An employee of the Manitoba government who was diagnosed with Long Covid and another ailment is demanding the life of the province and Canada after the insurance company denied its application for long -term disability payments.
The woman worked as manager of the Gift Store of the Legislative Assembly and has been employed by the Manitoba Government since 2014, says the lawsuit.
He was entitled to long -term disability benefits of the employer under a group disability plan administered by Canada Life for the province, says the judicial document.
He says that Canada’s life made the decision to deny his claim, but the Manitoba government could have annulled that decision and should have done it. The plaintiff was diagnosed with a chronic fatigue syndrome, says the demand, “which has prevented him from performing regular tasks.”
In November 2024 he filed a claim to the life of Canada for long -term disability, stating that he has not been able to work.
In a letter of April 24 that denied the claim, Canada Life said he had to evaluate whether his continuous medical symptoms are of a gravity that would prevent him from doing his duties as manager of the gift store.
He concluded that medical information in the file supports that the plaintiff “could work within a sedentary level”, and that he would not be prevented from performing his occupational duties.
The judicial document says that the plaintiff’s work as a gift store manager was not sedentary.
As manager of the gift store, says the demand, the 52 -year -old plaintiff had a list of tasks that include purchases, meetings with suppliers, budgets, general administration, daily sales and deposits, accumulating or scanning merchandise prices, wrapping or bag products and loss prevention.
The employee must have long -term disability benefits for an amount of 70 percent of his biweekly profits, says the claim statement filed on September 23 at the King Court Bank of Manitoba.
The medical director of Canada Life reviewed the file and informed that “although it did not see a clear medical contraindication to work, the plaintiff’s limitations should be fatigue, which is difficult to quantify, but could interfere with a variety of working conditions,” says the judicial document.
The review concluded that “the plaintiff’s symptoms seem to be triggered by … activities” as simple as raising his arms.
Canada Life organized an independent medical examination by a physiatrist, a doctor specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation.
The physiatrist referred to the symptoms of the plaintiff, such as fatigue and cerebral fog, saying: “The plaintiff has characteristics in his post covid presentation, a prolonged post -target recovery of the symptoms, sometimes this is called Covid Largo.”
Although the physiatrist discovered that “it is possible that the plaintiff currently performs a work at the sedentary level in some way,” the specialist recommended a brain magnetic resonance and an evaluation by a neurologist, says the judicial document, adding that these two recommendations were ignored by the defendants.
The lawsuit claims that the disability benefits denied despite the fact that the defendants knew that the plaintiff’s work as a gift store manager was not a sedentary work, and that they knew that “his work required him to do basic activities such as raising his arms.”
By denying long -term disability benefits, “the plaintiff has been under extreme financial pressure,” says the claim.
“The actions of the defendants not honoring the terms of the plan have aggravated the condition and symptoms of the plaintiff, and led her to suffer extreme stress and anxiety,” says the judicial document.
The claim seeks a court order that requires the defendants to pay the long -term disability benefits of December 14, 2024 onwards, while the plaintiff continues to be disabled.
It also seeks aggravated and punitive damage, and costs related to legal procedures.
The plaintiff alleges that the life of Canada and the Government of Manitoba “have been arbitrarily and without justification for their right to the payment of the benefits of LTD and have done so in an atrocious, atrocious and full way without taking into account their actions and their knowledge, but not affectionate, of the consequences of their actions.”
The accusations have not been tested in the Court and the defendants have not submitted defense statements.
The lawyer’s lawyer, Joseph Pollock, declined to comment on the case.
A spokesman for the Government of Manitoba indicated that the province is aware of the claim, but has no comments because the matter is before the courts.
CBC News communicated with Canada Life Assurance Company, but has not received comments on the demand.
