Yes.
Autoimmune disorders such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis, ankylosing spondylitis, and scleroderma present some of the most medically complex disability cases.
If you suffer from an autoimmune disorder that prevents you from working you may qualify for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits.
MCV Law can help you to apply for these benefits or handle your appeal if your claim has been denied. Our Social Security Disability lawyers help disabled workers and their families throughout Upstate New York. Simply contact us online today to receive a free review of your case.
Common immune system disorders
The Social Security Administration’s List of Impairments, or “Blue Book,” groups immune system disorders into three categories:
- Autoimmune disorders
- Immune deficiency disorders
- Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.
Autoimmune disorders include:
- Lupus
- Systemic Vasculitis
- Undifferentiated and mixed connective tissue disease
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBS)
- Respiratory system disorders (pleuritis, pneumonitis)
- Cardiovascular system disorders (endocarditis, myocarditis)
- Renal system disorders (glomerulonephritis)
- Blood disorders (anemia, leukopenia)
- Skin disorders (photosensitivity)
- Neurologic system disorders
- Inflammatory arthritis (Rheumatoid Arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis)
- Scleroderma (thickening of the skin).
Immune deficiency disorders (excluding HIV) are infections that are either resistant to treatment or require hospitalization or intravenous treatment three or more times in a 12-month period. They include:
- Sepsis
- Meningitis
- Pneumonia
- Septic arthritis
- Endocarditis
- Sinusitis.
HIV infection is the precursor to acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). It remains incurable but, in many cases, AIDS can be controlled for years by a combination of drugs.
How do you qualify for Disability benefits?
Having a diagnosis of one of the listed conditions is not enough for the SSA to find you disabled.
You must not be working. You must have medical evidence to support that your condition prevents you from being able to perform basic work-related activities
The Administration will also check to ensure you meet the severity criteria for that listing and have adequate medical evidence to back up your claim.
Can you still qualify for benefits if you don’t meet the listing criteria?
Even if your condition does not meet the specific listing criteria, the SSA may still find you disabled if you prove that you have a condition so severe it prevents you from working.
SSA will review your medical records and your residual functional capacity (RFC), to evaluate your physical and mental functional limitations. If the Administration decides that given your autoimmune disease, signs, symptoms, limitations, age, and work history, you cannot work or adjust to new work, they may still award you benefits based on what is called a medical-vocational allowance.
MCV Law is here to help.
The Social Security Disability process is complex, and securing benefits can be difficult without an experienced lawyer's help. Our team is here for you. We can guide you through every step of the process, and let you know exactly what you will need to build and submit a strong claim. We work on a contingency basis, meaning that your fee to our firm will simply be a percentage of the total amount of benefits awarded to you by the SSA. Take the first step, and connect with a skilled and experienced Social Security Disability attorney today.