Mother died of cancer while on “active employee on medical leave” status

My mother recently passed from lung cancer even though she never smoked (psa know your radon levels in your home!). She was employed by hospital in New York State and covered under the hospitals group life insurance. She had been out on medical leave since June of last year and died in May of this year. Based on her status at the time of her death “active employee on medical leave” her employer filed a life insurance claim on her behalf.

I spoke with Lincoln financial a few days ago and they have denied her claim based on her status at the time of her death. I spoke to HR and they confirmed her status, and also confirmed that she was still being paid as she had a large bank of sick/PTO hours that were being paid out slowly with each paycheck. Essentially, she was actively paying for her benefits too.

I am planning on asking for a review once I get the official denial letter in the mail but does anyone have any suggestions or advice in this scenario? Thanks

submitted by /u/Warm_Piccolo2171
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