 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 Osteogenesis Imperfecta and Filing for DisabilityHow to prove you are disabled and win disability benefits 1. Osteogenesis imperfecta is a condition in which bones easily break due to an abnormality in the collagen required for bone strength. 2. Osteogenesis imperfecta is a hereditary condition, meaning parents pass on the gene mutation responsible for the abnormality. In most cases, there needs to be only one copy of the gene for the condition to be present (dominate genetic defect). 3. In some cases, both copies of the gene must be passed to the child in order for the individual to develop the condition (recessive genetic defect). 4. There are eight types of osteogenesis imperfecta that have been identified. 5. Type 1 is the most common. It also has the mildest symptoms, with bones that break easily in early childhood and possible hearing loss in early adulthood. The individual has normal stature with minimal or no bone deformity, but loose joints and weakened muscles, and possibly a curved spine. The whites of the eyes are often tinted blue, purple or gray and the face is typically triangular in shape. 6. Type III includes easily broken bones starting at or before birth, short stature with significant bone deformity as well as loose joints and weak muscles, a curved spine, triangular face shape, and barrel rib cage. The whites of the eyes are tinted, as in Type 1. Respiratory problems and hearing loss are possible. 7. Type IV has traits combined in Type I and III, and has moderate severity of symptoms. 8. Type II is the most severe. Underdeveloped lungs, many broken bones and severe bone deformity are all present at birth, often leading to death shortly after birth. 9. The genetic mutations responsible for Types V and VI have not been identified, but they are not caused by the same mutations as Types I-IV. Both types are similar to Type IV, but also have specific bone structure differences. Only eight people have been identified with Type VI. 10. Types VII and VIII are recessive forms of the condition. Type VII in some cases is similar to Type IV, but involves specific bone deformities in the arms and legs. Type VIII is usually as fatal as Type II, and Type VII can be as well. 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 |