$200000000 Settlement / Traumatic Brain Injury / Workplace Accident
Our client was a man who suffered a serious brain injury after a fall on the job. Our attorneys were able to successfully prove that the person directing the employee’s activities had instructed him to use a dangerous and unstable ladder instead of an interior stairwell to access the roof. Because of this decision, the victim used the ladder which slipped out from under him, resulting in a 20+ foot fall and subsequent serious injuries. The money recovered was able to help the injured man provide for his family.
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If you, or someone you love, are dealing with a severe brain injury, we can help you apply for Social Security disability. If the government denied your Social Security disability claim contact us right away. Call 412-394-1000, or fill out our no obligation, free legal consultation form. Remember, you have only 60 days to file an appeal or you have to start the process all over again!
Hiring an attorney may mean the difference between whether or not you collect SSD benefits. Get started now.
Severe Head Trauma Sustained During Military Service
A traumatic brain injury, often referred to by the acronym TBI, can result from any direct blow to the head or neck which causes the skull to whip back and forth. Severe head trauma involves physical damage to the brain and can range from concussions which fully heal to permanently impaired cognitive function.
Active duty servicemembers may be exposed to explosions, truck crashes, falls from great heights, or training accidents involving heavy machinery. A VA-accredited lawyer can help you provide accurate and up-to-date documentation of a service-connected injury for severe head trauma claims if Veterans Affairs denied your initial application for benefits.
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Eligibility Criteria For Traumatic Brain Injury Disability
There are certain criteria that an individual who has a traumatic brain injury must be able to fulfill in order to receive disability benefits. There are also other options available to people who are suffering from a traumatic brain injury but do not meet the stringent eligibility criteria. To receive benefits, applicants must have sufficient medical records and evidence to prove that their condition is severe and has significantly affected their life. The medical records must demonstrate that:
- The condition has limited your ability to control the movement of at least two of your extremities. For example, you may be able to meet this requirement if you experiencing difficulties while trying to balance or stand.
Another requirement to receive TBI disability benefits is that you must have marked limitation in any of the three areas listed below:
- Thinking abilities, including understanding, using information, and remembering information
- Finishing tasks, including limitations on concentration or problems with the speed of completion
- Controlling ones behavior, including responding or adapting to changes in ones environment
- Interacting or socializing with other people
Acceptable Evidence For Va Tbi Claim
Examples of acceptable evidence may include medical reports from past exams, statements from the veteran, service treatment records that followed the TBI, and witness statements regarding the original injury. All of these pieces of evidence should be from the time of the TBI or shortly after.
To summarize, some veterans may be eligible for benefits based on the original TBI and secondary service condition. Since the combination of these qualifications can be complicated, its important to gather as much evidence as possible and work with a reputable lawyer to put together a case. Doing so will create a stronger claim and for disability benefits.
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Does Traumatic Brain Injury Qualify For Social Security Disability
A traumatic brain injury is the type of injury that can occur during an accident. Someone can hit their head and cause damage to the brain when slipping and falling, getting into a motor vehicle accident, or even after getting attacked by another person. Whenever the head hits something hard, the impact can lead to traumatic injuries to the brain that can have a negative effect on a person, making it hard for them to talk, walk, focus, or live life without experiencing a broad range of frustrating symptoms.
Those who are diagnosed with this type of injury might not be able to work. In that case, they can consider filing for Social Security Disability. If you have a traumatic brain injury, you may want to know if it is possible to get your application for SSDI approved. You absolutely can get it approved, but there are things you need to know in advance.
Example 1: Traumatic Brain Injury And Social Security Disability
For example, Donald had a car accident and hit his head.; He lost consciousness when he hit his head.; Following his accident, Donald started having frequent headaches.; He started having problems with his balance.; Donald also started having trouble remembering things and concentrating.; He became irritable easily.; Social Security found that Donalds symptoms would cause him to miss work frequently.; They also found that he would not be able to stay focused throughout a work day.; Therefore, Social Security approved his case.;
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Moderate Limitations Caused By Tbi And Your Ability To Work
If Social Security does not find that your limitations are so severe that you are disabled under one of the above listings, Social Security then must evaluate whether your limitations are legitimately keeping you from working. Social Security will assess your physical and mental limitations using a physical residual functional capacity form and a mental residual functional capacity form. These forms note a wide variety of limitations that can affect your ability to work, such as problems concentrating, standing, walking, and so on.
Multiple moderate limitations across several areas may make you unable to work, even though you don’t have marked or extreme limitations in any one area. An inability to return to your previous job, however, is not enough to get you approved for Social Security disability benefits. You must not be able to work any job, even one like “surveillance system monitor,” which requires few skills and limited physical activity. Social Security will also look at your age, education, and work experience when assessing your ability to do any work. Social Security recognizes that the older one is, the harder it is learn a new job, particularly if an applicant has cognitive difficulties.
Contact A Brain Injury Attorney Today
It can be difficult to know what to do after a traumatic brain injury. If you have a temporary or permanent disability as a result of your injury, your life has been drastically changed. You do not have to face your fight for justice alone.
Contact the Indianapolis Brain Injury Attorneys of Wilson Kehoe Winingham. The lawyers at WKW can help you get the compensation you deserve. Call 317.920.6400 or fill out an online contact form for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.
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Limitations For Specific Jobs
Your limitations from a traumatic brain injury can be extensive. If you suffer memory loss or have difficulty concentrating, you may find that being able to work in an office setting, maintain records, or work in customer service would be impossible.
If you experience dizziness, blurred vision or fatigue, you wont be able to handle work as a mechanic, do repairs as a maintenance employee, or handle assembly projects or work in a setting that involves inspecting products before they are shipped and sold. Numbness and pain can limit your ability to lift, carry, squat, or bend so you cant work in manufacturing, assembly, or as a paramedic or nurse.
Traumatic brain injury can also keep you from being able to grasp small items or stay focused, so you cant maintain records or do bookkeeping, serve as a court reporter, work in the legal profession, or be a medical doctor. Your communication problems will keep you from working in telemarketing, customer service, as a receptionist, or as a sales representative.
Your memory and communication challenges can prevent you from being a teacher, minister, journalist, or an accountant. Because of a traumatic brain injury, your abilities can be significantly limited and you can find yourself in a situation where you are unable to perform any kind of work duties.
Social Security Benefits For Traumatic Brain Injury Disability
Traumatic Brain Injury or Encephalomalacia; caused by head trauma can have a significant impact on your life, leaving you unable work or care for your self. The Social Security Administration has a program called Social Security Disability Insurance that enables eligible individuals to qualify for monthly TBI disability benefits or benefits from other head injuries.
To meet this criteria for social security disability benefits, you must meet specific medical criteria outlined by the SSA Blue Book list of impairments. Heres a look at various brain and head injuries and how you may qualify for TBI disability or Encephalomalacia disability.
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What Kinds Of Disabilities Are Caused By A Traumatic Brain Injury
The after-effects of a traumatic brain injury can last years or become permanent, even when treated properly. Understanding the specific ways your TBI impairs your ability to work will help you put together the strongest disability claim possible.
TBIs can cause disabling symptoms in two areas: physical and cognitive.
Can I Get Social Security Disability Ssdi Ssi For A Brain Injury
Claims based on brain injury depend on the residual effects of the damage caused by the brain injury
Does Social Security consider brain injuries to be disabling?
How exactly does Social Security evaluate a disability claim based on a brain injury?
Step 1: Non-Medical CriteriaStep 2: Severe ImpairmentStep 3: Medical ListingsStep 4: Past WorkStep 5: Other Work
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Blue Book Definition Of Neurocognitive Disorders
Neurocognitive disorders are characterized by a clinically significant decline in cognitive functioning. This umbrella term includes not only cognitive decline due to TBIs, but also dementia, progressive brain tumors, and other neurological diseases. To qualify for disability benefits based on a neurocognitive disorder, your medical documentation must support the following requirements:
Medical documentation of a significant cognitive decline from a prior level of functioning in one or more of these cognitive areas:
- Complex attention
- Social cognition
Extreme limitation of at least one or marked limitation of at least two of the following areas of mental functioning:
- Understanding, remembering, or applying information
- Interacting with others
- Concentrating, persisting, or maintaining pace
- Adapting or managing oneself
Your mental disorder in this listing category is serious and persistentthat is, you have;a medically documented history of the existence of the disorder over a period of at least;two years, and there is supporting evidence of the following:
- Medical treatment, mental health therapy, psychosocial support, or a highly structured setting that is ongoing and that diminishes the symptoms and signs of your mental disorder, AND
- There has been only marginal adjustmentthat is, you have minimal capacity to adapt to changes in your environment or to demands that are not already part of your daily life
Common Secondary Service Connections To Tbi
A secondary service-connected disability is an additional benefit for something that emerges as the result of your first disability. Once, a veteran is diagnosed with a service-connected TBI they may be eligible forfive secondary diagnoses.
Another secondary service-connected disability for TBI would be post-traumatic stress disorder , especially if the TBI was the result of a combat experience. In fact, the two diagnoses are so interconnected that the evaluation procedures overlap. If you experienced both a moderate TBI and symptoms of PTSD, PTSD would be considered the secondary service-connected disability to TBI. Be sure to speak with your health care provider about both.
Any secondary service-connected disability claims will need to follow the same procedure as the primary claim including gathering documentation of the illness and creating a medical nexus that connects the disability to your current TBI diagnosis.
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How Do I Get The Social Security Disability Benefits I Deserve
If you cant work or your doctor told you to apply for Social Security disability as a result of a TBI, you should hire Nancy Cavey to help you:
The SSA is in the business of denying claims and will use any reason to deny your benefits. The odds of getting your Social Security benefits are greater when you are represented by an experienced Social Security Disability attorney like Ms. Cavey.
Needto Apply For Social Security Disability After Sustaining A Brain Injury Dansbylaw Can Help
While a traumaticbrain injury might not be an injury that is noticeable to the average person,it is still a serious enough condition for you to get approved for SocialSecurity Disability. However, before you can start to receive these benefits,you must first complete a lengthy application where you are providing a lot ofimportant information about yourself and your condition. It takes time, but youcan get help with the application and receive answers to questions you mighthave by contacting an experienced attorney. At the Dansby Law Firm, we careabout helping our clients get the benefits they need. Contact our office at1-877-834-7001 today to schedule your consultation.
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Are Tbis Considered A Disability
A traumatic brain injury alone is not considered a disability in its own right. Although TBIs can be very serious injuries with devastating effects, not everyone who sustains head trauma will become disabled. Others may temporarily suffer ill effects but eventually make a full recovery from their injuries.;
For this reason, having a history of a traumatic brain injury is not enough to automatically qualify someone for TBI disability benefits. Your condition must also meet other strict criteria described in the Social Security Administration blue book, a list of impairments that meet the administrations disability eligibility requirements.
Social Security Definition Of Traumatic Brain Injury
Social Security provides a listing of impairments, known as the Blue Book.; The Blue Book provides specific conditions you must meet to qualify for disability benefits. ;Typically, the listings consider the most extreme severity of symptoms.;;Social Security considers traumatic brain injury under listing 11.18.;
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Does Traumatic Brain Injury Qualify For Disability
Across the United States, more than 13.5 million people live with a disability caused by a traumatic brain injury . That number continues to grow by as many as 90,000 people per year, according to the American Association of Neurological Surgeons .
After any kind of serious injury that results in long-term cognitive or physical deficits, many victims and their families may wonder how they will continue to support their families financially.;
If you are unable to return to work because of the effects of a TBI, its important to know what resources are available to you, such as Social Security Disability Insurance . Find out everything you need to know about TBI disability benefits from Social Security Disability Advocates USA.
Different Kinds Of Brain Injuries
Traumatic brain injuries can range from mild to severe. Seeking a proper diagnosis and medical records from qualified doctors can help you make sure that your benefits claim is strong. The mild symptoms relating to TBI may include spells of dizziness, frequent headaches, and memory loss. The severe symptoms relating to TBI can be more devastating and have the potential to impair ones ability to speak and communicate effectively.;
The effects of a TBI can vary from person to person. Not all TBI victims can qualify for disability benefits because the Social Security Administration follows strict criteria for defining disabling conditions. To determine your eligibility, you can check the listings of the Blue Book, which is publicly available.
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Rfc Forms For Traumatic Brain Injury
Frequently, traumatic brain injuries cause both physical and mental symptoms.; An RFC form can help explain how your condition impacts your functioning.; It should be very detailed.; It should include all of your symptoms and treatment.; Your doctor should include both your physical and mental limitations.; An experienced disability advocate can provide these forms to you.;
What About Secondary Service Connection
When a veteran seeks disability benefits for a TBI, its possible that they may also qualify for benefits for;secondary service connection. This means that the veteran has other conditions that developed as a secondary result of TBI.
Officials actually adjusted the secondary service connection regulations for TBI in 2013,;connecting several illnesses;to this condition. These conditions include:
- Parkinsonism; following moderate or severe;TBI
- Dementias; that develops within 15 years of moderate or severe;TBI
- Unprovoked seizures;following moderate or severe;TBI
- Depression;that manifests within three years of moderate or severe;TBI or within 12 months of mild;TBI
- Disease of Hormone Deficiency; that manifests with 12 months of moderate or severe;TBI
These all can apply toward a secondary service connection claim, unless there is clear evidence to demonstrate the contrary. Since the above conditions can potentially inhibit your ability to work and perform daily functions, you might decide to seek VA evaluation for the disability.
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