Social Security Disability for Respiratory Illness

Breathing problems are a common reason for people to apply for disability benefits. Respiratory disorders that prevent proper lung function include COPD illnesses such as bronchitis, asthma, and emphysema; infections like tuberculosis and pneumonia; hereditary diseases like cystic fibrosis; sleep-related disorders like sleep apnea; and cancers, like lung cancer and mesothelioma. For most of these disorders, the SSA awards disability based on the results of breathing tests. For episodic disorders like asthma and recurrent infections, the SSA will look at how frequently you have episodes that require medical care.

Respiratory disorders may be evaluated under the 3.00 category of Adult Listings: https://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/3.00-Respiratory-Adult.htm

Even if your condition does not meet the criteria for disability benefits under the Blue Book guidelines, you could still qualify under the medical-vocational allowance. The medical-vocational allowance is a series of guidelines that will determine whether you are able to work based on your condition. The Social Security Administration (SSA) will consider your age, educational background, work experience and work history, along with your residual function capacity (RFC) to determine whether you can perform the demands of your job. Your RFC establishes the maximum amount of work you can do given the limitations of your condition.

The SSA will also consider the “non-exertional” demands of work (mental, postural, manipulative, visual, communicative, and environmental) and exertional demands of work (walking, standing, sitting, lifting, carrying, pushing and pulling) to determine whether you could perform work, either under modifications for your condition or in a different position entirely. If you are found to be unable to work under the medical-vocational allowance, you could qualify for disability benefits.

Contact our office today if you or anyone you know would like to learn more about qualifying for Social Security Disability benefits.

By: Joyce Trudeau of Premier Disability Services, LLC®

March is National Kidney Month

March is National Kidney Month! This year’s focus is the link between high blood pressure and kidney disease. Kidney disease develops when kidneys lose their ability to remove waste and maintain fluid and chemical balances in the body. The severity of chronic kidney disease (CKD) depends on how well the kidneys filter waste from the blood. Diabetes and high blood pressure are the leading causes of kidney disease. Because there are little to no signs of the condition, most people are not even aware that they have kidney disease until it reaches the later stages, including kidney failure.

Since there are often no symptoms of early kidney disease, laboratory tests are critical. When you get a screening, a technician will draw blood that will be tested for creatinine, a waste product. If kidney function is abnormal, creatinine levels will increase in the blood due to decreased excretion of creatinine in the urine. Your glomerular filtration rate (GFR) will then be calculated, which factors in your age, gender, creatinine, and ethnicity. Your GFR indicates your stage of chronic kidney disease and provides an evaluation of kidney function.

End stage renal disease patients have two treatment options. Dialysis is a treatment that removes wastes and excess fluid from blood when the kidneys are not able to do it on their own. Typically, it is necessary upon development of kidney failure. There are over 380,000 people in the United States who depend on hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis (PD) treatments to stay alive. The only other treatment option for people with end stage renal disease is a kidney transplant.

If you suffer from kidney disease, you may qualify for Social Security Disability benefits if you meet the criteria under one of Social Security’s listings for genitourinary disorders (6.00), or if your condition otherwise prevents you from working. Please contact us for a free evaluation of your case.

Contact our office today if you or anyone you know would like to learn more about qualifying for Social Security Disability benefits.

Learn more here: https://www.davita.com/education/kidney-disease/risk-factors/march-is-national-kidney-month ; https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/about-chronic-kidney-disease

Adult Listing 6.00: https://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/6.00-Genitourinary-Adult.htm

By: Joyce Trudeau of Premier Disability Services, LLC®

Social Security Disability Benefits & Lupus

Lupus is a chronic disease that can cause inflammation and pain in any part of your body. It is considered an autoimmune disease, which means that your immune system — the body system that usually fights infections — attacks healthy tissue instead. Lupus most commonly affects your skin, joints, and internal organs. Because it can affect many parts of the body, it can cause a variety of different symptoms, such as: fatigue, headaches, joint pain, fever, edema, hair loss, and abnormal blood clotting.

No one knows what causes lupus, but lupus and other autoimmune diseases do run in families. Experts also think it may develop in response to certain hormones (like estrogen) or environmental triggers. An environmental trigger is something outside the body that can bring on symptoms of lupus — or make them worse. Lupus is not contagious.

There are two ways an individual can qualify for Social Security Disability benefits for lupus. An individual can either (1) meet the requirements of a listing set out in Social Security’s list of qualifying impairments, or (2) show that he or she is unable to work.

Lupus is one of the diseases specifically notated in Social Security’s listing of impairments. To qualify as disabled under this listing, you must meet the following requirements:

• The lupus must affect at least two body systems or organs, (such as the kidneys and the lungs, or the heart and the brain), with at least one involved to a moderate level of severity; and
• The lupus must cause at least two of the following symptoms: severe fatigue, fever, malaise (feelings of physical discomfort or illness resulting in low physical or mental activity), and/or involuntary weight loss.

OR

• Repeated symptoms of lupus, with at least two of the symptoms above, resulting in one of the following limitations at the marked level:
  • Limitations of activities of daily living
  • Limitation in maintaining social functioning
  • Limitation in completing tasks in a timely manner due to lack of focus or ability to work quickly.

You can also qualify for Social Security Disability for lupus if you can prove that you are unable to work due to the health problems caused by lupus. For example, an individual with lupus might have the following physical limitations: fatigue, chest pain, shortness of breath, headaches, and abnormal heart rhythms. These limitations can make it difficult to stand or walk for a lengthy period of time, which rules out many jobs. Furthermore, those with lupus may suffer personality changes, including anxiety and depression, and may have difficulty concentrating or have increased forgetfulness. Social Security will take these limitations into account when deciding if the applicant can do even simple, routine tasks that don’t require skill.

Contact our office today if you or anyone you know would like to learn more about qualifying for Social Security Disability benefits.

Learn more about lupus: https://www.lupus.org/resources/what-is-lupus

View the Listing for lupus: https://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/14.00-Immune-Adult.htm#14_02

By: Joyce Trudeau of Premier Disability Services, LLC®