Indiana Social Security Disability Attorney Blog

Obesity is medically defined as having excess fatty tissue somewhere on the body. The unofficial calculation is that anyone with a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 30 is considered obese. Those with a BMI over 40 are considered “morbidly obese.”

BMI is a rather simple calculation and only considers an individual’s height and weight. Therefore, it is not a perfect proxy for obesity. For example, an bodybuilder might have a BMI over 30 because of their muscle density (muscle weighs more than fat). But as a general rule for the rest of us, a BMI over 30 should raise at least some level concern.

Until 1999 obese applicants could qualify for Social Security Disability based solely on the fact that they were obese. However, that has changed, and there are now additional requirements that obese applicants must meet in order to qualify for social security disability payments.

Diabetes is a serious metabolic disease that makes the body unable to produce enough insulin, resulting in heightened glucose levels in the blood. Diabetes can often be treated with a combination of diet, exercise, and medication. However, in some severe cases, and especially cases in older sufferers, the disease cannot be as effectively controlled.

When diabetes is uncontrolled, a number of serious complications may arise, such as:

– Neuropathy

When most people think of Social Security Disability, they may think of physical injuries, rendering a person incapable of performing the physical demands of a job. However, disability payments are also available to those suffering from mental health issues as well as physical handicaps. For example, applicants with depression can qualify for Social Security Disability when the symptoms are extreme and affect their daily lives. In fact, depression, accompanied by severe fatigue and decreased energy levels, is one of the leading causes of disability in the United States.

While the causes of depression are unknown, the symptoms are not. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, often people suffering from depression experience one or more of the following symptoms:

· Feeling sad or “empty”

Arthritis is a common and debilitating disease that affects the joints of our body. Sufferers of arthritis often have difficulty completing many physical tasks, such as sitting, lifting, walking, grabbing, pushing, pulling, and even standing for extended periods of time. In many cases, arthritis becomes so severe that someone may not be able to complete the necessary functions of their job.

For this exact reason, arthritis is among the many diseases and disorders that can qualify an individual for social security disability benefits. However, the federal government requires that the arthritis significantly affect an individual and their ability to work before they are eligible for benefits. To be eligible for benefits for arthritis, an individual must fit into one of several categories.

Qualifying for Benefits Based on Back Problems Due to Arthritis

Almost everyone has gotten a cold and learned how it can cause difficulties in breathing. The body makes a great amount of mucus to flush dust and germs out of the lungs. For most of us, a cold is only uncomfortable for a short time, but for those with cystic fibrosis, it is a daily struggle to breath. The mucus caused by cystic fibrosis is thick and sticky. “If you have cystic fibrosis, your mucus becomes thick and sticky. It builds up in your lungs and block your airways. builds up and causes problems in many of the body’s organs, especially the lungs and the pancreas.” According to the National Institutes of Health, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, “the build up of mucus makes it easy for bacteria to grow.” Not only does this build up lead to lung infections, if can also lead to digestive issues (malnutrition) because the mucus can block the ducts of the pancreas which creates enzymes that help food digest int he intestines.
The Cause and Diagnosis
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited disease. Both parents must be carriers of the faulty gene for the child to develop cystic fibrosis. All states test for cystic fibrosis during newborn screenings. The screening includes a type of blood test which looks for the gene associated with cystic fibrosis (the CFTR gene). That blood test also demonstrates whether the infant’s pancreas is working properly. If the blood test indicates the presence of cystic fibrosis, the physician may order a sweat test to confirm the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. Other tests my include a chest x-ray; a lung function test and or a sputum culture.

(See What is Cystic Fibrosis? by the National Institutes of Health for an overview.)

Treatment
Even though there is no cure for cystic fibrosis, there are a number of treatments which can lessen the symptoms. These treatments include pulmonary rehabilitation, exercise, different medicines, oxygen therapy and nutritional therapy. Because cystic fibrosis can also cause a special kind of diabetes, that will be treated too.
Social Security Disability
The Commissioner of Social Security has “listed” cystic fibrosis as a disease which can cause disability. Social Security has taken notice that cystic fibrosis “is a disorder that affects either the respiratory or digestive body systems or both and is responsible for a wide and variable spectrum of clinical manifestations and complications.” In order to qualify for Social Security Disability on account of cystic fibrosis, a person must first satisfy the Commissioner that the correct diagnosis has been made and second, prove that the cystic fibrosis is at such a severe stage that it causes certain restrictions which Social Security believes are incompatible with work.
The diagnosis must be made by a sweat test. Once the diagnosis has been confirmed in that way, the disease must be accompanied by the presence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or insufficiency of the exocrine pancreatic function, meconium ileus or a positive family history. Regarding the pulmonary part of cystic fibrosis, it must be evaluated under 3.04 of the listing. Regarding the nonpulmonary aspect fo the disease, which is the digestive portion that must be evaluated under section 5.00 of the listings.

Even if the listing part of the analysis is not meet, it still is possible to qualify for Social Security disability benefits if your physician has restricted you from doing what normal workers do in the work place.
If you would like to discuss your Social Security Disability case, give me a call, Indianapolis Attorney Ted Smith, 317 280-8863 or just complete the contact form and I will call you!

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Social Security disability benefits are available for those people who are unable to perform the basic requirements of a job. It does not matter if you were born with a disability or the disability occured later in life. Benefits may also be available if you suffered an accident that has kept you from working. The bottom line is that the Social Security Disability program is designed to help those who cannot work because of a disability, whether that be physical or mental.

If you have suffered a physical or mental impairment that has rendered you unable to work, and you are considering filing for social security disability for the first time, there are definitely some things you should know before beginning the process.

1) Prepare to be patient. The process can take awhile. The Social Security Administration requires at least a five month waiting period. Successful applicants waiting more than five months will have their benefits paid retroactively back through the day after that five month waiting period. So, if it takes eleven months to get approved, an applicant will be eligible for six months of back paid benefits. Successful applicants should be prepared to wait up to a year or so for their benefits to begin.

We have all heard the talk of how the Social Security program is insolvent and can not be supported at its current level as the Baby Boomers begin entering into retirement. But this oversimplifies the matter a bit. The reality is, there are two kinds of social security benefits: those paid out to retired persons, and those paid out to disabled persons. Workers who pay into “Social Security” pay into both of these two different “funds.”

In 1994, the Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund (this is where Social Security disability benefits are taken from) was on the brink of exhaustion. The solution Congress came up with was to adjust the ratio of how incoming funds were dispersed. So, more money was put into the Disability Trust and less into the Retirement trust. This naturally extended the life of the Disability trust (at the expense of the Retirement trust). But this obviously cannot go on forever. That plan essentially just shifts money from one trust to the other. It doesn’t change how much money in total is going the program as a whole.

The Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund is again in dire straits and, by some estimates, will be exhausted by 2016 if nothing is done. Congress could do the same thing it did back in 1994 and shift the amount of incoming money into each of the funds, but that has already been done. So there will likely need to be new solutions.

Government bureaucracies are not often heralded for their efficiency or accuracy. The Social Security Administration is no different. This is not necessarily due to any one person or department doing something wrong; it’s more a function of the massive number of applications the Administration receives and the in-depth consideration each receives.

For example, in 2012, the Social Security Administration reports that 2.8 million applications were received for disability benefits. Most of these applications are filed by disabled workers. However, a small portion are filed by widow(ers) and adult children, both of which can qualify for disability benefits under certain circumstances.

With so many applications, one might wonder how the Social Security Administration handles them all. The answer, unfortunately, is “slowly.” For example, the Administration reports that, for June 2013, the average wait times in Indiana’s biggest cities were as follows:

Last week, I wrote a post introducing readers to the federal government disability program, and several of the more common types of benefits available to disabled workers. This week I am going to explain the disability application process from a birds-eye view. Subsequent posts will get into more detail about the process. Please note, however, that nothing in this post is intended to be legal advice. If you are interested in obtaining legal advice, please contact us to make an appointment to talk about your case.

First, an applicant must fill out a disability benefit application. The application itself is not too complex or time consuming. However, it should be filled out with precision because the slightest error and the application will likely be denied.

Once complete, applications are sent to the Social Security Administration (SSA) field office, where they undergo an initial determination that the applicant meets the most basic requirements (age, employment status, Social Security coverage, etc.). From here, the SSA forwards the application to the Division of Disability Determinations (DDD). The DDD conducts a more in-depth, extensive investigation into the specific facts of the applicant’s case.

Most have heard of the words “disability benefits.” But did you known that there are different types of benefits available, depending on the specific circumstances of the individual? This will be the first in a series of posts intended to familiarize the reader with the different types of disability benefits offered by the federal government. This post will briefly go over who can get disability benefits and the two different kinds of benefits for disabled workers.

Who Can Get Disability Benefits?

The government offers disability benefits to two basic groups of people, disabled workers and those who rely on a disabled worker for support. Both the spouse and the children of a disabled worker can be eligible for disability benefits under certain circumstances. Not all spouses will qualify, however. To qualify, a spouse must either be over the age of 62 or be responsible for the care of a child, 16 years old or younger. Children 18 years and younger (19 if the child is enrolled in high school) are eligible. Adult disabled children under the age of 22 can also qualify as a child.