many years ago, chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia were not recognized the way they are now. but over time, these disabilities have been established, diagnosed by medical professionals and accepted by insurance companies. i suspect long-haul covid will go through the same process, but because it’s new right now, insurers will find ways to deny claims based on insufficient medical evidence until there is more research and decisions made in court.
if you are a long-hauler, you need evidence
it’s important for long-haul covid sufferers to build medical evidence by relying on their family physician to record their symptoms and provide referrals to specialists, as needed. the important thing, of course, is to have your physician as an ally.
if you don’t have a family doctor, long-haulers should use the same clinic for appointments — continuity of treatment makes it easier to gather evidence. every time you see a physician, they take notes of what you say, which will then be given to the insurance company, and could help you get approval for your disability claim.
what if your claim is denied?
since disability policies are really about function, with most having provisions for being totally disabled or unable to perform functions of a job, when our firm gets an insurance benefits denial case, we ask the treating physician— or an expert — how covid-19 continues to affect a patient’s abilities to work and live. the impact can be devastating.
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