if a person were to owe Um money, can they actually force you to pay it? I live in a state where no one can garnish my paycheck other than the US government, or one of it's represeatives. So should this ever happen, and they say terminate my benefits and declare they have overpaid me for xx amount money, can I safely just not pay them? what can they actually do to me? having just been through a Bankruptcy myself, I know that in my state, other than taking it to small claims court or filing a lien or something like that, the debt just goes to collection, and there seems to be little they can do to collect it.

Hi, My spouse received LTD from Unum Provident for 2 years and then my spouse's SSDI was approved. We received the repayment letter and figures, etc. form UP. Since we were already in debt from losing a full-time pay income, we decided it was in our best interest to file Chapter 7 BEFORE we received the backpay from SSDI for my spouse and children. On the Bankruptcy petition, we added Unum Provident as a creditor and what we estimate we owed.(Upwards of $50,000). We were told this could not be done by many people,including those on this board, but I continued to do the research and went forward anyways hoping in the end, we would be okay.
The trustee approved our petition and we never heard from UP again. We were able to keep spouse's SSDI back pay and the kids without having to repay. (Also, had we filed a Chapter 13, we would have received he same results) From my understanding, our attorney, said that technically, no lien of any sorts can be put on a person's SSDI benefits. (unless it is the gov't., IRS, etc., but not a LTD company.) I am not advising BK to anyone, but it was in our best interest due to other medical bills, etc and the BK program is there to help those in need. We have been able to start rebuilding our credit again. Hope this helps someone.

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You need to write a rebuttal. The statement that no adequate definition exists is a lie. The Centers for Disease Control and Pevention(this is a list by the government) states that "Mental Disorders are disabling Mental disorders are as disabling as cancer or heart disease in terms of premature death and lost productivity "
What type of mental disorder were you diagnosed with (anxiety, depression, etc,) or just Bipolar? How long where you treated?
There is blood work that concluded that you did have HHV-6. But HHV-6 is thought to be present in more than 1/2 of the population. When you are not well this virus reactivates by stress related mechanisms.
Chronic Fatigue is real, the Centers of Disease Control states if you have at least 3-4 of these symptoms you are diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue "Have severe chronic fatigue of six months or longer duration with other known medical conditions excluded by clinical diagnosis; and
Concurrently have four or more of the following symptoms: substantial impairment in short-term memory or concentration; sore throat; tender lymph nodes; muscle pain; multi-joint pain without swelling or redness; headaches of a new type, pattern or severity; unrefreshing sleep; and post-exertional malaise lasting more than 24 hours. "

The argument that Unum would have is that you have been diagnosed with different things wrong with you. You need your doctor to state for EACH disease or diagnose you have a clarity of symptoms that the Centers of Disease says they diagnose people with.
Please go to this website
http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=B...ate=/TaggedPage/Tag gedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=54&ContentID=23037 and read about mental disorders. If you have the right verbiage in your doctors letters and your OWN rebuttal from government places off the internet, Unum can not win. One thing about Unum is that they try to play doctor. I say they should let our doctors diagnose us and pay when we are in need. They need to go afters those that are not really sick.


< replied-to message removed by QT >

  I have a pending reassment claim with Unum Provident. They led me to believe that I needed to file based solely on my Mental Illness symptoms (there are, of course, no notes in their file re: this. I later realized that that would limit my benefits to just two years, but it was too late and I was too sick to fight anything; too sick to persue legal help, etc.
   Per lawsuits thay had to reopen my claim. What are people doing to win these reassessments, esp. re: the MI two year limitation? I had and have many physical illness symptoms and diagnoses that they ignored.
   Also there was an interoffice memorandum directing two workers to review my file for other diagnoses and to contact me re: same. None of this was done.
   I have letters from my Psychiatrist stating that Bipolar is an organic disorder. I have, since my benefits stopped, been diagnosed with HHV-6 which I apparently had for 16 years to up to my whole lifetime. This causes Chronic Fatigue and mental illness symptoms. I also caught Lyme disease during the benefit period but after that stopped paying me.
   I have letters from every practitioner that treated me and from friends and my wife as to my total physical inability to work during this period. I have included documentation that HHV-6, Chronic Fatigue and Candidiasis (I am also diagnosed with this)cause serious mental illness symptoms as well as the many physical illness symptoms.
   I have also found that the DSM-IV MANUAL STATES THAT THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN MENTAL DISORDERS AND PHYSICAL ILLNESSES IS A FALSE ONE AND THAT THE PHRASE "MENTAL DISORDER" IS SUSCEPTIBLE TO MULTIPLE INTERPRETATIONS..."NO DEFINITION ADEQUATELY SPECIFIES PRECISE BOUNDARIES FOR TH CONCEPT OF 'MENTAL DISORDERS'...THE TERM MENTAL ILLNESS IS INHERENTLY AMBIGUOUS BECAUSE NO ADEQUATE DIFINITION EXISTS". Please get this out to others with MI. This is huge and most attorneys do not know about it.
   Should I send out the original physician letters to Unum? What else specifically should I not send to them of the originals?

Thanks for your help, Teak

If you provided all of the information to UNUM about how much you and your dependents were reciving then in some of the courts they are only allowed to start withholding the additional benefits but are not allowed to collect the back payments because they did it voluntarily.

It is only where you have not provided the insurance company the information where that in some cases they are able to collect the back payment. You need to have someone help you with this, that knows the rules and laws that effect this in your state.

Also make sure that the copy of the plan documents you have are from when you became disabled.

Unum has been known to change the wording they send out to get out of paying.


dave61599@yahoo.com

Hello. I became disabled in 1997 and through my UNUM LTD policy, was awarded benefits (not without a bit of a fight...). I received my full benefit until I won SSDI benefits, at which time my UNUM benefits were reduced and I dutifully sent them their check for overpayment.
Fast forward: July 2006. I receive a call from UNUM/Providence informing me that I owe them backpay from benefits my 2 children received through SSDI from 1997-present. On closer inspection of my paperwork - it, indeed, certainly looks like this should have been part of the calculation: The agreement I had to sign for them to pay benefits DOES state: "...if Social Security makes an award, UNUM will reduce my monthly policy benefit by the amount of the Social Security benefit (and my spouse and family if applicable...)..." Needless to say, I'm horrified and literally (more) sickened.

They have reviewed my case at least three times and they have had all SSDI paperwork since the beguinning of the application process (including my attorney's notes). Since I moved from GA to PA in 1999 , I've had to be in contact with them at least 4 times as well (tax changes, direct deposit issues...) - I can't believe this hasn't been picked up until now (the reviewer that called me -said "off the record..he was suprised as well..) I wrongly assumed this had already been figured in ! If my calculations are correct, we will owe them over 50K. Do I have any recourse at all ? I'm pretty certain this will do me in.

Hello, I was just wondering what takes place with Unumprovident when you change from own occupation to any occupation after 24 mths. I just receieved a letter saying that I have been approved through July of 2007 at which time my "own occupation" expires. I have been to the Mayo Clinic and have been diagnosed with Guillane Barre and CIDP and also a rare pressure palsy neuropathy called HNPP. I am using Genex to apply for SSDI, my doctor says I will never be able to work again. There is no way I can do any type of work, I have trouble sitting, standing, walking, I just worry about UP's reputation. Do they really only try to pay for 24 months? I have diagnostic and genetic testing that proves both conditions without any doubt.

i am a vietnam veteran with fibromyalgia(FMS). in researching FMS and trying to get proper treatment from the VETERANS ADMINISTRATION (VA) I found a group of "doctors" lead by DR SIMON WESSELY known as the "WESSELY SCHOOL OF PHYCHIATRISTS" that are being funded by UNUM/PROVIDENT these same doctors have stated that fibromyalgia, myalgic encephalomyylitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, gulf war syndrome and lyme disease are phychiatric disorders even through there is clear research that shows these are nerological or organic disease.


The VA/DOD CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINE FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF FIBROMYALGIA AND CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME ARE WORD FOR WORD THE SAME AS THE "WESSELY SCHOOL"
WHO REALY RUNS YOUR HEALTH CARE IN THE US DOCTORS WITH A "MD." AFTER THERE NAME OR THE POWERFUL INSURANCE INDUSTRY WITH A "CEO" AFTER THERE NAME.
THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY IS CONCERNED BECAUSE THERE IS NO NATIONAL HEALTH CARE IN THE US. THAY GET STUCK WITH BILL

KNOWN MEMBERS OF THE WESSELY SCHOOL OF PHYCHIATRIST
DR SIMON WESSELY
DR MICHAEL SHARP ON THE BOARD OF THE VA/DOD CLINICAL PRACTIC GUIDELINES
DR MATTHEW HOTOPE
DR K FUKUDA
DR TRUDIE CHALDER
DR ANTHONY CLEARE
DR PETER WHITE
DR ANTHONY DAVID
DR COLIN BLAKEMORE
DR ELIZABETH MITCHELL
DR STEPHEN LADYMAN

any one want to check this information "and everyone should, doin't take my word for it"THERE IS A LOT MORE .Ihave over 1000 pages of documents. GOOGLE {SIMON WESSELY FIBROMYALGIA} ALSO GOOGLE {SIMON WESSELY INSURANCE}
       {SIMON WESSELY VA/DOD} {SIMON WESSELY MOD }
       {SIMON WESSELY ME/CFS }
       {SIMON WESSELY GWS}
       {SIMON WESSELY UNUM}

I am disabled and have get just a small VA NONSERVICE DISABLITY check that i can hardly live off from.
THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO TREAT ANY ONE MUCH LESS THE VETERANS IN THE US.AND THE UK.
IF EVERYONE CAN PASS THIS INFO TO ANY WEB SITES FOR THESE DISORDERS MAYBE WE CAN PUT A STOP TO THIS.

G. JEFFRES

WOODEN SHIPS AND RUSTY CRUSTY IRON MEN USS ENHANCE MSO 437

Go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is on the internet and it is the standards for Disease and illnesses by the government. Unum has to honor this. They use to use this page to fight there battles but I also won my disability claim by using this.

< replied-to message removed by QT >

i am a vietnam veteran with fibromyalgia(FMS). in researching FMS and trying to get proper treatment from the VETERANS ADMINISTRATION (VA) I found a group of "doctors" lead by DR SIMON WESSELY known as the "WESSELY SCHOOL OF PHYCHIATRISTS" that are being funded by UNUM/PROVIDENT these same doctors have stated that fibromyalgia, myalgic encephalomyylitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, gulf war syndrome and lyme disease are phychiatric disorders even through there is clear research that shows these are nerological or organic disease.


The VA/DOD CLINICAL PRACTICE GUIDELINE FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF FIBROMYALGIA AND CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME ARE WORD FOR WORD THE SAME AS THE "WESSELY SCHOOL"
WHO REALY RUNS YOUR HEALTH CARE IN THE US DOCTORS WITH A "MD." AFTER THERE NAME OR THE POWERFUL INSURANCE INDUSTRY WITH A "CEO" AFTER THERE NAME.
THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY IS CONCERNED BECAUSE THERE IS NO NATIONAL HEALTH CARE IN THE US. THAY GET STUCK WITH BILL

KNOWN MEMBERS OF THE WESSELY SCHOOL OF PHYCHIATRIST
DR SIMON WESSELY
DR MICHAEL SHARP ON THE BOARD OF THE VA/DOD CLINICAL PRACTIC GUIDELINES
DR MATTHEW HOTOPE
DR K FUKUDA
DR TRUDIE CHALDER
DR ANTHONY CLEARE
DR PETER WHITE
DR ANTHONY DAVID
DR COLIN BLAKEMORE
DR ELIZABETH MITCHELL
DR STEPHEN LADYMAN

any one want to check this information "and everyone should, doin't take my word for it"THERE IS A LOT MORE .Ihave over 1000 pages of documents. GOOGLE {SIMON WESSELY FIBROMYALGIA} ALSO GOOGLE {SIMON WESSELY INSURANCE}
       {SIMON WESSELY VA/DOD}
       {SIMON WESSELY ME/CFS }
       {SIMON WESSELY GWS}
       {SIMON WESSELY UNUM}

I am also having issues with LTD through Unum Provident. After receiving short term and then long term payments for a total of 33 months, I receive the hate gram that my claim should have been denied and I should have returned to work shortly after major surgery. I have had plenty of medical evidence supporting my post op claim. Also have a rare disease that created many issues during my employment with corporate america. Once the victim, always the victim. I fought a torrid battle to keep my job as a maintenance mechanic, since I am a single mom wanting to provide for my children. I spent 10 yrs. on our safety team, from its origin to removing workplace fear and being one of the safest work places in the US, then I am injured at work. After receiving administrative review of my injury (similar to a firing squad, devised after I was rotated from the safety team) I had proper follow up with company physician. It was not completely healed when I re-injured the exact area at home. This released Worker's Comp. from any liability. My injury was internal and became a septic infection, almost costing me my life. There is now irrepairable damage (tissue and nerves). I now have limited use of my arm and hand, refusing amputation.

Since Family Medical Leave of Absence is for only 24 months, I was dismissed from my professional position. This gave them the avenue to finally dismiss me, since my illness and injury combine to make me unable to perform my job responsibilities.

I receive a phone call from UP 6 days after the denial (11/05) , stating my last check is in the mail (pro-rated of course). My disease is rare, finding a knowledgeable physician to treat me has been a major dilemma. Both of my physicians are no longer in this area and I cannot retreive my past medical records. The second physician worked at UF, in which I have now discovered that my medical charts have been lost, incorrect information has been placed in them and it gets worse. Recently I was admitted for testing, only to be accused of a false identity! Someone's typo is costing me valuable information. After 3 request for my chart information, which should include 30 yrs, of data, I receive 2 pieces of paper (for $10)!!

Is someone liable for this incorrect information and the misplaced data that I desperately need to supply to the so-called physician at UP?? My med. insurance does not want to pay for yet another DNA test, which they have paid for 3x. I understand their refusal. Now I am paying the price of no income, surviving on $1.50 per day for food. Any money from my 401K has been spent on doctors, meds, more doctors, paperwork tracking, fees and gas (the ultimate killer) and my monthly household bills. Do not qualify for food stamps, my broken down auto is worth more than $1500! And people wonder why sometimes you just want to choke some idiot who ignores you, leaves your needed paperwork lying on desk for 3 weeks!Then your physician is pissed off when they are "bothered" with having to complete forms repeatedly. The SS battle is being reinstated, since they admitted their physicians were not experts! I cannot affford a high profile attorney to handle all of this, or I would sue them all. Makes you wonder how many people die over this type of ignorance and irresponsibility!

Shouldn't UP be made to understand that a permanent and unrepairable impairment mean that a form should only be completed once? Or maybe once every 4 yrs? The same with a disease that is incurable, so rare that your physician's cannot agree on treatment? ARRRGGGHHH, this is so depressing and aggravating!!!

The Situation:
My son fell @ work & fractured his knee. Work comp ok dr's and P>>, 1 mo later we found a tumor was in the knee. We were sent to Mayo Clinic. The work comp has denied paying for the surgery and dr. bills. but still pay weekly benefits.What matters is that his work activities were a substantial contributing factor to his fix occurring when it did. The break did not occur spontaneously. He is a furniture mover.According to Minnesota Law, should they pay? Why should my son pay a $2,000 deductible?So along with the fall and fracture that Ross had, making it a workers' compensation injury, it made it possible to diagnose the tumor, and it had to be treated concurrent with the fracture for the fracture to heal. Workers' Compensation is approving everything, but not paying the bills