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Disability - General Tips
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Tips
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CPP Disability Application Kit: Order this immediately. You may do this by phoning 1-800-277-9914 (English), or 1-800-277-9915 (French).
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Disability Benefits are not approved on the basis of the diagnosis. They are determined by HOW the medical condition affects your ability to work at any substantially gainful occupation. To be successful in obtaining disability benefits you must be truly disabled, your doctor must have records to prove it, and your doctor’s report must adequately address all items needed to qualify you for disability benefits.
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Consensus Documents for ME/CFS and FSM: Both Consensus Documents include informative sections on "Assessing Disability" as well as numerous charts and scales to help assess the severity and impact of these illnesses. These are a must for anyone in litigation.
Carruthers BM, Jain AK, De Meirleir KL, Peterson DL, Klimas NG, Lerner AM, Bested AC, Flor-Henry P, Joshi P, Powles ACP, Sherkey JA, van de Sande MI. Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols. Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Volume 11, Number 1, pg. 7-116, 2003 is available at US$14.95 per copy plus US$5.00 shipping and handling (ISBN: 0-7890-2207-9). To order, contact The Haworth Press, Inc., 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580 USA. Telephone for USA/Canada: (800) 429-6784, Telephone outside USA/Canada: (607) 722-5857, fax: (607) 771-0012
email: orders@haworthpressinc.com
Online: http://www.haworthpress.com/store/product.asp?sku=4958
Jain AK, and Carruthers BM: Co-editors. van de Sande MI, Barron SR, Donaldson CS, Dunne J, Gingrich E, Heffez D, Malone D, Leung F K-Y, Romano TJ, Russell IJ, Saul D, Seibel DG. Fibromyalgia Syndrome: Canadian Clinical Working Case Definition, Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols. A Consensus Document. Journal of Musculoskeletal Pain, Volume 11, Number 4, 2004, is only available to subscribers. However it is also published as a book The Fibromyalgia Syndrome: A Clinical Case Definition for Practitioners. It can be ordered from The Haworth Press, Inc. Use the above contact information. It can be ordered online at http://www.haworthpress.com/store/product.as-?sku=5342. Use the code FMS40 in the shopping cart to receive a 40% discount until December 1, 2004. The discount price is US$14.97. If you are ordering by phone make sure to give the sku 5342 and the discount code number of FMS40 at the time of ordering.
4. Organization: It is important to be organized.
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Highlight: Get in the habit of highlighting important information so that it is easy to locate.
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Make copies of all correspondence to and from CPP or your insurance company, medical reports, etc.
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Get a binder with dividers. Group you documentation such as CPP correspondence, medical reports and file them in your binder.
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Send all information to CPP by registered mail. Staple your registered mail receipt to your copy and file all items as soon as they are received.
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Keep a diary of daily activities and symptom severity and fluctuation. Complete various charts contained in the Consensus Documents from time to time. Date them and give copies of these to your doctor at your appointments.
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Definitions of FMS: If Independent Medical Examiners suggest that FMS is some kind of phycosomatic illness, it is helpful for your lawyer to have the following definitions of FMS in order to rebute such an erroneous statement.
FMS Defintions
More Tips: There are many more tips in the Legal Disability Manual for FMS & ME/CFS.
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