Posted April 14, 2017 with Tags ERISA law, Bill Hittler
Short-Term Disability Claim Denial Based on Back Pain Claim Upheld – Medical Diagnosis Alone Insufficient to Support Claim
The District Court of Minnesota, in Braden v. ATT Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 3, 2017 WL 1047257 (D. Minn. Mar. 17, 2017), granted summary judgment under ERISA in favor of the plan in spite of medical evidence that the claimant could not work based on lumbar pain and degenerative disc disease. The decision is worth reading because of the court’s thoughtful assessment of the evidence and rejection of the notion that a person with a documented history of back surgery, reports of inability to sit at work and a supporting physician’s opinion is entitled to short-term disability benefits.