Why yes, I think I might have a pre-existing condition

Well, I've been officially rejected for long-term disability benefits. I figured I would be as they have a clause in the contract saying that if you work for them less then a year, you can not be off work due to a pre-existing condition. It still sucks to hear.

The guy whose horrible job it is to inform people them they have been rejected called me to confirm that I was off work because of my CF. I tried to explain that it was a lung infection and that my condition had been stable when I started the job (minus the odd pneumonia), that I did not expect to have to go off work after only 8 month and that I had a sudden deterioration. The decline in heath is obviously caused by CF so he read me the pre- scripted letter of how sorry he was but that I was being rejected at this time.

He told me that the best thing to do would be to return to work until November (being a year from the time I was eligible for LTD), go off work then,  and re-apply. I told him that I am going through the lung transplant process so I'm pretty sure my doctors would not approve of me working. He asked if I could work until my transplant happened. This is when I wanted to scream into the phone that if I could work, I wouldn't need a transplant, and that one does not simply walk into a hospital one day, get a new set of lungs, and return to work by Monday. Do you know how many hoops I have to jump through to even get on the transplant list?! Arg!!

Trust me long-term disability people, this is not a scam I have. I do not start a job, work for awhile, call up my doctor buddies and get some letters forged then wait for the money to start pouring in while I sit back and laugh. Is that why there is a pre-existing condition clause for under a year employment? Do you think people really do that? I think either you are paranoid or you simply do not want to let go of the money people pay into the system. Can I please at least have back the money I paid you while I was working?

I called the benefits people today to see what my next option would be and I have to wait for my rejection letter and then appeal the decision before I can apply for Canadian Disability. What a crazy system.