Monday, March 25, 2024

Can A Child With Diabetes Get Disability

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What Is The Disability Tax Credit

The Disability Tax Credit is a credit offered by Revenue Canada to those of who have a severe mental or physical impairment which markedly restricts the basic activities of daily living and/or need and dedicate time for Life-Sustaining Therapy .

They further require that the person eligible have an impairment that has lasted or is expected to last for a period of 12 continuous months. Finally, Revenue Canada notes For the purposes of the disability amount, Life-Sustaining Therapy is any treatment for a disease or a disorder that, if withheld would prevent the functioning on one or a group of vital organs to sustain human life.

There are some who do not wish to be labeled as disabled or have their child carry such a label. I respect that but, for myself and others, any financial relief provided by the Federal government is accepted and desired.

Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits

The Canada Pension Plan provides monthly payments to people who contribute to the plan during their working years.

You may be eligible for CPP disability benefits if:

  • you contributed to the CPP for a certain number of years
  • you’re under 65 years old
  • you have a severe and prolonged mental or physical disability
  • your disability prevents you from working on a regular basis

The benefits include payments to children of a person with a disability.

Apply as early as possible if you think you’re eligible for CPP disability benefits. Quebec residents may be eligible for a similar program called the Quebec Pension Plan . It may take several months to process your application.

If you applied for CPP or QPP disability benefits and were told that you’re not eligible, you can ask to have your application reviewed or considered again.

Once you reach age 65, your CPP disability benefit will automatically change to regular CPP payments. Your regular CPP payments may be less than the CPP disability payments you got before.

If so, consider:

Do Diabetics Automatically Qualify For Disability Tax Credit If They Use A Pump

At one point, you were automatically eligible for the DTC if you used an insulin pump however, as of 2004, the insulin delivery method no longer matters. As mentioned previously, what matters is the amount of time you spent injecting insulin or tending to your diabetes. Insulin pumps inject at all points of the day, so to be eligible for the DTC, the time you spend maintaining the pump must exceed more than 14 hours per week.

Diagnosing Diabetes In Children And Teenagers

Until recently, almost all children and teenagers with diabetes were diagnosed as having type 1 diabetes. 

Now younger people are also being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes due to:

  • strong family histories
  • increasing rates of obesity
  • being overweight.

Children or teenagers who have recently been diagnosed with diabetes may struggle with their emotional reactions to their condition and the reactions of others, and have concerns about going back to school.

Teenagers with diabetes may also worry about things like negotiating sex, drinking alcohol, smoking, illicit drugs, driving and work.

Children and families will need a period of adjustment after diabetes is diagnosed.

Qualifying For A Medical

How Can I Get Disability For Diabetes

Getting a medical-vocational allowance is by far the more common way to get approved for disability benefits. If the symptoms of your diabetes prevent you from performing your past work or any other jobs in the economy, you can get approved for benefits under a medical-vocational allowance. A medical-vocational allowance takes into account your age, education, vocational history, and Residual Functional Capacity in deciding whether you’re capable of meeting the demands of any full-time work.

Your RFC is an assessment that how much you can still do despite your impairments. Social Security regulations require your RFC to be based on medical evidence, so you or your attorney should submit copies of your relevant medical records to demonstrate the extent of your functional limitations. What your records should include depends on the specific symptoms involved. For example, an individual with peripheral neuropathy might submit medical evidence mentioning an unsteady gait, poor fine motor control, or numbness and tingling in the extremities. Or an individual with chronic hyperglycemia might submit evidence from a psychiatrist documenting difficulty concentrating and fatigue that interferes with his or her ability to sustain full-time work.

Step 4: Filing An Appeal If You Are Denied

The process of filing your first appeal will likely take another 3 to 5 months. Also referred to as reconsideration, this requires simply submitting the paperwork again.

If you havent already done so for your first application, working with a Disability Support attorney can be very helpful. An attorney can help ensure that the documentation on your health is thoroughly and constructed properly to illustrate a clear need for financial assistance.

You can also visit these two sites to find legal support for your appeal process:

Symptoms And Complications Of Adult Diabetes

Symptoms of both diabetes type 1 and diabetes type 2 include frequent urination, unusual thirst and hunger, and extreme fatigue. People with type 2 diabetes also can suffer from tingling or numbness in the hands and feet, frequent infections, and cuts that are slow to heal.

Complications from diabetes include:

For Patients Over The Age Of 18

When looking specifically at qualifying based on a diabetes diagnosis, you would need an official diagnosis of type 1 or type 2 diabetes, along with at least one of the following conditions:

  • Neuropathy is the damage sustained to the nerve-endings in your hands, arms, feet, and toes. Neuropathy results in a loss of feeling and sometimes loss of function in those extremities. Severe neuropathy can result in the need for an amputation. To use neuropathy as a qualifying factor for disability status, it must significantly affect two extremities to the extent that your ability to walk or stand is impacted.
  • Acidosis is when there is an abnormal increase in the amount of acid in your bodily fluid . To use this acidosis as a qualifying factor for disability status, it must occur once every two months and be documented via blood tests.
  • Retinopathy is damage to the blood vessels and nerves in your eyes. Severe neuropathy can lead to significant loss of vision or complete blindness in one or both eyes. To use retinopathy as a qualifying factor for disability status, you must have a significant loss of visual acuity in both eyes. This severity of damage considers the patient to be blind.
  • Other conditions like gastroparesis, nephropathy, etc. may be considered.

Appealing A Denial Of Benefits

Most people who apply for disability based largely on diabetes are denied benefits the first time around and need to file an appeal to get a hearing in front of an administrative law judge. A disability lawyer can help you at a hearing by using strategies like combining the effects of multiple impairments, showing you have reduced productivity, proving you can’t do sedentary work, and cross-examining Social Security’s vocational expert at the hearing. Contact a local disability attorney here.

How Long Will I Get The Disability Tax Credit For

The length of time you qualify for the DTC is subject to CRAs internal policies.  They can grant the credit for one-year time frames, and you will have to reapply each year, or they can grant it for specific lengths of time , or they may grant it permanently.  The last scenario is unlikely but does seem to occur after repeated applications have been approved.

When you receive your Notice of Assessment stating that you qualify for the Disability Tax Credit, there should be a further statement of exactly how long you have before you need to reapply. You can also go into your online CRA account to verify the date that you may need to reapply for the DTC.

Social Security Disability Based On Your Gestational Diabetes Symptoms

The SSAs presumption is that mothers with diabetes can still work during pregnancy unless they have a disabling condition that prevents them from doing so. While your diabetes alone may not qualify you for benefits, your inability to perform regular paid work based on your symptoms can be classified as a disability.

In order to determine your eligibility for a medical vocational allowance, the SSA will evaluate whether your impairment substantially limits your ability to earn a living. In particular, SSA will examine whether you are able to perform work you did previously, if you can adjust to a different type of work, and how much your condition interferes with your ability to perform sustained employment.

You may be able to get disability benefits if you are prevented from working due to:

The key to getting the benefits you deserve for gestational diabetes is providing sufficient evidence that strongly supports your case. Please feel free to contact our law firm today to get started on your disability application, or download our free report, Five Most Frequently Asked Questions about Social Security Disability. 

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Diabetes Rights And Protections

Those living with diabetes deserve fair treatment in:

  • School
  • Camp
  • Other activities

Under federal law, children have the right to receive diabetes and other care they need in order to participate in school life the same as any other child. Under federal law, schools are required to provide:

  • A trained staff member who can administer insulin and glucagon and monitor blood sugar levels
  • A trained staff member or members who can provide care specific to diabetes during all school activities including field trips and extracurricular activities
  • Permit capable students to self-manage their diabetes at any time and in any place

Under federal law, schools cannot:

  • Insist family members attend school to care for the needs of a student with diabetes
  • Transfer students with diabetes to a different school in order to receive appropriate care
  • Stop students who have diabetes from attending any school-sponsored activity, including field trips and sports days

State laws can be complicated and can be unclear regarding who should care for a child with diabetes at school. Some states give more protections than others.

Diabetes Symptoms And Complications

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There are two main types of diabetestype 1 and type 2. Type 1 is often called juvenile diabetes, while type 2 is known as adult-onset diabetes. 

In addition to the two main types, there is gestational diabetes. gestational diabetes occurs when a woman who is pregnant is diagnosed with Diabetes for the first time. Pregnant women who develop gestational diabetes during their pregnancy could develop type 2 diabetes later in life.

Common symptoms of diabetes include:

  • Repeated bouts of fatigue;
  • A frequent need to go to the bathroom, which is usually accompanied by extreme thirst;
  • Weight loss;
  • Unexplained chronic hunger, especially between mealtimes; and/or
  • An overall irritable feeling.

When you present to a doctor with these symptoms, they will administer some tests to calculate your glucose levels. One of the most common tests is the fasting plasma test that checks your blood sugar levels after fasting for eight hours. The other test is an oral glucose test. This test is done after fasting for eight hours, consuming a beverage with glucose, and then waiting two more hours.

Some doctors may choose to do a random plasma glucose test that measures blood glucose without fasting for any time. However, this test is not valid for pre-diabetes detection. If your test results show that you may be pre-diabetic, you need to undergo additional testing.

Social Security Disability For Diabetes

Is diabetes a disability? Does having diabetes qualify you for disability benefits? Yes, diabetes can be considered a disability, but it does not automatically qualify you for disability benefits. Under the Social Security Administration manual, youll find a section discussing diabetes.

If you meet the disability qualification criteria spelled out in the manual, you could be eligible for social security benefits.

Disability Tax Credit Guide For Diabetes

Over the last few decades, diabetes has been on the rise in Canada and is now one of the most common chronic diseases in the country, affecting close to 2.5 million Canadians.

With the numbers of those who have diabetes growing, many Canadians face hefty bills attached to the disease, costing thousands of dollars each year, which they must pay out of pocket.

If you are reading this article, you or a family member may have diabetes and you are probably looking for information about the Disability Tax Credit and how it can help Canadians suffering from diabetes.

We wrote this article to help diabetic Canadians better understand the Disability Tax Credit, whether theyre a Type 1 or Type 2 diabetic so that they can use the DTC and apply for it with confidence.

Among breaking down what the DTC is, if youre eligible, and more, we will also be explaining the following:

  • Does diabetes qualify for the Disability Tax Credit?
  • How much money can you receive if found eligible for Disability Tax Credit?
  • Am I automatically eligible for the Disability Tax Credit if I use an insulin pump?
  • The difference between type 1 and type 2 when applying for the Disability Tax Credit
  • Is life-sustaining therapy a marker for the Disability Tax Credit?
  • Common reasons those with diabetes are denied for the Disability Tax Credit

For Patients Under The Age Of 18

Children under 18 qualify for SSI based on disability if they have little income and resources; are not working; have a physical or mental condition that very seriously limits activities; and the condition will last at least a year, or cause death, explains the .

Children under six years old who require daily insulin are automatically considered to have a disability. In children who are at least six years old, diabetes is individually evaluated based on its impact on other bodily systems .

My Child And I Have Type 1 Diabetes Do Either Of Us Qualify

Yes! While the qualification criteria for a child under 18 is slightly different from that of an adult, if both of you are intensively managing your diabetes care , you most likely will qualify.

Children with type 1 diabetes are deemed to qualify once the doctor certifies that they do in fact have type 1 diabetes.  This is because CRA recognizes both the time spent on care by the child and the parent and feels that the total is in excess of 14 hours per week.

Adults must prove that they intensively manage their diabetes for more than 14 hours per week to qualify.

Does Type 1 Diabetes Qualify For The Disability Tax Credit

Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks and kills the pancreas beta cells. As a result, sugar builds up in the blood instead of being used as energy. No, or very little, insulin is released into the body and must be administered as needed, which takes a significant amount of time, money, effort to maintain. About five to 10 percent of people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes generally develops in childhood or adolescence but can grow in adulthood.

Type 1 diabetes requires consistent maintenance through things such as monitoring glucose levels, injecting insulin and more. If caring for the disease takes up to 14 hours per week to tend to, you will be eligible for the Disability Tax Credit.

Sometimes It Can Be Difficult To Know Your Rights When You Have Diabetes And If You Have An Issue Connected To Diabetes It Can Be Really Worrying And Confusing

Thats where we come in. We’ve got all of the information you need to help you understand and know your rights. Find out about your rights at work, driving with diabetes or understanding your child’s rights at school. You can read through our information pages, download our detailed advocacy packs or call our helpline for support.

What Are The Totals For The Dtc

For someone on injections:Injecting: 4.5 hours Logging: 3.5 hourAnalyzing trends and making adjustments: 1.5 hourChecking meter, coding, changing lancets, etc.: 15 minutesBlood checks: 4.5 hours Total: 14.25 hours per week

For pumpers:Dealing with pump: 6.3 hoursLogging: 3.5 hourAnalyzing trends and making adjustments: 1 hourChecking meter, coding, changing lancets, etc.: 15 minutesTreating lows: 1 hour 15 minutes Dealing with highs: 2 hours 30 minutesChecking blood glucose: 4 hours Total: 18.8 hours per weekIf using a CGM: add .5 hr.Time devoted to the CGM part of therapy is approximately 73 minutes but thereis usually less time spent testing blood glucose levels which would negate the total or increase it only slightly.

Is My Child Eligible For Dla

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*In May 2016, the Department of Work and Pensions updated their DLA guidelines for children with type 1 diabetes, stating that children up to the age of 16 will need help from parents and carers during the day. The new guidelines are designed to make it easier for parents claiming for children aged 12 years or older who require day-to-day assistance managing their diabetes.

Children with diabetes are more likely to be eligible for the care component unless they have an additional health difficulty that affects their mobility.

Your child may be eligible for the lower rate of DLA if they require some care and supervision, beyond that of other children their age, through some of the day or night.

The middle care rate is available if your child requires frequent help or constant supervision through the day or night.

The highest rate is if care or supervision is required through both the day and night.

Typical care needs for children with diabetes include:

  • Increased help from ana dult for taking insulin or blood tests
  • Increased supervision as a result of problems with hypoglycemia

Still Not Sure What To Do

If you are still unsure as to how to proceed, Diabetes Advocacy provides in filling out the T2201.

We will print off the T2201 as well as any requests for reassessment years. Your form will be filled. We will indicate where you and your doctor need to sign. You will also be provided a detailed letter stating why people with diabetes now qualify for the DTC. 

We are not tax accountants but are well versed regarding the Disability Tax Credit and those with diabetes.  Please make sure that your doctor will support your claim.  This fee is for filling out the appropriate forms for you only. We do not guarantee your success but will assist you with any further issues you may have.

Need a second opinion before you send in your application?

Diabetes Advocacy will review your documents and suggest any edits or reviews before your T2201 is submitted for a one-time fee.

Does Type 2 Diabetes Qualify For The Disability Tax Credit

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body cant properly use the insulin released or does not make enough insulin. As a result, sugar builds up in the blood instead of being used as energy. About 90 percent of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes more often develops in adults, but children can be affected.

Unlike Type 1 diabetes, Type 2 doesnt always require insulin administration, but it takes a significant amount of time, money, and effort to maintain when it is necessary. If caring for the disease takes up to 14 hours per week to tend to, you could be eligible for the Disability Tax Credit.

Children’s Reactions To A Diabetes Diagnosis

A child or teenager newly diagnosed with diabetes will have a range of reactions and emotions. Common reactions experienced by children and their parents include shock, denial, anger, sadness, fear and guilt. These feelings usually subside with time and appropriate support.Common responses to a diagnosis of diabetes include:

  • Anxiety about the condition.
  • Fear of needles and multiple injections.
  • A feeling of being overwhelmed by injecting and other tasks that need to be performed daily.
  • Frustration over fluctuating blood glucose levels.
  • Feeling ‘different’.
  • Fear of experiencing hypoglycaemia in public.
  • Embarrassment about their diabetes and their friends’ possible negative reactions.
  • Difficulty coping with the emotional reaction of family members.

The period immediately after being diagnosed with diabetes can be challenging.

Emotional support offered by friends, family and a diabetes healthcare team can be very helpful during this time and can improve the way children or teenagers cope with their diabetes. Read more about adjusting to life with diabetes from the National Diabetes Services Scheme

Ssdi And Type I Or Ii Diabetes

Phone 1-888-939-4692

There are quite a large number of people who apply for disability benefits due to complications that arise as a result of diabetes. If the diabetes is too severe, it could cause organ damage or medical conditions that limit physical ability. People with diabetes are already classified as people with a disability regardless of the type they suffer from.

Individuals who have uncontrolled cases of diabetes and have spent a period of at least 12 months without working due to the condition are eligible for social security benefits. To qualify for the benefits, it must be established that the level of disease damage is such that the applicant has been rendered incapable of engaging in meaningful work. Sometimes the effects of diabetes become worse because an individual deliberately ignores their doctors advice. In such cases, the applicant is not eligible for disability benefit and if they file an application, it would be rejected.

How Do I Fill Out The Form T2201

  • Go to the CRA site and .
  • Insert your personal information as required.
  • Fill out Part A, page one of the Disability Tax Certificate.
  • Part B is to be filled out by your doctor. The only issue of importance for most people is life sustaining therapy.
  • Your doctor will check off the box yes when asked, Does your patient meet the conditions for life sustaining therapy as described above?
  • In the section of year he/she will put the diagnosis year.
  • Details would be insulin dependent Type 1 diabetes and then the method of insulin delivery
  • Effects of impairment is the reliance on an external source of insulin to sustain life.
  • Duration is annoying for those living with diabetes but you must remember that this form is for other diseases/conditions as well. Please note that yes the impairment will last for more than 12 months and no there will be no marked
  • improvement thanks to therapy .

The physician and the person with diabetes signs off on the form and it is submitted with your tax return or as a separate request for review if you have already sent in your latest tax return.

Do I Automatically Qualify For The Dtc If I Use A Pump

No, using an insulin pump will not guarantee your acceptance.  As of the 2004 tax year, the method of insulin delivery no longer matters.  What does matter is the time you spend on Life-Sustaining Therapy. 

In previous years, the amount of time spent injecting insulin was the criterion for acceptance.  Insulin pumps inject 24/7.  With the changes, activities must take away from routine daily living.

Do Not Miss The Symptoms

Children and adolescents with diabetes usually experience four main symptoms, but many children will only have one or two. In some cases, they may show no symptoms at all.

If a child suddenly becomes more thirsty or tired or urinates more than usual, their parents may not consider diabetes a possibility.

This might also be the case for doctors, since diabetes is less common among very young children. They may attribute the symptoms to other, more common illnesses. For this reason, they may not diagnose diabetes straight away.

It is important to be aware of the possible signs and symptoms of diabetes in children in order to get a diagnosis and treatment plan as soon as possible.

One of the most serious consequences of undiagnosed type 1 diabetes is DKA. The sections below will look at this, and other complications, in more detail.

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