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Source: Fair Go -
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HEALTH INSURANCE TROUBLE
Reporter: Kevin Milne
Tony Herlihy of Woodville discovered he had Parkinson's Disease while employed by Dominion Breweries at Mangatainoka. Luckily, he was covered by DB's Employee Benefits Scheme. This meant that he stood to get a lump sum payout of around $40,000. But the Scheme's policy document stated that you couldn't put in a claim until you'd been out of work for six months due to illness.
Tony continued to work as he was still capable of doing so, though his health continued to deteriorate. However, DB later made Tony redundant with a payout of around $40,000. After he had been out of work for six months, Tony put in his claim for his total disability but AXA, who underwrote the scheme, told him that there was no way he could claim because he had not left work because of ill health; he had been made redundant.
Tony felt that as he got Parkinsons while he was covered he should be paid both the lump sum total disability payout and his redundancy. AXA and DB say you can't have it both ways, and that the redundancy payout made up for his not getting a lump-sum payout.
Fair Go believes that AXA should pay out immediately to people who get Parkinson's. There is no cure for Parkinson's so there seems little point in insisting on a six month stand-by. We are also surprised that DB doesn't appear to have made it clear to Tony, when they made him redundant, that his redundancy meant the end of any hopes of claiming on his total disability claim.
We're pleased to say that after discussions with Fair Go, DB agreed to pay out $15,000 to Tony, saying that they regretted the situation he found himself in and that he had been a valued employee of the company.
NB: If you have any issues regarding Parkinson's, go to the Parkinson's New Zealand website www.parkinsons.org.nz or phone 0800 473 4636. Parkinson's New Zealand provides support, education and information for people with Parkinson's, their families, carers and health professionals.
