 SSDRC Filing a Social Security Disability Application - How to File & the Information that is Needed by SSA Do you need a Lawyer at the Administrative Law Judge Disability Hearing? Social Security Disability Back pay and How Long it Takes to Qualify for it How do you prove your disability case if you have a mental condition? What Can I Do to Improve My Chances of Winning Disability Benefits Common Mistakes after Receiving a Denial of benefits If You Get Approved For SSDI Will You Also Get Medicare? How much is paid for the Social Security Disability Attorney Fee? How long does it take to be approved for SSI or Social Security disability? How To Get Disability Through SSDI or SSI Approved Should you get Help from a Disability Attorney before the Claim has been Denied? Answers to questions about SSD and SSI disability Qualifying for Disability - What is Social Security Looking for? How do I check the status of my Social Security disability claim? What Expenses Will A Social Security Attorney Charge In Addition To The Fee? |
Facts about Hodgkin's Lymphoma and Filing for DisabilityHow to prove you are disabled and win disability benefits 1. Hodgkin’s lymphoma is cancer of the cells of the lymphatic system. The abnormality of these cells affects the immune system, ultimately weakening the patient’s defense to illness. 2. Hodgkin’s lymphoma is over 90 percent curable, especially when caught in its early stages. Those with lymphoma are more likely to have the non-Hodgkin’s form, which is not as curable. 3. A large risk factor for Hodgkin’s lymphoma is age. Those in the range of early adulthood, around 15-35, and also senior adults, around 55 and older, are the two groups most at risk. 4. Males are also more likely to develop the condition than women. It is also most common in North America and northern Europe, and seems to occur among those with higher socioeconomic status. 5. Symptoms include lymph nodes that are swollen but not painful to touch, fever, fatigue, loss of appetite and dramatic weight loss, coughing and breathing problems, and itching. 6. Since these symptoms are not specific to lymphoma alone, it may be difficult to determine when to see a doctor. The general rule of thumb should be experiencing symptoms for over two weeks or having symptoms that disappear and come back repeatedly. 7. Lymph node symptoms involve the a pattern of ordered progression from one set of lymph nodes to another, and will eventually include all lymph nodes. 8. Those with Hodgkin’s lymphoma are at risk for severe infection, due to its adverse effect on the immune system. This is a potential short-term complication of the condition. 9. Potential long-term complications of Hodgkin’s lymphoma are primarily associated with treatment (chemotherapy and radiation) side effects. They are cardiovascular and vascular diseases, sterility, thyroid dysfunction and second cancers. 10. References in movies and books have influenced public awareness of Hodgkin’s lymphoma. There are also many well-known people who have led public battles with the condition. Can you qualify for disability benefits with this condition? Whether or not you qualify for disability and, as a result, are approved for disability benefits will depend entirely on the information obtained from your medical records. This includes whatever statements may have been obtained from your treating physician (a doctor who has a history of treating your condition and is, therefore, qualified to comment as to your condition and prognosis). It will also depend on the information obtained from your vocational, or work, history if you are an adult, or academic records if you are a minor-age child. The important thing to keep in mind is that the social security administration does not award benefits based on simply having a condition, but, instead, will base an approval or denial on the extent to which a condition causes functional limitations. Functional limitations can be great enough to make work activity not possible (or, for a child, make it impossible to engage in age-appropriate activities). Why are so many disability cases lost at the disability application and reconsideration appeal levels? Speaking as a former Disability Claims Examiner, I can state that there are several reasons: 1) Social Security makes no attempt to obtain a statement from a claimant's treating physician. By contrast, at the hearing level, a claimant and his or her disability attorney will generally obtain and present this type of statement to a judge; 2) Prior to the hearing level, a claimant will not have the opportunity to explain how their condition limits them, nor will their attorney or representative have the opportunity to make a presentation based on the evidence of the case. At the hearing level, of course, this is exactly what happens. And a number of disability representatives will also take such steps even earlier, at the reconsideration appeal level; 3) Disability judges, unlike disability examiners who decides cases at the first two levels of the system, can make independent decisions without being overturned by immediate supervisors--which happens frequently. 
Return to: SSDRC, or the Questions, Answers, Tips, and Advice page Topics and Questions Other Links SSD and SSI are Federal Programs The title II Social Security Disability and title 16 SSI Disability programs operate under federal guidelines and, therefore, the program requirements--medical and non-medical--apply to all states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming Recent approval and denial statistics for various states can be viewed here: Social Security Disability, SSI Approval and Denial Statistics by state Special Section: Disability Lawyers and unnecessary claim denials |