The ElderShield disability assessment form today states that an individual’s cognitive capacity should be taken into consideration when an assessor is assessing ADL ability, but it is not clear how assessors should do so consistently.

Under the new framework and revised training curriculum, assessors will be guided more explicitly on the aspects to take into consideration if an insured is suspected to be cognitively impaired. Assessors will therefore be better equipped to take into account the impact of cognitive impairment on an insured’s functional abilities, which will result in cognitively impaired insureds with higher care needs being able to more consistently qualify for CareShield Life claims.

Insureds with dementia or other cognitive impairments will still need to undergo a disability assessment in order to qualify for CareShield Life claims, as their functional abilities may be affected in varying degrees by their cognitive impairment.