 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 Wilson's Disease and Filing for DisabilityHow to prove you are disabled and win disability benefits 1. Wilson’s disease involves the buildup of excess copper in the body. Copper is used by the body in the development of nerves, bones, collagen and skin pigment, and then the excess is processed out through the liver. In those with Wilson’s disease, the liver does not excrete excess copper. 2. Wilson’s disease causes symptoms similar to a variety of other conditions, including depression, loss of appetite, fatigue, joint pain, trouble controlling muscles in the mouth and throat, clumsiness, bruising, shaking, nausea, swelling, and jaundice. 3. Wilson’s disease is inherited, and is caused by a genetic mutation. If both parents pass on a genetic trait for Wilson’s disease, the child will develop the condition. If only parent passes on the trait, the child will be a carrier but will not develop the disease personally. 4. When untreated, Wilson’s disease threatens the health of major organs, particularly the liver and kidneys, as well as neurological problems. The liver can become scarred, and damage to the liver can lead to failure or cancer. The kidneys may be affected by stones and abnormal amino acids. 5. Untreated, Wilson’s disease becomes fatal. Most people are diagnosed and are able to treat it in time and live normal lives. Diagnosis is achieved through blood and urine tests, brain and eye exams, liver tissue biopsy and genetic testing. 6. Chelating agents are medications that help the body filter out copper. These medications have serious side effects themselves, including neurological, skin and bone marrow damage. However, they also help reduce the risk of liver damage from Wilson’s disease. 7. Zinc helps prevent the absorption of copper, so supplements are often used as medication to control copper levels for those with Wilson’s disease. Taking zinc supplements has far fewer side effects than chelating agents. 8. If severe liver damage has occurred, a liver transplant may become necessary. 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 |