How Does The Social Security Administration Decide If I Qualify For Disability Benefits For Diabetes
If you have diabetes, Social Security disability benefits may be available. To determine whether you are disabled by diabetes, the Social Security Administration first considers whether your diabetes is severe enough to meet or equal a listing at Step 3 of the Sequential Evaluation Process. See Winning Social Security Disability Benefits for Diabetes by Meeting a Listing.
If your diabetes is not severe enough to equal or meet a listing, the Social Security Administration must assess your residual functional capacity , to determine whether you qualify for benefits at Step 4 and Step 5 of the Sequential Evaluation Process. See Residual Functional Capacity Assessment for Diabetes.
The complete name for diabetes is diabetes mellitus. Also known as sugar diabetes, diabetes mellitus is a hormonal disorder. The cells of the body need a form of sugar called glucose for energy. The body breaks down various carbohydrates in the diet to glucose. Glucose then circulates to the bodys tissues through the blood. But glucose cannot get from the blood to the inside of the cells where the cells can use it, unless the hormone insulin is also present. Insulin permits passage of glucose through the cell membrane.
There are two main types of diabetes mellitus, Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 2 Diabetes
Other Types of Diabetes
Kidney Failure
Heart Disease
Amputation
Stroke
Understanding The Difference Between Type 1 And Type 2 Diabetes
Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes have similar challenges — elevated blood sugar levels, and the symptoms that follow, including obesity, elevated blood pressure, heart disease, and the potential for organ, vision, and nerve damage.
However, their causes are different, and either way, you can overcome these challenges!
Diabetes: A Disease That Leads To Disability
So, is diabetes a disability? It clearly;can lead to disability. Furthermore, the combination of impairments caused by diabetes can lead to a disability.
If youre a diabetic, know your rights. You can qualify for assistance if you do. Contact a social security lawyer or social security disability attorney for help.
For all of your legal needs,;contact us.
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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:
- nephropathy
- neuropathy in feet or hands that disrupts your ability to stand, walk, or use your hands
- retinopathy
- gastroparesis
- peripheral arterial disease , and
- depression.
A Good Attorney For Disabled Veterans Can Make A World Of Difference
At the law firm of Marc Whitehead & Associates, our VA-accredited claims attorneys represent military veterans throughout the United States with diabetes mellitus and complications arising from this disease. If you are unsatisfied with your rating decision or need assistance with your claim, call to discuss your options and determine how we can help.;
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Qualifying For Disability Benefits With Type 1 Diabetes
If your child has type 1 diabetes, your family might be eligible for financial assistance through disability benefits. The Social Security Administration offers benefits for people of all ages who are unable to work or participate in typical childhood activities due to an illness. Childhood diabetes may medically qualify, but technical eligibility for disability benefits can be challenging to meet.
Learn more about financial assistance for your diabetes by clicking the button below.
What Are The Implications If Diabetes Is A Disability
Labels matter. If you indeed have a disability as labeled by the Social Security Blue Book, you qualify for social security or disability payments. Diabetes and social security disability are connected.
You will not qualify with a simple diagnosis of diabetes. However, if you have neuropathy that prevents normal movements or that causes tremors, you could qualify. If you have paralysis as a result of diabetes or if you have 20/200 vision or worse in one eye, you qualify.
Complications such as kidney failure or cardiovascular complications because of a limb amputation can also qualify you.
If you have a child under the age of 6 with diabetes, and if that child requires daily insulin and 24-hour supervision, the child automatically qualifies until age 6.
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Technical Eligibility For Benefits
Childrenunder age 18 are only eligible for Supplemental Security Income, or SSIbenefits. SSI is awarded to families with a dire financial need for help. Thismeans that if your familys monthly income is too high, you will not qualify.The larger your family, the higher your income limits.
For example, a single parent with one child couldnt earn much more than $38,000 per year while qualifying for SSI. A two-parent household with three children, on the other hand, could earn up to $55,000. The SSA has a chart online outlining exactly how much your family can earn per month while still qualifying for SSI.
Unfortunately, income limits are the top reason why children with type 1 diabetes are denied benefits. The good news is that once your child turns 18, your income no longer counts towards his or her income limit, even if your child still lives at home.
United Kingdom : The Equality Act
Passed in 2010, this law requires schools to make reasonable adjustments for children with diabetes. For example, schools must have enough trained staff to enable a child with diabetes to participate in all parts of school. In Northern Ireland, similar requirements are required by the Disability Discrimination Act, passed in 1995.
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How Long Will I Get Benefits
If youâre approved and start getting a monthly check, your case eventually will be reviewed — everyoneâs is at some point. But if youâre not working and are still seeing a specialist for the same health issues, your benefits should continue. You wonât need a hearing of any kind.
Social Security Administration: âDisability Evaluation Under Social Security, 9.00 Endocrine Disorders â Adult.â
American Diabetes Association: âFact Sheet â Social Security Disability Programs,â âIs Diabetes A Disability?â
Resources.lupus.org: âSocial Security and Disability Benefits.â
Get Help From A Board Certified Attorney
You should get legal advice from an attorney if your claim is denied. However, you should not settle for a general practice lawyer that only accepts a handful of SSDI claims a year. The board certification program for Social Security Disability Advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy will help you find a lawyer that is experienced with SSDI law. The NBTA is not a referral service, but you can trust that an attorney who has completed the board certification process has the ability and experience to handle your claim with the SSA.
To earn certification as a board-certified lawyer in social security disability law by the NBTA, an attorney must provide substantial involvement in cases related to this specialty area of the law by spending at least 30 percent of his or her time in the specialty area during each of the last three years, being involved in at least 100 SSDI hearings, filing at least 20 appeals council briefs and 10 federal court briefs, and fulfilled certain educational and CLE requirements related to the SSAs disability law.
Contact Ortiz Law Firm today to schedule your free consultation. During your consultation, we will get additional information about your diabetes and any related medical conditions, walk you through the SSDI and SSI benefits claim process, and discuss the many benefits of forming an attorney-client relationship with the firm. You can contact us using our website or call;.
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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.
Receiving Disability For Diabetes
In many cases, Social Security Disability benefits are not available to those with controlled diabetes; most cases of diabetes are manageable with proper treatment, and in order to qualify for disability, your condition has to continue to be disabling despite the application of recommended medical treatment.
However, just because diabetes is the condition you suffer from, that does not mean that you have no chance of qualifying for Social Security Disability benefits. While not usually considered disabling on its own, diabetes can cause numerous other conditions that can qualify as being disabling enough for SSDI benefits.
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What Is The Disability Tax Credit
Okay now on to the Disability Tax Credit . The disability tax credit was created in 1988 as a way to help people who had significant out of pocket costs associated with physical or mental disabilities. In 2005, the credit evolved further and became open to individuals who were either markedly restricted in their day-to-day lives or who required life-sustaining therapy. That second part is what were going to focus on here as it relates directly to life with Type 1 diabetes.
It relates so directly, in fact, that the CRA uses case studies of individuals with Type 1 diabetes and on insulin pumps in their examples when guiding people through the DTC application process.
But you dont just;receive the credit because you have Type 1 diabetes. You need to complete a pretty time-intensive application process, working to document every activity you do through a typical week that relates to life-sustaining therapy. The strange thing is the most challenging, frustrating, and time-sucking parts of Type 1 diabetes therapy arent permitted to be used in the application.
However, the CRA, under the guidance and directives of the Liberal leadership, have decided that they can make better decisions about the time and care needed to live with Type 1 than we, the people who live this day in and day out, and the medical community can. Theyve decided that because of advances in insulin pump technology , Type 1 diabetes is no longer enough of a burden on adults to warrant the tax credit.
Qualifying For Social Security/disability With Diabetes
If you have diabetes that cant be managed through medication or lifestyle changes, you may be eligible for assistance.;Type 1 diabetes;doesnt always qualify for disability benefits, but some people are able to receive monthly disability benefits from the Social Security Administration . Your benefits can be used on hospital bills and medical treatments, rent, utility bills, food expenses, and any other daily living needs.;
Medically Qualifying for Diabetes;
Children under age 6 will automatically medically qualify with type 1 diabetes if they require;insulin every day. If you or your child has type 1 diabetes but is over age 6, qualification will be a little more;complex.;
After age 6, the SSA needs more evidence that your diabetes prevents you from working and earning a gainful living.;The best way to do this is by showing that your diabetes complications meet a listing in the;Blue Book, which is the SSAs guideline of qualifying criteria for disabilities. For example, some disabilities that qualify for benefits include, but are not limited to:;
;The entire Blue Book can be found online, so you can review the various listings with your doctor to determine if youre eligible for benefits.;;
Following a Doctors Orders;
Because many people are able to successfully manage their diabetes,;itll be important to show that despite your best efforts your diabetes still keeps you from earning a gainful living.;;
Starting Your Application;
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What Is An Rfc
The Residue Functional Capacity or RFC determines if you can still work even with your given impairments. To have an accurate RFC, you;should submit all relevant medical records that reflect your impairment. The RFC depends heavily on medical evidence.
The medical evidence should contain specific details about your condition. For example, if you have neuropathy, the evidence;should mention an unsteady gate or numbness and tingle in your hands.
Seek a Specialist
To get the best chance at reflecting on your current condition, you need notes from a specialist and not just a family physician. So if you have diabetic retinopathy, you need records from an ophthalmologist. If you have kidney disease, you need to visit a nephrologist.
Your specialist should include opinions regarding your work-related impairments. What work does your physician think you can do? How does your condition limit you to work?
Use an RFC Form
Provide your doctor with an RFC form. This will ask questions about postural limitations like bending or stooping as well as manipulative limitations like handling and reaching. The RFC form will also ask questions about environmental listings such as extreme temperatures or noise.
The grid works especially well for individuals with Type 2 diabetes. This form of diabetes is often diagnosed in adulthood and only tends to worsen.
Is Diabetes Considered A Disability In The United States
Approximately 34.2 million Americans, or more than one in 10, live with diabetes. Additionally, a further 88 million have prediabetes. That means roughly a third of adults in the United States have a substantial risk of developing diabetes in the future.;
If youve been diagnosed with diabetes or at significant risk of developing the condition, you may wonder whether the government considers diabetes a disability.
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How The Method Helps With T
Meanwhile people with diabetes based on insulin resistance will notice these major differences:
- Slowly removing the need for insulin injections
- Slowly removing the need for medication
- Healthy weight loss
- Improved heart and cardiovascular health
- Improved levels
- And the eventual reversal of insulin resistance, leading to a complete reversal of this form of diabetes!
Does Diabetes Qualify For Monthly Ssdi Disability Benefits
- This image courtesy of Unsplash
Diabetes is a disease in which the body cannot properly process and absorb glucose because of insufficient insulin production or because of insulin resistance. There are several different varieties of diabetes, including Type I, Type II, Type III, and gestational.
Type I diabetes, also known as Diabetes Mellitus, usually begins early in life. This generally means that the pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin to process the blood glucose. It can sometimes happen as a result of injury or disease that affects the pancreas. Patients with Type I diabetes need insulin, because their bodies do not produce sufficient insulin.
Type II diabetes usually onsets later in life, and is sometimes treated with oral medications and diet changes instead of insulin injections, depending on the case and severity. Still, many people with Type II diabetes also require insulin injections. It is critical that patients with any type of diabetes, including Type II diabetes, follow their doctors instructions regarding treatment, whether their medication is taken orally or through injection.
Type III diabetes refers to an insulin processing resistance in the brain . Gestational diabetes is often temporary as it often only lasts during pregnancy for women who develop it. All types of diabetes can be life-threatening.
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It’s Difficult To Qualify For Social Security Disability Benefits For Diabetes Unless You Have Other Complications
Diabetes, or diabetes mellitus, is a disorder in which too little insulin is produced in the body. Insulin is necessary to help convert glucose into the body’s cells for energy. When not enough insulin is produced, it causes a build up of glucose in the blood. Symptoms of diabetes include fatigue, frequent urination, abnormal thirst, unusual hunger, weight loss, repeated infections, cuts that are slow to heal, and tingling or numbness in the hands and feet.
Type 1 diabetes is ordinarily diagnosed in children and younger adults, and it is a type of diabetes in which the body produces no insulin. In type 2 diabetes, or adult onset diabetes, your body’s cells ignore the effects of insulin. When diabetes goes untreated and too much glucose builds up in your body, long-term complications can result. These include neuropathy in your feet , kidney disease , high blood pressure , heart disease, stroke, gastroparesis , eye and vision problems, peripheral arterial disease , and depression.
Treatment of severe diabetes involves the careful monitoring of blood glucose levels along with taking insulin and controlling your diet. Your doctor can test you for diabetes using a fasting blood glucose test.
Qualifying For A Medical
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.
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