Satori-5 Supplement

Welcome

Having won my first DLA benefit appeal after a difficult and lengthy hearing, and having won my second DLA benefit appeal as a formality - without even the need to have spoken at it at all, I was consequently a little complacent and overconfident at my third DLA benefit appeal. Given the substantial deterioration in my overall health [see "The 'Unbelievable' Crisis" sections parts 1 and 2 and "The Present Situation" section with its two short videos], I expected this third, to me ridiculously unnecessary DLA appeal hearing, to be even more of a formallity than the previous one. It should have been a formality. In reality however it was anything but. I lost it - and for the most incredible of reasons!

Their reason for refusing to decide the appeal in my favour was that they believed that I did not actually suffer from either M.E. or MCS at all - but only thought that I did! They dismissed the reality of my two previous DLA benefit appeal awards by simply declaring them to have been "in error". When I finally got this news I was flabbergasted. Then I was incandescent with anger.

They had not even mentioned their ludicrous suspicions to me at the hearing - thus didn't give me any chance at all to respond to them. Fair or what? I only learned I had "lost" my appeal about a week later by letter. After recovering from the initial shock and the anger that followed on from it I then immediately requested "permission to appeal" to the Social Security Commissioner from the DLA tribunal hearing chairperson, giving my reasons [this document will be made available via the "Other Relevent Correspondence" supplement in due course]. I even enclosed a letter from my GP in which he clearly states that he had been treating me for M.E. for over 10 years - and that I didn't suffer form any psychiatric illness. This was backed up with a second letter from a highly respected Consultant Immunologist based in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary [ARI] confiming a diagnosis of M.E./MCS and his belief that I was "substantially disabled" by them. Incredibly, however, my request for permission to appeal to the Social Security Commissioner in Edinburgh was still refused by this Tribunal Chairman.

Given the whole history of my health for the previous decade and my dismal state of health at that time [and still] I found the whole situation to be incredibly bizarre, wickedly cruel, and last, but by no means least, financially crippling. It was like being trapped in some terrible nightmare. It didn't seem to matter one single jot how bad my health was, or how bad it actually got or was continuing to get, or how incredibly harsh and inhumane my living conditions became as a result - none of it seemed to count for anything at all.

Apart from shooting myself there was now only one possible avenue of remedial action left open to me - so I took it. I again applied for "permission to appeal", again giving all my reasons, only this time I applied directly to the Commissioners office in Edinbugh. This applicaion, thank God, was successful. Then, some time later, I was informed that I would not have to attend a appeal hearing with the Social Security Commissioner at Edinburgh [again thank God] as the Commissioner felt that he/she already had enough information available to overturn the DLA tribunals "refusal" decison as wrong in law without the need of a hearing to do so. Even the Secretary of State agreed in his submission on the case that the DLA tribual members had erred in law in several respects [paperwork on all this will be posted here at Satori-5 soon]. So, my appeal to the Social Security Commissioner was finally successful - and the whole matter was referred back to the DLA tibunal appeal process for a fresh hearing with different tribunal members. This was scheduled for 11.06.2003.

As I would now need as much clear supporting medical evidence as I could possibly get for this new DLA tribunal hearing this brings us to the reason for the letter to my GP as displayed fully below:

Ref: Med-05
Photocopy 1 of 2
Basic "Easy-Read" version available below.

Ref: Med-05
Photocopy 2 of 2
View entire"Easy Read" version here.