PART C -Decision under Appeal The decision under appeal is the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation (the "ministry") reconsideration decision of August 14, 2014, which found that the appellant did not meet three of five statutory requirements of section 2 of the Employment and Assistance for Persons With Disabilities Act ("EAPWDA") for designation as a person with disabilities ("PWD"). The ministry found that the appellant met the age requirement and that in the opinion of a medical practitioner the appellant's impairment is likely to continue for at least two years. However, the ministry was not satisfied that: • the evidence establishes that the appellant has a severe physical or mental impairment; • the appellant's daily living activities ("DLA") are, in the opinion of a prescribed professional, directly and significantly restricted either continuously or periodically for extended periods; and that • as a result of those restrictions, the appellant requires the significant help or supervision of another person, an assistive device, or the services of an assistance animal. PART D -Relevant Legislation Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act ("EAPWDA"), section 2 Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Regulation ("EAPWDR"), section 2 EAAT003(10/06/01)
PART E -Summary of Facts The in form a tion before the ministry at the time of reconsid o The appell a n t 's P WD ap plication fo rm completed in Ma self-repo rt, and a physi cian's r eport ( " P R") an app ellant's physici an o f 1 yea r . Additio nal Information Submi tted Prior to the appeal hearin g, the appell ant submitted the follo Em p loyment and Assist ance Tribun a l (the "Tribun al 1. A "to who m it may conce r n " lette r from the a p stating that "[The appellant] suffers fro m Fibromyalgia he su ff ers fr om chronic pain and f a tigue as well. has the in ability to fully fun cti o n o n these days. due to the fluc t uati ons in his s ymptom s. " Dia gnos e s • In the PR, th e physician d iagno se d the app ellant " Pa t i en t c om pl ai n s of severe gen eralized mus func t io n ing." Physica l Impairme n t • In des cr ibing the appell an t 's funct i o nal s ki lls, appell an t ca n wa lk 2 to 4 bl ocks unaided on a flat sur 15 pou nds, and can rema in seated f o r 1 to 2 hours • The p h y s i cia n comm e nted tha t the a pp ellant medicati on was ineffective and the appellant co • In the A R t h e p hysician de s c r ib ed the ap pella muscular pain impairing his [DLA] periodical ly. assist ance, or takes signif icantly longer than typi lifting/ca r r y i ng/hol di ng except f o r stan ding. • In his self-report the appellant wrote that he is often unab and that he cannot wo rk due to the disease bein condition has gotten worse in the past few months. • In his oral testimony the app ell an t said that there are days w least 7 days a month -up to 10 or 12 days a month where he cannot function, often not being able to get out of bed. Mental Impairment • In th e PR the physicia n indicated that the appellant has no difficulties with communication and no significant deficits with cognitive and emotional function. • In the AR the physicia n de scr i bed the a p pellant's respects. He reported "no impact" with respect to all categories of cognitive and emotional functioning. • In his oral testimonv the annellant reported that his situation has been EAAT 003(10/06/01) er at ion included the following: rch, 2 014 c onsisting of the appellant's d assess or's report ("AR ") both compl eted by the wi n g document to the offices of the "): pellant's physicia n -da ted Se p tembe r 3, 2014 , insomnia and depr ession. A s a result He h a s more sever e f lares on so m e day s and As a resu lt he finds i t d ifficult to main t ain a job w i th f i br omya lg i a, a nd c om men ted that cle pain. T he pain is li miti ng in term s of his d aily the p hy si c i an i ndicat e d in t he PR t h a t the face, climb 5+ stairs unaide d , c a n l ift 5 to . exp er iences sig n i ficant dai ly pain , but that pain u l d no t tolerat e the side effec t s. nt's imp airment a s "Chr o nic g e neraliz e d He reporte d that the appell ant requ i re s periodic c a l , or both, with all aspects of mobility and l e to get o ut of bed for a day or more g so unpred i ct able. He stated th at his h en he is functional, but that at his fibromyalgia flares up to the point ab ility t o com mu n icate as good in all makina him feel
d e p r e s s e d . D L A o I n t h e P R t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p t r e a t m e n t s t h a t i n t e r f e r e w i t h h i s a b i l i t y t o p e p e r i o d i c a l l y r e s t r i c t e d w i t h t h e D L A o f p e r s o n d a i l y s h o p p i n g , m o b i li t y i n d o o r s a n d o u t d o o r a p p e l l a n t i s u n r e s t r i c t e d i n t e r m s o f t h e D L A m a n a g e m e n t o f p e r s o n a l f i n a n c e s , a n d s o c i a t h e t e r m " p e r i o d i c " b y c o m m e n t i n g " p a i n e x p s i g n i f i c a n t a n d c a u s e s i m p a i r m e n t i n [ D L A ] . " o I n t h e A R t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h e a p p e l l a m a n a g e p e r s o n a l f i n a n c e s ( p a y r e n t a n d b i l l s r e s p e c t t o t h e D L A o f d a i l y s h o p p i n g a n d u s e a p p e l l a n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s t h e t a s k s c h o i c e s , p a y i n g f o r p u r c h a s e s , a n d u s i n g t r a p o r t i o n o f t h e A R f o r m d e a l i n g w i t h s o c i a l f u n a p p l i c a n t h a s a n i d e n t i f i e d m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n a p p l i c a b l e . • F o r a l l o t h e r t a s k s r e l a t e d t o a l l o t h e r D L A , t h i n d e p e n d e n t , b u t a l s o a s e i t h e r t a k i n g s i g n i f i c a s s i s t a n c e f r o m a n o t h e r p e r s o n , o r b o t h . a I n h i s o r a l t e s t i m o n y t h e a p p e l l a n t s a i d t h a t h d a y s w h e n h e c a n n o t f u n c t i o n . H e a l s o s a i d s i s t e r i n l a w w i l l h e l p w i t h m e a l p r e p a r a t i o n a H e l p • I n t h e P R t h e p h y s i c i a n c o m m e n t e d " O c c a s i o h o u s e w o r k . " • T h e p h y s i c i a n c o m m e n t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t " H e l p s a p p l i c a n t w a l k a n d m a i n t a i n b a l a n c e , 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 r e c e i v e s h e l p w i t h a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t h a v e a n a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a A d m i s s i b i l i t y o f A d d i t i o n a l I n f o r m a t i o n I n h i s o r a l t e s t i m o n y t h e a p p e l l a n t p r o v i d e d a d d i t i o n r e s t r i c t i o n s c a u s e d b y i t m a t t e r s w h i c h h a d b e e n r A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e p a n e l h a s a d m i t t e d t h i s n e w i n f o r m r e c o r d s t h a t w e r e b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y a t t h e t i m e o f r E m p l o y m e n t a n d A s s i s t a n c e A c t . W i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e S e p t e m b e r 3 , 2 0 1 4 l e t t e r f r o m t h i n s o m n i a a n d d e p r e s s i o n w e r e n o t b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t s a i d t o b e i n s u p p o r t o f i n f o r m a t i o n a n d r e c o r d s t h a t d i a g n o s e s a r e n o t a d m i s s i b l e i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h s e E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )p e l l a n t h a s n o t b e e n p r e s c r i b e d a n y m e d i c a t i o n o r r f o r m D L A . H e a l s o 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 i s a l s e l f c a r e , m e a l p r e p a r a t i o n , b a s i c h o u s e w o r k , s , a n d u s e o f t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . H e i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e o f m a n a g e m e n t o f p e r s o n a l m e d i c a t i o n s , l f u n c t i o n i n g . T h e p h y s i c i a n e x p l a i n e d h i s u s e o f e r i e n c e d v a r i e s f r o m d a y t o d a y . S o m e d a y s i t i s n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s a l l a s p e c t s o f t h e D L A ) a n d m a n a g e p e r s o n a l m e d i c a t i o n s . W i t h o f t r a n s p o r t a t i o n , t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h e o f r e a d i n g p r i c e s a n d l a b e l s , m a k i n g a p p r o p r i a t e n s i t s c h e d u l e s / a r r a n g i n g t r a n s p o r t a t i o n . T h e c t i o n i n g w h i c h i s t o b e c o m p l e t e d o n l y i f t h e t w a s m a r k e d b y t h e p h y s i c i a n a s b e i n g n o t e p h y s i c i a n r e p o r t e d t h e a p p e l l a n t a s b e i n g a n t l y l o n g e r t h a n t y p i c a l , n e e d i n g p e r i o d i c e h a s h i s s t e p f a t h e r a n d c h i l d r e n h e l p h i m o n t h a t w h e n h i s y o u n g e r b r o t h e r i s i n t o w n h i s n d h o u s e w o r k . n a l l y r e q u i r e s a s s i s t a n c e w i t h m e a l p r e p a r a t i o n , u s e s a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e ( c a n e ) , c o m m e n t i n g w h e n h e h a s F i b r o m y a l g i a f l a r e s . " H e a l s o D L A f r o m f a m i l y a n d f r i e n d s , a n d t h a t t h e l . a l i n f o r m a t i o n r e g a r d i n g h i s i m p a i r m e n t a n d t h e a i s e d i n t h e o r i g i n a l P W D a p p l i c a t i o n . a t i o n a s b e i n g i n s u p p o r t o f i n f o r m a t i o n a n d e c o n s i d e r a t i o n , i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h s . 2 2 ( 4 ) o f t h e e a p p e l l a n t ' s p h y s i c i a n , t h e d i a g n o s e s o f ry a t t h e t i m e o f r e c o n s i d e r a t i o n a n d c a n n o t b e w e r e b e f o r e t h e m i n i s t r y . A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e s e c t i o n 2 2 ( 4 ) 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
A c t . T h e r e s t o f t h e l e t t e r p r o v i d e s a d d i t i o n a l d e t a i i m p a i r m e n t , w h i c h w a s a m a t t e r i n e v i d e n c e b e f o r e a d m i s s i b i l i t y o f t h e l e t t e r . A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e p a n e l a n e w d i a g n o s e s o f i n s o m n i a a n d d e p r e s s i o n . 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 E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )l w i t h r e s p e c t t o t h e v a r i a b i l i t y o f t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s t h e m i n i s t r y . T h e m i n i s t r y h a d n o o b j e c t i o n t o d m i t t e d t h e l e t t e r i n t o e v i d e n c e e x c e p t f o r t h e t w o a n d s u b m i t t e d n o n e w i n f o r m a t i o 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 o n t h i s 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 P W D w a s 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 o 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 e l l a n t . I d e t e r m i n i n g t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t h a v e a s e v o p i n i o n o f a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s r e s t r i c t h i m f r o m p e rf o r m i n g D L A e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s a r e s u l t o f t h o s e r e s t r i c t i o n s t h e a p p e l l a n t d o e s n o t T h e r e l e v a n t l e g i s l a t i o n i s a s f o l l o w s : E A P W D A : 2 ( 1 ) I n t h i s s e c t i o n : " a s s i s t i v e d e v i c e " m e a n s a d e v i c e d e s i g a c t i v i t y t h a t , b e c a u s e o f a s e v e r e m e n t p e r f o r m ; " d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t y " h a s t h e p r " p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l " h a s t h ( 2 ) T h e m i n i s t e r m a y d e s i g n a t e a p e r s o n d i s a b i l i t i e s f o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h i s A c t I f m e n t a l o r p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t t h a t ( a ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a m e d i y e a r s , a n d ( b ) i n t h e o p i n i o n o f a p r e s c ( i ) d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s e i t h e ( A ) c o n t i n u o u ( B ) p e r i o d i c a l ( i i ) a s a r e s u l t o f t h o t h o s e a c t i v i t i e s . ( 3 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f s u b s e c t i o n ( 2 ) , ( a ) a p e r s o n w h o h a s a s e v m e n t a l d i s o r d e r , a n d ( b ) a p e r s o n r e q u i r e s h e l p i p e r f o r m i t , t h e p e r s o n r e q u i ( i ) a n a s s i s t i v e d e v i c ( i i ) t h e s i g n i f i c a n t h e ( i i i ) t h e s e r v i c e s o f a E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )e c i s i o n t o d e n y t h e a p p e l l a n t d e s i g n a t i o n a s a r w a s 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 a p p l i c a b l e n p a rt i c u l a r , w a s t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l e i n e r e p h y s i c a l o r m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , a n d t h a t i n t h e i m p a i r m e n t s d o n o t d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n i f i c a n t l y l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s , a n d t h a t a s r e q u i r e h e l p t o p e r f o r m D L A . n e d t o e n a b l e a p e r s o n t o p e r f o r m a d a i l y l i v i n g a l o r p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t , t h e p e r s o n i s u n a b l e t o e s c r i b e d m e a n i n g ; e p r e s c r i b e d m e a n i n g . w h o h a s r e a c h e d 1 8 y e a r s o f a g e a s a p e r s o n w i t h t h e m i n i s t e r i s s a t i s f i e d t h a t t h e p e r s o n h a s a s e v e r e c a l p r a c t i t i o n e r i s l i k e l y t o c o n t i n u e f o r a t l e a s t 2 r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t s t h e p e r s o n ' s a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m d a i l y r s l y , o r l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s , a n d s e r e s t r i c t i o n s , t h e p e r s o n r e q u i r e s h e l p t o p e r f o r m e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t i n c l u d e s a p e r s o n w i t h a n r e l a t i o n t o a d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t y i f , i n o r d e r t o r e s e , l p o r s u p e r v i s i o n o f a n o t h e r p e r s o n , o r n a s s i s t a n c e a n i m a l .
E A P W D R s e c t i o n 2 ( 1 ) : 2 ( 1 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h e A c t a n d t h i s r ( a ) i n r e l a t i o n t o a p e r s o m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , m e a ( i ) p r e p a r e o w n m ( i i ) m a n a g e p e r s o ( i i i ) s h o p f o r p e r s ( i v ) u s e p u b l i c o r ( v ) p e r f o r m h o u s e a c c e p t a b l e s a n i t a r ( v i ) m o v e a b o u t i ( v i i ) p e r f o r m p e r s ( v i i i ) m a n a g e p e r s ( b ) i n r e l a t i o n t o a p e r s o n f o l l o w i n g a c t i v i t i e s : ( i ) m a k e d e c i s i o n s ( I i ) r e l a t e t o , c o m ( 2 ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h e A c t , " p r e s c r ( a ) a u t h o r i z e d u n d e r a n e ( i ) m e d i c a l p r a c t i ( i i ) r e g i s t e r e d p s y ( i i i ) r e g i s t e r e d n u ( i v ) o c c u p a t i o n a l ( v ) p h y s i c a l t h e r a ( v i ) s o c i a l w o r k e r ( v i i ) c h i r o p r a c t o r , ( v i i i ) n u r s e p r a c t i ( b ) a c t i n g i n t h e c o u r s e o b y ( i ) a n a u t h o r i t y , a I n d e p e n d e n t S c h o ( i i ) a b o a r d o r a f r d e f i n e d i n s e c t i o n i f q u a l i f i c a t i o n s i n p s y c h o l o g y a r e a c o n d i t S e v e r e P h y s i c a l I m p a i r m e n t T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p o s i t i o n i s t h a t h i s f i b r o m y a l g i a c o n s t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n ' s u s e o f t h e t e r m " i n d e p e n d e n t " i n g i v e s a f a l s e i m p r e s s i o n , a n d d o e s n ' t a d e q u a t e l y r e s a i d t h a t h e i s e s s e n t i a l l y c o m p l e t e l v u n a b l e t o f u n c E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 ), · e g u l a t i o n , " d a i l y l i v i n g a c t i v i t i e s " , n w h o h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t o r a s e v e r e n s t h e f o l l o w i n g a c t i v i t i e s : e a l s ; n a l f i n a n c e s ; o n a l n e e d s ; p e r s o n a l t r a n s p o r t a t i o n f a c i l i t i e s ; w o r k t o m a i n t a i n t h e p e r s o n ' s p l a c e o f r e s i d e n c e i n y c o n d i t i o n ; n d o o r s a n d o u t d o o r s ; o n a l h y g i e n e a n d s e l f c a r e ; o n a l m e d i c a t i o n , a n d w h o h a s a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , i n c l u d e s t h e a b o u t p e r s o n a l a c t i v i t i e s , c a r e o r f i n a n c e s ; m u n i c a t e o r i n t e r a c t w i t h o t h e r s e f f e c t i v e l y . i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l " m e a n s a p e r s o n w h o i s n a c t m e n t t o p r a c t i s e t h e p r o f e s s i o n o f t i o n e r , c h o l o g i s t , r s e o r r e g i s t e r e d p s y c h i a t r i c n u r s e , t h e r a p i s t , p i s t , , o r t i o n e r , o r f t h e p e r s o n ' s e m p l o y m e n t a s a s c h o o l p s y c h o l o g i s t s t h a t t e r m i s d e f i n e d i n s e c t i o n 1 ( 1 ) o f t h e o l A c t , o r a n c o p h o n e e d u c a t i o n a u t h o r i t y , a s t h o s e t e r m s a r e 1 ( 1 ) o f t h e S c h o o l A c t , i o n o f s u c h e m p l o y m e n t . * * * * * * * t i t u t e s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e n t . H e a r g u e d r e f e r r i n g t o t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m a n a g e m e n t o f D L A f l e c t t h e p e r i o d i c n a t u r e o f h i s i m p a i r m e n t . H e t i o n f o r 7 t o 1 2 d a y s e v e r y m o n t h .
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 i n f o r m a t i o n p r o v i a r g u e d t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n d i d n o t i n d i c a t e t h e d e g r e e o r f r e P a n e l D e c i s i o n A d i a g n o s i s o f a s e r i o u s m e d i c a l c o n d i t i o n d o e s n o s e v e r e i m p a i r m e n t . A n " i m p a i r m e n t " i s a m e d i c a l c a b i l i t y t o f u n c t i o n i n d e p e n d e n t l y o r e f f e c t i v e l y . T o a s s e s s t h e s e v e r i t y o f a n i m p a i r m e n t o n e m u s t e x t e n t o f i t s i m p a c t o n d a i l y f u n c t i o n i n g a s e v i d e n c e w h i c h p e r f o r m i n g D L A i s r e s t r i c t e d . A m e d i c a l b a r r e m p l o y m e n t i s n o t a l e g i s l a t e d c r i t e r i o n f o r s e v e r i t y d e t e r m i n a t i o n o f s e v e r i t y i s a t t h e d i s c r e t i o n o f t h e H o w e v e r , t h e l e g i s l a t i o n i s a l s o c l e a r t h a t t h e f u n d a a p r e s c r i b e d p r o f e s s i o n a l i n t h i s c a s e , t h e a p p e l l a I n t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s c a s e , t h e f u n c t i o n a l s k i l l s d e s c r i b e t h e r a n g e . W h i l e t h e p h y s i c i a n h a s i n d i c a t e d t h a t t h i n d i c a t e d t h a t i t o n l y c a u s e s s i g n i f i c a n t i m p a i r m e n t e v i d e n c e i n t h e P R , A R , o r i n h i s S e p t e m b e r 3 , 2 0 1 T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s e v i d e n c e i n d i c a t e s t h a t h e i s e s s e n t h e p a n e l ' s v i e w , i f t h e a p p e l l a n t i s i m p a i r e d t o t h i s p r o v i d e d s o m e c o r r o b o r a t i o n o f t h i s . A s d i s c u s s e d i n m o r e d e t a i l i n t h e s u b s e q u e n t s e c t R e s t r i c t i o n s t o D L A , a n y l i m i t a t i o n s r e s u l t i n g f r o m t t r a n s l a t e d i n t o s i g n i f i c a n t r e s t r i c t i o n s i n h i s a b i l i t y t o T h e r e a r e r e f e r e n c e s i n t h e e v i d e n c e t o t h e i m p a c t a b i l i t y t o w o r k a t p a i d e m p l o y m e n t . T h e p a n e l n o t e r e g a r d i n g P W D d e s i g n a t i o n t h e f o c u s o f t h e l e g i s F o r t h e f o r e g o i n g r e a s o n s , t h e p a n e l h a s c o n c l u d e d p h y s i c a l h e a l t h i s s u e s , t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l y d e t e e s t a b l i s h i n g t h a t h e h a s a s e v e r e p h y s i c a l i m p a i r m e S e v e r e M e n t a l I m p a i r m e n t T h e a p p e l l a n t a d v a n c e d n o a r g u m e n t w i t h r e s p e c t t h i s s i t u a t i o n h a s b e e n m a k i n g h i m f e e l d e p r e s s e d . 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 e v i d e n c e d o e s n o m i n i s t r y a r g u e d t h a t t h e p h y s i c i a n p r o v i d e d n o d i a g n a o o e l l a n t h a s n o d i f f i c u l t v w i t h c o m m u n i c a t i o n . T h e E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 1 )d e d d o e s n o t e v i d e n c e a s e v e r e i m p a i r m e n t . I t n t i s i n d e p e n d e n t l y a b l e t o m a n a g e a l l a r e a s , a n d q u e n c y o f f u n c t i o n a l r e s t r i c t i o n s . t i n i t s e l f d e t e r m i n e P W D e l i g i b i l i t y o r e s t a b l i s h a o n d i t i o n t h a t r e s u l t s i n r e s t r i c t i o n s t o a p e r s o n ' s c o n s i d e r t h e n a t u r e o f t h e i m p a i r m e n t a n d t h e d b y f u n c t i o n a l s k i l l l i m i t a t i o n s a n d t h e d e g r e e t o i e r t o t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o e n g a g e i n p a i d . T h e l e g i s l a t i o n m a k e s i t c l e a r t h a t t h e m i n i s t e r , t a k i n g i n t o a c c o u n t a l l o f t h e e v i d e n c e . m e n t a l b a s i s f o r t h e a n a l y s i s i s t h e e v i d e n c e f r o m n t ' s p h y s i c i a n . d b y t h e p h y s i c i a n a r e i n t h e m i d t o u p p e r e n d o f e a p p e l l a n t s u f f e r s " s i g n i f i c a n t d a i l y p a i n " , h e a l s o " s o m e d a y s " . T h e p h y s i c i a n h a s n o t p r o v i d e d a n y 4 l e t t e r a s t o h o w f r e q u e n t l y t h e s e d a y s o c c u r . t i a l l y b e d r i d d e n f o r 7 t o 1 2 d a y s e v e r y m o n t h . I n e x t e n t o n e w o u l d e x p e c t t h e p h y s i c i a n t o h a v e i o n o f t h i s d e c i s i o n u n d e r t h e h e a d i n g S i g n i f i c a n t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s i m p a i r m e n t s d o n o t a p p e a r t o h a v e m a n a g e h i s D L A i n d e p e n d e n t l y . 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 h a v e o n h i s s t h a t e m p l o y a b i l i t y i s n o t a s t a t u t o r y c r i t e r i o n l a t i o n i s o n t h e a b i l i t y t o p e r f o r m D L A . t h a t w h i l e t h e a p p e l l a n t c l e a r l y h a s s o m e r m i n e d t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e f a l l s s h o r t o f n t a s c o n t e m p l a t e d b y t h e l e g i s l a t i o n . o a m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , o t h e r t h a n t o o b s e r v e t h a t t e s t a b l i s h a s e v e r e m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t . T h e o s i s o f a m e n t a l i m p a i r m e n t , a n d t h a t t h e m i n i s t i v r e f e r r e d t o t h e o h v s i c i a n ' s e v i d e n c e i n
the AR that the ap pellant's c ognitive and e motional functi Panel Decis io n The phys ician pr ovided n o d i a g nosis o f a me ntal impairment S ec t ion 2(1)(b) of t he EA P WDR prescribes t wo DLA that are specific to d e cisions a bout personal acti v it ies, care or finances ( interact wit h oth er s effe ctively (social functioning). The physic ia n 's evidence indi cate s that the appellant is no d e c ision making in t ha t he independently m an ag e s (meal plannin g), daily shopp ing (making appropriate choices), manage pers (filling /refilling /taking as dir e cted) , and manage per sonal T h e physic ian's e v id ence also indicates that the sectio is n ot appl ic able. C o nsiderin g the evide nce as a whole, the pan el co ncludes t hat i t does not de m onstra te a s evere m ental i mp air Significa nt Res tri c ti o ns t o DLA The app ellant 's positi o n i s t h a t t h ough he i s f uncti o n f ib romyalgia c omp lete ly i n cap acita tes him for 7 to 12 days ev The min ist r y's position is that the eviden ce is n ot suf imp airment s i g n ifi ca ntly re s tricts his a b ility to p er form extended p eriods . The min istr y sta ted t hat w h ile t h e p period ic assistance with a spects o f some D L A, t h e re of these periods. Pa n el Decisi o n The legislation -s. 2(2)(b)(i) of the EAPWDA-requires the minister to substantially assess direct and signifi can t restrictions of DLA in consideration of the opinion of a prescri case the appellant's family physician. This doesn't mean that other evidence shouldn't be factor as required to pro vide cla rification of t he professional ev clea r that the prescribed profes sional's opinion is fundamen whether it is "satisfied". The legislation requires that a severe impairment directly and significantly restricts the appellant's ability to perform DLA either continuously or periodically for extended periods. means that there must be a causal link between the severe impairment and the restrict restriction must also be significant. Finall y , there is a component related to time or duration. direct and siqnificant restriction ma v be e ither c o ntinuous or oeriodic. EAAT 003(10/06/01) o n ing has no i m p act on d ai l y f unctioning . . m ental impairment -m a ke decision mak i n g) , and relate to, communicate or t significantly restric ted with resp ect t o the deci sion makin g aspe cts of meal preparation o nal medic a ti on finances (banking, bu d geting). n of th e AR for m deal in g with social f unctioni ng that the min is t ry rea sona bly de term i ned me nt. al on days when he i s not suffer ing a flare u p , h is e r y month. ficient to demonstrate that th e app ella nt's DLA e ither continu ousl y or p eri od ically f or hy sicia n indicated t h a t the appe l lan t r equires is no infor mat ion as to th e f requency or du r ati o n b e d professi on al , in this ed in idence, b ut t he l egislative l a nguage ma k e s i t tal to the ministry's determination as to The term "directly" ion. The direct The If it is periodic it must be for an
e x t e n d e d t i m e . I n h e r e n t l y , a n y a n a l y s i s o f p e r i o d i c f r e q u e n c y . A l l o t h e r t h i n g s b e i n g e q u a l , a r e s t r i c t i o s i g n i f i c a n t t h a n o n e w h i c h o c c u r s s e v e r a l t i m e s a w e v i d e n c e i n d i c a t e s t h a t a r e s t r i c t i o n a r i s e s p e r i o d i c e v i d e n c e o f t h e d u r a t i o n a n d f r e q u e n c y o f t h e r e s t r c r i t e r i o n i s m e t . T h e p h y s i c i a n ' s e v i d e n c e i n d i c a t e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a D L A , w h i l e i n d i c a t i n g t h a t h e t a k e s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l o n w i t h m a n y t a s k s r e l a t e d t o m a n y D L A . H o w e v e r , t h m u c h l o n g e r t h e a p p e l l a n t t a k e s t o p e r f o r m D L A , a h o w l o 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 i n h i s D L A o t h e r e s t r i c t e d " s o m e d a y s " w h e n h e h a s " m o r e s e v e r e f C o n s i d e r i n g t h e e v i d e n c e a s a w h o l e , t h e p a n e l c o t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e i s i n s u f f i c i e n t t o s h o w o n t h e b a l a p e r f o r m h i s D L A i s s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d e i t h e r c o n H e l p w i t h D L A T h e a p p e l l a n t ' s p o s i t i o n i s t h a t h e r e q u i r e s h e l p w i t h s a i d t h a t o n d a y s w h e n h e c a n ' t g e t o u t o f b e d , h e r h i m w i t h D L A . H e s t a t e d t h a t h e a l s o r e c e i v e s h e l p 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 s i n c e i t h a s n o t b e e n s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t e d , i t c a n n o t b e d e t e r m i n e d t h a t P a n e l D e c i s i o n A f i n d i n g t h a t a s e v e r e i m p a i r m e n t d i r e c t l y a n d s i g n D L A e i t h e r c o n t i n u o u s l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r a n e x t e n " h e l p " a s d e f i n e d b y s e c t i o n 2 ( 3 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D A p r e c o n d i t i o n h a s n o t b e e n s a t i s f i e d o n t h e b a l a n c e A c c o r d i n g l y , 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 r e a s o n t h e a p p e l l a n t r e q u i r e s h e l p w i t h D L A a s d e f i n e d b y C o n c l u s i o n T h e p a n e l a c k n o w l e d g e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s m e d i c H o w e v e r , h a v i n g r e v i e w e d a n d c o n s i d e r e d a l l o f t h e f i n d s t h a t t h e m i n i s t ry ' s d e c i s i o n f i n d i n g t h e a p p e l l a n a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e l e g i s l a t i o n i n t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s o f m i n i s t r y ' s d e c i s i o n . E AA T 0 0 3 ( 1 0 / 0 6 / 0 I )i t y m u s t a l s o i n c l u d e c o n s i d e r a t i o n o f t h e n t h a t o n l y a r i s e s o n c e a y e a r i s l e s s l i k e l y t o b e e e k . A c c o r d i n g l y , i n c i r c u m s t a n c e s w h e r e t h e a l l y , i t i s a p p r o p r i a t e f o r t h e m i n i s t r y t o r e q u i r e i c t i o n i n o r d e r t o b e " s a t i s f i e d " t h a t t h i s l e g i s l a t i v e n t i n d e p e n d e n t l y m a n a g e s a l m o s t a l l a s p e c t s o f a l l g e r t h a n t y p i c a l , o r r e q u i r e s p e r i o d i c a s s i s t a n c e , e p h y s i c i a n h a s p r o v i d e d n o i n f o r m a t i o n a s t o h o w n d h a s p r o v i d e d n o e v i d e n c e a s t o h o w o f t e n a n d r t h a n t h e g e n e r a l s t a t e m e n t t h a t h e i s s i g n i f i c a n t l y l a r e s " . n c l u d e s t h a t t h e m i n i s t r y r e a s o n a b l y d e t e r m i n e d n c e o f p r o b a b i l i t i e s t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s a b i l i t y t o t i n u o u s l y o r p e r i o d i c a l l y f o r e x t e n d e d p e r i o d s . D L A d u e t o t h e r e s t r i c t i o n s h e e x p e r i e n c e s . H e e l i e s o n h i s s t e p f a t h e r a n d h i s c h i l d r e n t o h e l p f r o m h i s s i s t e r i n l a w . e s t a b l i s h e d t h a t t h e a p p e l l a n t ' s D L A a r e s i g n i f i c a n t h e l p i s r e q u i r e d f r o m o t h e r p e r s o n s . i f i c a n t l y r e s t r i c t s a p e r s o n ' s a b i l i t y t o m a n a g e h i s d e d p e r i o d i s a p r e c o n d i t i o n t o a p e r s o n r e q u i r i n g . F o r t h e r e a s o n s p r o v i d e d a b o v e , t h a t o f p r o b a b i l i t i e s i n t h i s c a s e . a b l y c o n c l u d e d i t c o u l d n o t b e d e t e r m i n e d t h a t s e c t i o n 2 ( 3 ) ( b ) o f t h e E A P W D A . a l c o n d i t i o n s a f f e c t h i s a b i l i t y t o f u n c t i o n . e v i d e n c e a n d t h e r e l e v a n t l e g i s l a t i o n , t h e p a n e l t i n e l i g i b l e f o r P W D d e s i g n a t i o n i s a r e a s o n a b l e t h e a p p e l l a n t . T h e p a n e l t h e r e f o r e c o n f i r m s t h e
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.