Treating Doctor v. Insurance Company’s Doctor

When there is a dispute regarding your disability, any court hearing comes down to a “battle of the experts.”  In these case of long term disability, the experts are doctors and other medical professionals.  The insurance company may want to to have an “independent” medical examination by a doctor that they want to see, and this doctor may end up disputing what your treating physician says about your condition.  This is why it is so important to get the right legal professionals working for you.  At Cody Allison and Associates, we stand ready to help.

Long-term disability claims primarily involve gathering the right information from your doctors in order to show an accurate picture of your limitations and inability to work based on the definitions in your policy.  Many times the insurance company will attempt to contradict the opinions of your doctor by sending your medical records to an “independent” (peer review/insurance company) doctor.  The insurance company doctor does not know you and has never even seen you, yet often times, will support the insurance company’s decision to deny benefits.  At Cody Allison & Associates, PLLC, our attorneys can effectively argue against the insurance company doctor’s review based on the credentials of the doctor, their bias, as well as the quality of the review itself.

The case law in the Sixth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals shows that in an ERISA long-term disability decision, the treating doctor of the claimant should be given adequate weight to insure a fair decision is being made.  The courts are looking to see if the insurance company acted arbitrarily and capriciously in denying benefits. They are prohibited from relying solely on their “hired guns” when making a decision.

Every case is different.  Just like you are a unique individual, your case is unique as well.

At Cody Allison & Associates, PLLC we fight denied long-term disability claims everyday.  It’s what we do.  If you believe you have been wrongfully denied your ERISA, or non-ERISA, long-term disability benefits, give us a call for a free consultation.  You can reach Cody Allison & Associates, PLLC at (615) 234-6000.  We are based in Nashville, TN; however, we represent clients in many states (TN, KY, GA, AL, MS, AR, NC, SC, FL, MI, OH, MO, LA, VA, WV, just to name a few).  We will be happy to talk to you no matter where you live.  You can also e-mail our office at cody@codyallison.com.   Put our experience to work for you.  For more information go to www.LTDanswers.com.