A lawsuit has been filed against Unum regarding the denial of disability insurance benefits of a man who says he suffered from post finasteride syndrome.

Plaintiff Alexander M. initiated the lawsuit over a disability insurance denial that was issued by Unum. In September of 2014, the plaintiff allegedly became disabled as a result of cognitive impairments caused by an adverse reaction to the prescription medication finasteride.

Finasteride is a drug used to treat hair loss and prostate enlargement. The plaintiff says that his diagnosis, known as post finasteride syndrome, resulted in a disability that left him unable to work.

The plaintiff alleges in his lawsuit that he has been suffering from cognitive impairments for many years and these were exacerbated by the use of the prescription drug, Isotretinoin.

The plaintiff says he claimed disability benefits for post finasteride syndrome on Nov. 18, 2014 with an effective disability date of Sept. 12, 2014. In March 2015, Unum initially approved this disability insurance claim. However, the insurance company reportedly told Alexander that the approval was made for a mental illness disability only and the benefits available to the plaintiff were limited to two years.

Unum Disability Insurance

Consumers often buy a disability insurance policy as an important stopgap in case they are hurt in an accident or to develop a sudden medical problem. Rather than dealing with the sudden loss of income due to these unforeseen circumstances, disability insurance allows those claimants to get benefits so long as their submission is approved.

In this disability insurance lawsuit, however, the explanation that the benefits would be limited to two years was confusing to the applicant since the diagnosis was a physical one and not one entirely caused by mental illness. He argues that by improperly categorizing his disability as a mental illness, Unum was able to limit the period for which he could qualify for benefits.

As alleged in the post finasteride syndrome disability insurance lawsuit, this determination ran counter to the opinions of the regular treating providers, who argued that the cognitive impairment affecting the plaintiff is caused by PFS and therefore, the impairment in question was a brain dysfunction caused by a physical condition rather than a mental illness.

Alexander says disability payments were paid by the Unum Insurance Company until March 12, 2017. At that point in time, Unum began paying the plaintiff under a reservation of rights and his benefits were allegedly terminated on May 2, 2017, in accordance with the two-year limitation policy on benefits for mental illness.

The plaintiff alleges that the diagnosis of post finasteride syndrome is a physical illness rather than a mental condition and that his treating providers agree with that determination. He alleges that he should continue to recover benefits from the company for the diagnosis, which he maintains is a physical condition.

This is far from the first lawsuit filed against Unum alleging the company wrongly denied disability insurance benefits.

The Post Finasteride Syndrome Lawsuit was filed in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The bad faith insurance attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or Unum class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, Unum bad faith lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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