Cervical Neck Fusion and Social Security Disability
Cervical Neck Fusion and Social Security Disability. You may qualify for Social Security disability benefits if you’ve had a cervical neck fusion. However, you must show that you still can’t work. Many different problems can cause neck pain and other symptoms. Typically, degenerative disc disease, whiplash, herniated discs, and arthritis can cause ongoing symptoms. Neck impairments can cause many different symptoms.
These symptoms may include:
Pain
Limited movement of the neck or shoulders
Headaches
Shooting pain down the back or arms
Numbness and/or tingling
Getting Disability For Cervical Neck Fusion
You may qualify for Social Security disability benefits for your cervical neck fusion or impairments. However, you must show that your symptoms are severe. They must cause problems doing normal activities. Additionally, they must keep you from working for at least 12 months.
Social Security provides a listing of impairments, known as the “Blue Book.” The Blue Book provides specific conditions that you must meet to qualify for disability benefits. Social Security doesn’t have a specific listing for a cervical neck fusion. However, they do provide a listing for spinal disorders under 1.04.
To meet Social Security’s listing for your neck problems, you must show that the nerve root or spinal cord has been affected.
Additionally, you must show:
Evidence of nerve root compression, limited movement of your spine, and muscle weakness with loss of feeling or reflexes, or
Spinal arachnoiditis is a painful disorder caused by inflammation that causes you to have to change positions every two hours
Getting Disability If You Don’t Meet The Listing
Many people will not meet the listing for their cervical neck impairments. Fortunately, you can still get disability benefits. Specifically, you need to show that your neck problems limit your functioning and prevent you from working. Social Security assesses your residual functional capacity (RFC.)
Particularly, Social Security considers:
How long you can sit, stand, or walk at one time or in an 8-hour workday
How much weight you can lift or carry
Using your arms and hands for activities such as reaching, pushing, pulling, gripping, or grasping objects
If pain, fatigue, other symptoms, or side effects from medications cause limitations with concentration, persistence, or pace
Cervical Neck Fusion And Social Security Disability
Here’s an example of cervical neck fusion and SSD:
Anne injured her neck in a car accident. She required a cervical spinal fusion surgery. Despite surgery, she continued to have severe pain and difficulty moving her neck. She also still had problems using her hands due to numbness and tingling. Social Security determined that she could not lift or carry more than ten pounds but could sit for six hours. Additionally, Social Security found that she had serious problems using her hands throughout the day. Therefore, she was unable to do even simple seated jobs. As a result, Anne was approved for disability benefits.
Social Security Grid Rules
Social Security uses a chart called the Medical-Vocational Guidelines to evaluate your disability claim. These guidelines are known as the “grid rules”. The grid rules make it easier for older people to win their case. Social Security understands that it may be harder for older people to do new or different work. They will look at the grid rules if your impairments do not meet the conditions under the Social Security medical listings.
Cervical Neck Fusion And The Grid Rules
Here is an example of the grid rules for Cervical Neck Fusion:
Brad, a 57-year-old man previously worked as a janitor. He filed for disability because he developed degenerative disc disease in his neck. He had cervical spine surgery. Unfortunately, he continued to have pain in his neck. His doctor told him he couldn’t lift more than 10 pounds. Social Security found he couldn’t perform the duties required to be a janitor. Under the grid rules, Social Security approved Brad’s claim.
Medical Evidence Needed For Cervical Neck Fusion And Neck Impairments
You must provide medical evidence to document any problems related to your neck problems. Generally, medical evidence includes your doctor’s treatment notes, test results, and imaging. Most importantly, you should have MRI evidence of your cervical spine.
Also, your doctor should document:
Any pain with movement of your bones or joints
Problems moving your neck
Problems using your hands
Difficulty traveling to places without assistance
Difficulty performing activities of daily living such as shopping, cooking, cleaning, using public transportation, bathing, or getting dressed
RFC Forms
An RFC form can clearly explain how your conditions impact your functioning. Having your doctor complete an RFC form can be very helpful. After all, they should know more about your health than anyone else. An RFC form should be very detailed. It should indicate all your medical symptoms and conditions. It should also include all of your treatment and any side effects from medications. An experienced disability advocate can provide these forms to you.
Disability Help Group Can Help You
Make sure you start your claim the right way and apply for all the benefits you deserve. If you have already applied for SSI or SSDI, call immediately to make sure your case is still pending and was filed correctly. You may be entitled to significant compensation. Contact us now for a free consultation.
The date that your disability check comes in can depend on the type of benefit you receive and your birthday. Social Security offers two types of disability benefits. Social Security Disability Insurance benefits (SSDI) are benefits available to individuals who have worked for a certain number of years. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a needs-based program. Therefore, your income, assets, and resources determine your SSI eligibility.
SSDI Disability Payment Schedule
If you started receiving SSDI benefits after 1997, your birthday will determine the date you receive your payment. There are three schedules Social Security sends your SSDI check or direct deposit if your birthday is on the:
1st-10th of a month, SSDI checks or direct deposit will arrive on the second Wednesday of every month.
11th-20th of a month, SSDI checks or direct deposit will arrive on the third Wednesday of every month.
21st-31st of a month, SSDI checks or direct deposit will arrive on the fourth Wednesday of every month.
If you received benefits before 1997, your SSDI payment date will be on the third day of the month. It does not matter what day your birthday falls on. However, if the third is on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, your benefits will be paid on the banking day before.
SSDI and SSI Combined Payments Schedule
If you receive SSDI and SSI payments together, your payment schedule will be on the third day of the month.
Claimants typically have to wait one to two months after approval before seeing their first Social Security disability payment. In some cases, it can take even longer to receive your back payments. Back payments can be delayed depending on the amount of benefits you are entitled to receive or if you received worker’s compensation benefits.
You should contact Social Security if you have not received your benefits within 90 days of approval. Your representative can help you with any problem
How to Receive Your SSDI and SSI Payments
Social Security offers several ways to send your SSDI or SSI payments.
For example,
Direct Deposit, is probably the safest way to receive your payments since they cannot be lost or stolen if deposited directly into your bank account.
The Direct Express Card program credits money directly to a swipe-able card.
Electronic Transfer Account.
SSDI recipients can still receive their payments by mail. It is better to receive payments through one of Social Security’s preferred methods to avoid the possibility of lost or stolen checks. Social Security asks that you not contact them about lost checks until the fourth day after the first of the month.
Tax on Social Security Benefits
You may have to pay taxes on your Social Security benefit, depending on your income level. Typically, disability benefits are not usually counted as taxable income, click here and continue learning with the help of experts about deductible taxes. Social Security offers voluntary tax withholding from your benefit. You can choose this option by completing Form W-4V. There are specific percentages to choose from. You can obtain the form from Social Security, request it from the IRS, or ask your representative for a copy.
Generally, you would receive a refund when filing taxes the following year if you opted to voluntarily have taxes withheld and you overpaid.
Disability Help Group, Call Now for a Free Case Review, (800) 800-3332
Make sure you start your claim the right way and apply for all the benefits you deserve. Contact us here to receive a FREE consultation.
What is the Criteria for 70% TBI Disability Rating?
What is the Criteria for 70% TBI Disability Rating? After VA grants service connection for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI disability), VA must determine the correct rating percentage. As a result, the rating percentage determines how much money VA must pay to the veteran. Rather than assign percentages subjectively, VA uses criteria in the Schedule of Ratings.
VA Schedule of Rating Criteria for 70% TBI Disability Rating
The VA Schedule of Ratings breaks down disabilities into different categories. Firstly, each category contains groups of medical problems. Secondly, each group contains a list of disabilities, and each disability has its own diagnostic code. Thirdly, every diagnostic code specifies the symptoms required for various ratings. For example, the 8045 diagnostic code covers residuals of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
How is a TBI disability rated?
The VA divides the rating criteria for TBI disability into 10 categories.
Veterans are rated based on the level of severity and impairment in each of these areas:
1. Memory, attention, concentration, and executive functions, including goal setting, planning, self-monitoring, and flexibility in changing actions when they are not productive.
2. Judgment: a veteran’s ability to make reasonable decisions.
3. Social interaction: how often a veteran acts appropriately in social situations.
4. Orientation: a veteran’s awareness of who, where, and when he is.
5. Motor activities: a veteran’s ability to perform previously learned motor activities (such as riding a bike).
6. Visual-spatial orientation: A veteran gets lost, even in familiar surroundings, or cannot point at or name their own body parts.
7. Subjective symptoms: symptoms that cannot be measured with objective tests, such as panic attacks and thoughts of suicide.
8. Neurobehavioral effects: examples include lack of motivation, verbal aggression, physical aggression, and lack of empathy.
9. Ability to communicate: Can the veteran communicate either by spoken or written language or communicate basic needs?
10. Consciousness: Is the veteran in a coma or a vegetative state?
Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) residual scale
VA rates TBI residuals on a scale of 0, 1, 2, 3, or total. Each increment corresponds to a disability rating:
0 = 0% (normal functioning)
1 = 10% (mild)
2 = 40% (moderate)
3 = 70% (severe)
Total = 100%
The VA will award a 100% TBI disability rating if any residuals of TBI are rated “total”. Conversely, the VA will assign a percentage based on the highest-rated residual if no residual is rated “total”. For example, let’s say a veteran has TBI residuals in 3 out of the 10 categories. Therefore, he has a 1 for Judgment, a 3 for the ability to communicate, and a 2 for orientation. In this example, VA will award 70% because 3 is the highest residual rating.
70% TBI Disability Rating Varies
Across the 10 residual categories, the criteria for a 70% rating varies. For example, a Neurobehavioral residual must interfere with or preclude workplace interaction, social interaction, or both on most days. By contrast, VA assigns a 3 if Motor activities are moderately decreased due to apraxia. When in doubt, one should consult diagnostic code 8045 and the associated tables.
The following examples would yield a 70% disability rating for TBI:
A 50 year-old veteran who is often disoriented in time and place.
A 35 year-old veteran whose social interaction is inappropriate most of the time.
A 70 year-old veteran who is unable to communicate either by spoken or written language about half of the time.
Special Monthly Compensation
A veteran may receive special monthly compensation, in addition to a 70% rating, for Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). As a result, the question is simple: Does your 70% rated TBI disability render you so helpless that you require the regular aid and attendance of another person?
Disability Help Group Case Study
Disability Help Group represented a veteran of the Army who had TBI at 10%. After increasing his rating to 70% for Traumatic Brain Injury, we continued fighting for him to receive special monthly compensation. We were able to prove that he could not care for himself, because the local VA hospital appointed his mother as his VA caregiver. Among other duties, she assisted with medication management, personal hygiene, reminding him of and taking him to appointments, and paying his bill. Therefore, we proved the veteran had a permanent need for regular aid and attendance due to his TBI.
As a result, VA granted Special Monthly Compensation at the (r)(2) rate, increasing monthly payment from $264.02 to $8,343.91.
Do you believe you meet the criteria for a 70% rating for TBI disability? Be sure you start your claim the right way and apply for all the benefits you deserve. Call our team of experts today at (800) 800-3332 or contact us here for your FREE consultation!
Does your anxiety prevent you from working? Anxiety can cause feelings of worry or nervousness. These disorders are the most common emotional disorders. If you have an anxiety disorder, you may qualify for Social Security disability benefits.
Anxiety symptoms
Anxiety disorders have many symptoms. Frequently, these disorders can cause excessive worry or fear. They can also cause you to avoid certain places, activities, or people.
For example, symptoms may include:
Restlessness
Difficulty concentrating
Problems sleeping or fatigue
Obsessions or compulsions
Panic attacks, constant thoughts or fears about safety, or physical complaints
Types of Anxiety That Prevent Working
Anxiety disorders include several different types, these include:
Generalized anxiety disorder – six months or more of a constant state of tension or worry, not related to any specific event
Panic disorder – repeated attacks of anxiety that last up to ten minutes without any specific cause
Social anxiety disorder: fear, self-consciousness, and/or embarrassment with everyday social interactions
Agoraphobia: fear of places and situations that might cause panic, helplessness, or embarrassment. Typically, it can cause difficulty leaving your home or a particular location
Obsessive-compulsive disorder: recurrent and persistent thoughts or impulses that may make you feel can be controlled by performing repetitive behaviors
What if my anxiety prevents me from working?
You may qualify for Social Security disability benefits for your anxiety disorder. However, you must show that your symptoms are severe. They must cause problems doing normal, daily activities. Also, they must keep you from working for at least 12 months.
Social Security’s Listing for Anxiety Disorders
Social Security provides a listing of impairments. This is known as the “Blue Book.” The Blue Book provides specific conditions that you must meet to qualify for disability benefits. Social Security looks at anxiety disorders under Listing 12.06.
Meeting the listing for anxiety disorders that prevent work
First, you must have medical records that show three or more anxiety symptoms.
Specifically, you must show:
Restlessness, easily fatigued, or difficulty concentrating
Irritability, muscle tension, or problems sleeping
Second, you must show that your symptoms cause a serious problem in your functioning. Generally, you must have an extreme limitation in at least one area. Alternatively, you can have a marked limitation in at least two areas.
These areas of functioning include:
Understanding, remembering, or applying information (understanding instructions, learning new tasks, applying new knowledge to tasks, and using judgment in decisions)
Interacting with others (the ability to use socially appropriate behaviors)
Concentrating, persisting, or maintaining pace in performing tasks (staying focused and/or completing tasks)
Adapting or managing oneself (the ability to perform daily activities such as paying bills, cooking, shopping, dressing, and keeping good hygiene)
Social Security definitions of marked and extreme
Firstly, “Marked” means having a serious limitation in that area of functioning. Secondly, “Extreme” means not being able to function in that area at all. Thirdly, a Social Security psychiatrist or psychologist looks at your medical records. and decide if your anxiety disorder causes marked or extreme limitations.
Anxiety and the “C” Criteria
On the other hand, you may also meet the criteria under the listing if your anxiety disorder has been:
Medically documented as serious and persistent for at least two years and
Required to keep a highly structured setting to reduce your symptoms, such as an intensive outpatient or partial hospitalization program, or have minimal capacity to adapt to demands that are not already part of your daily life or changes to your environment
Getting disability if you don’t meet the listing
You can still qualify for disability benefits if you do not meet Social Security’s listing because Social Security looks at how your anxiety symptoms impact your ability to work. Particularly, they consider your ability to carry out simple instructions, make simple work-related decisions, respond appropriately to supervision and co-workers, handle changes in a routine, and show up to work consistently, arrive on time, or leave early.
Example 1: Anxiety prevents you from working
As an example, Joan suffers from anxiety and panic attacks, Her panic attacks happen unexpectedly, she receives medication from her psychiatrist and she also sees a therapist regularly. However, she still suffers from panic attacks many times during the day. She has even had to go to the emergency room during her panic attacks. Her panic attacks make it hard for her to finish things she starts. At times, her panic attacks keep her from leaving the house. Social Security finds that Joan would miss work a lot due to her panic attacks. Therefore, Joan qualifies for disability benefits.
What evidence do I need if my anxiety prevents me from working?
Social Security requests medical records from your doctors. As a rule, it is best to get treatment from a psychiatrist or psychologist. It is important to see your doctors regularly. Equally important, you should tell them about all the symptoms you have. Additionally, your doctor can complete a residual functional capacity form.
Getting help with your disability claim for anxiety
It can be difficult to win disability benefits for anxiety disorders. However, an experienced disability advocate can help guide you through the process. An experienced advocate can also help gather your records to help support your case. Additionally, they can provide you with forms for your doctors and answer all your questions.
Be sure you start your claim the right way and apply for all the benefits you deserve. If you have already applied for SSI or SSDI, contact our team immediately to make sure your case is still pending and was filed correctly. You may be entitled to significant compensation. Call us today at (800) 800-3332 or contact us here for your free consultation.
Can I get A 100% VA Rating for PTSD due to Military Sexual Trauma?
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disability triggered by a traumatic event. When the average person thinks of a traumatic military event, they often think of combat. However, some military threats come from within our own ranks. Military Sexual Trauma, or MST, refers to experiences of sexual assault or sexual harassment during military service. According to national data provided by the VA, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 50 men say that they experienced military sexual trauma (MST) when screened by their VA provider.
Military Sexual Trauma (MST)
Military Sexual Trauma includes any sexual activity where a service member is involved against his or her will. He or she may have been pressured into sexual activities (for example, with threats of negative consequences for refusing to be sexually cooperative or with implied better treatment in exchange for sex), or may have been physically forced into sexual activities.
Other MST experiences include unwanted sexual touching or grabbing; threatening, offensive remarks about a person’s body or sexual activities; and threatening and unwelcome sexual advances.
PTSD is the most common mental health diagnosis related to MST. You may be eligible for VA 100% if your PTSD is due to MST.
Service Connection PTSD due to MST
Before VA will assign a 100% rating for PTSD due to MST, they must first determine whether it is related to service. In other words, VA must first grant service connection before it will assign a rating.
There are 4 requirements to prove service-connection PTSD due to MST
Current diagnosis,
In-service event, disease or injury,
Medical nexus between the first 2 elements, and
Credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor occurred.
The challenge of Proving Military Sexual Trauma (MST)
Most victims are not eager to report MST to their superiors. This is especially true if a superior has committed the MST, the VA is well aware of this. Absent an official law enforcement record, how does one prove PTSD due to MST?
The VA looks for credible supporting evidence.
Credible supporting evidence of MST can include:
In-service pregnancy tests or tests for sexually transmitted diseases,
Statements from clergy, family members, roommates, or
Evidence of behavior changes following the claimed assault.
Rating PTSD due to MST
After the VA grants service connection for PTSD due to MST, it must determine the correct rating. To do so, the VA consults the Schedule of Ratings.
The Schedule of Ratings breaks down disabilities into different categories. Each category contains groups of medical problems. For example, PTSD due to MST is found in the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders. Depending on the symptoms, a veteran may receive either 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, or 100%.
100% Rating: Total occupational and social impairment from PTSD due to MST
Gross impairment in thought processes or communication
Persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior
The persistent danger of hurting self or others
Intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene)
Disorientation to time or place
Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name
70% Rating: Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood
Suicidal ideation
Obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities
Speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant
Near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately, and effectively
Impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence)
Spatial disorientation
Neglect of personal appearance and hygiene
Difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a work-like setting
Inability to establish and maintain effective relationships
50% Rating: Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity
Flattened affect
Circumstantial, circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech
Panic attacks more than once a week
Difficulty in understanding complex commands
Impairment of short- and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks)
Impaired judgment
Impaired abstract thinking
Disturbances of motivation and mood
Difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships
30% Rating: Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine behavior, self-care, and conversation normal)
Depressed mood
Anxiety
Suspiciousness
Panic attacks (weekly or less often), chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss (such as forgetting names, directions, and recent events)
10% = Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms
Decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant stress
Symptoms controlled by continuous medication
0% Rating: A mental condition has been formally diagnosed
Symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning
Require continuous medication
You May Be Entitled to VA 100% PTSD due to MST
The type, severity, and duration of a veteran’s symptoms will vary based on a number of factors. For example, race, religion, and sexual orientation can affect the impact of MST. Whether the MST happened once or was repeated over time may affect how long the symptoms last.
If your PTSD due to MST has caused any of the symptoms in the 100% range, then you may be entitled to VA 100%.
Call Disability Help Group for a FREE Case Review! If you have more questions about getting a 100% rating for PTSD due to MST, please fill out our information form here or call us at (800) 800-3332. We offer a 100% guaranteed free case review. We will be happy to answer your questions.
