n ( 1 5 ) m o n t h s p r i o r t o h e r 2 ( 2 ) . T h e m i n i s t r y f o u n d t h a t a s t h e a p p e l l a n t a p p l i c a t i o n d i d n o t m e e t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s t o b e l i c a t i o n w a s t h e r e f o r e c o n s i d e r e d u n d e r S e c t i o n 2 o n f i r m e d t h a t s h e h a s a m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n t h a t h a s e x p e c t e d t o c o n t i n u e f o r t w o ( 2 ) y e a r s o r m o r e . t ' s m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n a n d t h e r e s u l t i n g r e s t r i c t i o n s f o r , a c c e p t i n g , o r c o n t i n u i n g i n a l l t y p e s o f P P M B . c t i o n 2 , s c h e d u l e E
I APPEAL PART E -Summary of Facts The information before the ministry at the time of reconsideration included the following: o A PPMB application form completed by the ministry in the name of the appellant dated May 13, 2014. The form indicated the appellant has been on assistance 12 of the last 15 months and that she scored 14 on the Employability Screen. o A copy of the Employability screen completed in the name of the appellant giving her an over all score of 14. o A medical history summary in the name of the appellant dated May 14, 2014. It reads that her current conditions are Hepatitis C and depression. It lists off the drugs she has been prescribed and states that she has had 3 separate discectomy surgeries in 1989, 1993, and 2013. • A PPMB medical report completed by the appellant's physician dated May 14, 2014. The report states the appellant suffers from disc hernia and anxiety, the condition has existed more than 5 years, the duration of the condition is expected to be more than 2 years, the condition is not episodic in nature, and as of a result of her conditions she has limited mobility and is unable to stand for more than 3-4 hours. • A request for reconsideration form dated July 14, 2014 where the appellant writes that she misread one of the questions on the Employability Screen and as a result she answered question 3 incorrectly. At the hearing the appellant told the panel that she has had 3 back operations since 1989 and she continues to suffer from weakness and pain in her back that prevents her from working more than 3-4 hours per day. She had her last operation in 2013 and she fears she will need another one to fuse her back in the near future. She added that her depression is manageable by keeping herself out of the house and occupied. She said she got a job in May 2014 at a general store/gas station where she performs various functions that don't require her to lift anything heavy. She works 4-5 days per week for 3-4 hours per shift. She told the panel that she has applied for PPMB not because she wants to avoid working but rather she wants PPMB designation because she is worried she may lose coverage of her medications without it. She and her husband have a very low income and she stated she couldn't afford the cost of medications on their income. The appellant said she was concerned that the reason her PPMB application was denied was due to her answering the question on the Employability Screen incorrectly. At the hearing the ministry told the panel that the appellant completed the Employability Screen over the phone with the ministry. The ministry was aware of the error the appellant made on question 3 and made the correction internally on her score however when the answer to the question was changed it resulted in a lower score for the appellant of 12 versus the original 14. The legislation requires that scores less than 15 be considered under EAR section 2(4) which is how her application was considered prior to the change therefore the corrected answer had no impact on the outcome of the ministry's reconsideration decision. The ministry addressed the appellant's concern that without the designation of PPMB she would lose her medication coverage. The ministry said that the designation of PPMB is intended for people that are unable to search for, accept, or continue any employment and since the appellant is maintaining a job and her condition is not episodic in nature there is likely a more suitable way to achieve coveraqe of her medications. EAAT 003(10/06/01)
T h e m i n i s t e r f o u n d t h a t b a s e d o n t h e i n f o r m a t i o n p r 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 d o e s n o t p r e c l u d e h e r a n y t y p e o f e m p l o y m e n t . T h e m i n i s t r y a d d e d t h a t t h i n a b i l i t y t o s t a n d m o r e t h a n 3 -4 h o u r s . T h e p a n e l f i n d s a s f a c t t h e f o l l o w i n g • T h e a p p e l l a n t i s r e s t r i c t e d f r o m s t a n d i n g m o r • T h e a p p e l l a n t i s w o r k i n g a t a g e n e r a l s t o r e 4 • T h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s p r e s c r i p t i o n m e d i c a t i o • T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s c o n d i t i o n i s n o t e p i s o d i c i n n • T h e a p p e l l a n t s c o r e d 1 2 o n t h e E m p l o y a b i l i t y E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )I A P P E A L , o v i d e d b y t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p h y s i c i a n , t h e f r o m s e a r c h i n g f o r , a c c e p t i n g , o r c o n t i n u i n g i n e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d h e r o n l y r e s t r i c t i o n w a s h e r e t h a n 3 -4 h o u r s d u e t o h e r b a c k c o n d i t i o n . -5 d a y s p e r w e e k f o r 3 -4 h o u r s p e r s h i f t . n . a t u r e . S c r e e n .
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 i n t h i s c a s e i s t h e r e a s o n a b l e n e s s o f t h e q u a l i f y a s a p e r s o n w i t h p e r s i s t e n t m u l t i p l e b a r r i e r s l e g i s l a t i v e r e q u i r e m e n t s . T h e m i n i s t r y f o u n d t h a t t h t h a t s h e h a d b e e n a r e c i p i e n t o f i n c o m e a s s i s t a n c e c a l e n d a r m o n t h s . T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s c o r e o n t h e e m p c o n s i d e r e d t h e a p p l i c a t i o n u n d e r s e c t i o n 2 ( 4 ) o f t h T h e E A R s e c t i o n 2 s t a t e s ; P e r s o n s w h o h a v e p e r s i s t e n t m u l t i p l e b a r r i e r s t 2 ( 1 ) T o q u a l i f y a s a p e r s o n w h o h a s p e r s i s t e n t m u l t i p s e t o u t i n ( a ) s u b s e c t i o n ( 2 ) , a n d ( b ) s u b s e c t i o n ( 3 ) o r ( 4 ) . ( 2 ) T h e p e r s o n h a s b e e n a r e c i p i e n t f o r a t l e a s t 1 2 o f t t h e f o l l o w i n g : ( a ) i n c o m e a s s i s t a n c e o r h a r d s h i p a s s i s t a n c e u n d e r t h ( b ) i n c o m e a s s i s t a n c e , h a r d s h i p a s s i s t a n c e o r a y o u t h ( c ) a d i s a b i l i t y a l l o w a n c e u n d e r t h e D i s a b i l i ty B e n e f i t s ( d ) d i s a b i l i t y a s s i s t a n c e o r h a r d s h i p a s s i s t a n c e u n d e r t ( 3 ) 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 p p l y ( a ) t h e m i n i s t e r ( i ) h a s d e t e r m i n e d t h a t t h e p e r s o n s c o r e s a t l e a s t 1 5 ( i i ) b a s e d o n t h e r e s u l t o f t h a t e m p l o y a b i l i t y s c r e e n , c p e r s o n ' s a b i l i t y t o s e a r c h f o r , a c c e p t o r c o n t i n u e i n e m ( b ) t h e p e r s o n h a s a m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n , o t h e r t h a n a n a ( i ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r , ( A ) h a s c o n t i n u e d f o r a t l e a s t o n e y e a r a n d i s l i k e l y t o ( B ) h a s o c c u r r e d f r e q u e n t l y i n t h e p a s t y e a r a n d i s l i k e ( i i ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e m i n i s t e r , i s a b a r r i e r t h a t s e r i o i n e m p l o y m e n t , a n d ( c ) t h e p e r s o n h a s t a k e n a l l s t e p s t h a t t h e m i n i s t e r c o n t o i n p a r a g r a p h ( a ) . ( 4 ) T h e p e r s o n h a s a m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n , o t h e r t h a n a n ( a ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r , ( i ) h a s c o n t i n u e d f o r a t l e a s t o n e y e a r a n d i s l i k e l y t o c ( i i ) h a s o c c u r r e d f r e q u e n t l y i n t h e p a s t y e a r a n d i s l i k e ( b ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e m i n i s t e r , i s a b a r r i e r t h a t p r e c l u e m p l o y m e n t . I t i s t h e m i n i s t r y ' s p o s i t i o n t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s c o r e t h e r e f o r e m u s t b e c o n s i d e r e d u n d e r E A R s e c t i o n 2 ( m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n d o e s n o t p r e c l u d e h e r f r o m s e a r c h I t i s t h e p o s i t i o n o f t h e a p p e l l a n t t h a t h e r m e d i c a l c o a c c e p t i n g , o r c o n t i n u i n g i n a n y m o r e e m p l o y m e n t t h I n r e l a t i o n t o t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s s c o r e o n t h e E m p l o y a b i r e a s o n a b l e t o c o n s i d e r h e r a p p l i c a t i o n u n d e r E A R s p a n e l i s s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e d e c i s i o n t o p r o c e e d u n d e r a p p e l l a n t ' s a n s w e r t o q u e s t i o n 3 h a d b e e n c a p t u r e d E M T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 1 0 1 )I A P P E A m i n i s t r y ' s d e c i s i o n t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t o n t h e b a s i s t h a t s h e d o e s n o t m e e t a l l o f t h e e a p p e l l a n t m e t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s o f S e c t i o n 2 ( 2 ) f o r a t l e a s t 1 2 o f t h e i m m e d i a t e l y p r e c e d i n g 1 5 l o y a b i l i t y s c r e e n i s 1 2 , t h e r e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y e E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e R e g u l a t i o n ( E A R ) . o e m p l o y m e n t l e b a r r i e r s t o e m p l o y m e n t , a p e r s o n m u s t m e e t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s h e i m m e d i a t e l y p r e c e d i n g 1 5 c a l e n d a r m o n t h s o f o n e o r m o r e o f e A c t ; a l l o w a n c e u n d e r a f o r m e r A c t ; P r o g r a m A c t h e E m p l o ym e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e f o r P e r s o n s w i t h D is a b i l i t i e s A c t . o n t h e e m p l o y a b i l i t y s c r e e n s e t o u t i n S c h e d u l e E , a n d o n s i d e r s t h a t t h e p e r s o n h a s b a r r i e r s t h a t s e r i o u s l y i m p e d e t h e p l o y m e n t , d d i c t i o n , t h a t i s c o n f i r m e d b y a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r a n d t h a t , c o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 m o r e y e a r s , o r l y t o c o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 m o r e y e a r s , a n d u s l y i m p e d e s t h e p e r s o n ' s a b i l i t y t o s e a r c h f o r , a c c e p t o r c o n t i n u e s i d e r s r e a s o n a b l e f o r t h e p e r s o n t o o v e r c o m e t h e b a r r i e r s r e f e r r e d a d d i c t i o n , t h a t i s c o n f i r m e d b y a m e d i c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r a n d t h a t , o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 m o r e y e a r s , o r l y t o c o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 m o r e y e a r s , a n d d e s t h e p e r s o n f r o m s e a r c h i n g f o r , a c c e p t i n g o r c o n t i n u i n g i n o n t h e E m p l o y a b i l i t y S c r e e n i s l e s s t h a n 1 5 a n d 4 ) . T h e m i n i s t r y a r g u e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i n g f o r , a c c e p t i n g o r c o n t i n u i n g i n e m p l o y m e n t . n d i t i o n c r e a t e s a b a r r i e r t o h e r s e a r c h i n g f o r , a n s h e i s c u r r e n t l y w o r k i n g . l i t y S c r e e 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 w a s e c t i o n 2 ( 4 ) a s h e r s c o r e w a s l e s s t h a n 1 5 . T h e E A R s e c t i o n 2 ( 4 ) w o u l d n o t h a v e c h a n g e d i f t h e d i f f e r e n t l y .
I APPEAL medical practitioner that is a barrier that precludes her from searching for, accepting or continuing in employment the panel reviewed the medical report as well as the appellant's testimony. The panel notes that the appellant is working 5 days per week, 3-4 hours per day. The appellant told the panel that she couldn't increase her hours due to her medical condition. The fact that the appellant is able to maintain employment confirms that she is able to perform paid employment that accommodates her limitations caused by her medical condition. The panel finds that the ministry was reasonable to find that the appellant's medical condition does not preclude her from searching for, accepting or continuing in employment. The panel finds that the reconsideration decision was a reasonable application of the applicable legislation in the circumstances of the appellant and therefore the panel confirms the decision. EAAT 003(10/06101)
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.