Many of the new issues are covered in the updated 5/10/06  “Personal Commentary”. The areas that will be covered in this update are as follows:

The deadline to file a Rupture Claim is June 1, 2006. You need to be very careful on how and when you file your claim prior to June 1, 2006.  If you mail your claim form by a delivery service (Federal Express, DHL, UPS etc) OR by the United States Postal Service certified or registered mail, your letter can be postmarked or dated on or before June 1, 2006. YOU CANNOT MAIL YOUR CLAIM FORM ON JUNE 1, 2006 IF YOU ARE USING REGULAR U.S. MAIL.

If you mail your Rupture Claim Form by regular U.S. mail or by using a national mail service, then the claim forms must be RECEIVED by the Claims Board by June 1, 2006 at 5:00 P.M. Central Time. If you have any questions or doubts about when and how to mail your Rupture Claim, ask now and do not wait until the last day to try to mail your claim form. If you cannot afford to lose the Rupture Benefit of $25,000 you may be entitled to, then you should pay to have your claim form mailed by “certified or registered” mail at least one week before the deadline.

EXCEPTION:  If your Dow Corning implants were removed after March 2, 2006 and before May 31, 2006, you have an additional 30 days to submit your Rupture Claim and medical records. If your implants were removed during this time period, you have until July 1, 2006 to submit your Rupture Claim Form. The Claimant Advisory Committee (CAC) has stated in their latest newsletter that the deadline is July 5, 2006. If you look at the language from the Rupture Payment Claim Form, it states….”if your ruptured Dow Corning silicone gel breast implants were removed within 90 days immediately before the second anniversary of the Effective Date, then your Rupture Payment Claim Form and medical records must be returned on or before 30 days after the second anniversary of the effective date.” To be on the safe side, I would file the claim on or before July 1, 2006.

The deadlines for filing a claim for Class 7, 9, 10.1 and 10.2 are the same as for filing a Rupture Claim. If you are filing a Class 7 claim, you need to make sure you indicate on the claim form whether you are making a “Disease Claim” or “Expedited Claim.” You will need to attach a copy of your surgery report proving you received either a Bristol, Baxter, Cox Uphoff, Mentor or Bioplasty implant. If your implants were saline or manufactured by McGhan or 3M, you will not qualify for benefits under Category 7.

If you are making a Disease Claim, you will also need to attach a copy of your medical records which will support one of the covered diseases. If you received a Bristol or Baxter implant, you will need to also include a “Marshal Form.” This form states that you will not pursue a claim in the MDL-926 Class Action for your Bristol or Baxter implant. If you are an Other or Late Registrant in the MDL-926 Class Action and have symptoms that are covered under the harder to qualify for, higher paying Long Term Benefit Schedule (settlement range-$75,000 to $250,000), you have until the year 2010 to make a claim in the MDL-926 Class Action.

However, if you sign the Marshal form and submit your claim under Category 7 of the Dow Plan, you will be waiving any rights of compensation you may have in the MDL-926 Class Action. The settlement range for Category 7 claims is going to be small. There is $57.5 million dollars allocated for Category 7 claims, and over 35,000 claims have been filed to date. Do the math. If you are not sure you want to waive your rights in the MDL-926 Class Action, but you do not want to miss out on benefits which may be more secure and much smaller under Category 7 of the Dow Plan, you should speak to a representative of the Dow Claims Board (CAP) or MDL-926 Claims Board or an attorney.

I have been contacted by so many claimants who have spoken to the Dow Claims Board (CAP) and were provided an estimate as to when their disease claim would be processed. I am always asked if this information is accurate.

The only credible information I can provide is to state that the SFDCT is now processing disease claims that were filed in September/October of 2004. We have not received any responses yet to our disease claims that were filed in late October/November of 2004. If you file your disease claim now, based on the above information, it would appear that your claim would not be reviewed until at least 12 months and most likely 18 months. I truly hope I am wrong and it will be much sooner.

At the present time the definition of Option 1 Level A disability is when a claimant can perform few or none of their normal activities of vocation AND self care. As reported in my prior update, there is a motion pending before Judge Hood, where the Claimant Advisory Committee is asking the Court to rule that the definition of Option 1 Level A disability should be where a claimant can perform few or none of their normal activities of vocation OR self care.

As you know, 95% of all Option 1 Level A claims are denied. There are many reasons why a Level A claim can be denied by the Claims Board. Some of the reasons why a Level A claim is denied is when the medical report may not list enough limitation of activities of what the claimant cannot do in her home activities, or the claimant may be employed (even part time).

One of the primary reasons an Option 1 Level A claim is denied has to do with “self care.” It appears that in order to satisfy the criteria for “self care”, the claimant will need assistance in getting dressed and undressed, feeding, bathing, personal hygiene etc. This is an extremely difficult criterion to satisfy, and this is probably one of the primary reasons why only 5% of Option 1 Level A claims are accepted.

In the event the Court rules in favor of the SFDCT in their interpretation of Option 1 Level A disability criterion, a claimant will have to satisfy the “self care” issue in order to qualify for a Level A settlement. Attorney Greg Hoza has come up with an excellent “self care” medical questionnaire that he has used to cure deficiencies in his Level A claims.

He has forwarded this questionnaire to the Claimant Advisory Committee, who has posted the “self care” medical questionnaire on their web site. I strongly recommend that claimants and/or attorneys representing Dow Corning claimants download this medical questionnaire and send it to their clients “before” their examinations with their QMD. It could make the difference on whether a claim will be one of the 5% that is accepted by the Claims Board for Option 1 Level A disability.