What Conditions Qualify for Social Security Disability?
Many people considering applying for Social Security disability benefits have questions like, “What is considered a disability?” or “What conditions can I get Social Security disability for?” That’s not exactly how the Social Security Administration (SSA) analysis works.
While there is a detailed listing of impairments that may qualify a person for Social Security disability, you may also qualify with a condition that isn’t listed. Or, you may qualify with a combination of listed conditions, even though you don’t meet the criteria for either one separately.
What is Considered a Disability?
The SSA considers a person to be disabled if a medical condition or combination of medical conditions prevents them from engaging in substantial gainful activity (SGA) for at least 12 months.
The SSA defines SGA as the ability to earn a certain amount of money on a monthly basis. In 2025, that cut-off is $1,620/month.
Social Security’s Listing of Impairments
The listing of impairments, commonly referred to as the Blue Book, contains detailed listings in fourteen categories. They are:
Musculoskeletal Disorders
Musculoskeletal disorders are among the most common reasons people receive Social Security disability benefits, particularly back problems.
Of course, many people have back pain and other musculoskeletal conditions and are able to work. The SSA only considers you disabled if you can’t engage in SGA because of your medical condition. That’s determined in one of two ways. First, the SSA will look at the Blue Book listing for your condition, if there is one.
Spinal problems caused by compromise of a root nerve
Spinal problems caused by lumbar spinal stenosis
Abnormality of a major joint
Amputation
Soft tissue injury or abnormality
Some non-healing or complex fractures
If your condition isn’t listed or you don’t meet the criteria, the SSA will go on to evaluate whether there is work you can do with your medical limitations, based in part on factors like your age, educational level and past work experience.
If a person meets the SSA listing criteria for blindness, the SGA threshold is increased. In 2025, the SGA cut-off for a blind application is $2,700/month, compared with $1,620/month for other applicants.
As with other categories, it is important to remember that you may still qualify for Social Security disability benefits if your medical condition is not listed, or if you don’t meet the listing criteria for the condition.
Cardiovascular System
Any heart condition that prevents you from earning a living could qualify you for Social Security disability. Some cardiovascular conditions included in the Blue Book include:
Chronic heart failure
Ischemic heart disease
Recurrent arrhythmia
Symptomatic congenital heart disease
Heart transplant
Aortic aneurysm
Chronic venous insufficiency
Peripheral arterial disease
Digestive Disorders
Like other types of conditions, a digestive disorder may or may not qualify you for Social Security disability benefits, depending on the degree of limitation the condition causes. Conditions listed with specific criteria in the Blue Book include:
Gastrointestinal hemorrhaging
Chronic liver disease
Inflammatory bowel disease
Intestinal failure
Weight loss due to any medical condition
Transplant of the:
Liver
Small intestine
Pancreas
Genitourinary Disorders
While the category is much broader, the Blue Book listings for genitourinary disorders are focused on serious kidney-related conditions, including:
The SSA uses different criteria to evaluate chronic kidney disease depending on whether the condition requires dialysis, requires a transplant or involves impairment of kidney function.
Hemolytic anemias, including sickle cell disease and thalassemia
Disorders of thrombosis and hemostasis
Bone marrow failure
Hematological disorders treated by bone marrow or stem cell transplant
Repeated complications of hematological disorders
Skin Disorders
Most skin conditions won’t impair your ability to work, but when they do the SSA may approve Social Security disability benefits. Skin conditions listed with specific criteria for approval include:
Genetic photosensitivity conditions such as xeroderma pigmentosum
Burns
Chronic conditions of the skin or mucous membranes such as chronic skin lesions
Endocrine Disorders
Endocrine disorders cause hormonal imbalances, some of which can be debilitating. Endocrine conditions specifically addressed in the Blue Book include:
Pituitary gland disorders
Thyroid gland disorders
Parathyroid gland disorders
Adrenal gland disorders
Pancreatic gland disorders, including diabetes mellitus
Congenital Disorders Affecting Multiple Body Systems
The only condition the SSA evaluates under this set of criteria is non-mosaic Down Syndrome.
Neurological Disorders
The Blue Book contains listing and criteria for a wide range of neurological conditions, including:
Cancers treated by bone marrow or stem cell transplantation
Malignant melanoma
A few types of cancer are assessed under the category for the impacted organ or body system. An experienced Social Security disability benefits advocate can explain in greater detail how your particular type of cancer would be evaluated.
Immune System Disorders
Some immune disorders are evaluated under the body systems they impact, while others have criteria spelled out in this section of the Blue Book. These include:
Systemic lupus erythema (SLE)
Systemic vasculitis
Systemic sclerosis (scleroderma)
Polymyositis and dermatomyositis
Undifferentiated and mixed connective tissue disease
Get the Help You Need with Your Social Security Disability Claim
Whether your Social Security disability claim is evaluated under one of the many Social Security Blue Book listings or the more holistic approach, the process can be complicated. An experienced disability benefits advocate can help ensure that you have the right documentation to support your claim as fully as possible and give you the best chance of approval.
For help with an initial claim or a Social Security disability appeal, call 800-800-3332 right away or click here now.
How Much Social Security Disability Back Pay Will I Get?
You probably know that it can take a long time to get approved for Social Security disability. Depending on how many rounds of appeal are required, it may take a few months to three or four years or more to secure your disability benefits. Fortunately, when your claim is finally approved, you will receive any back pay due to you. You don’t have to do anything special to get disability back pay–the Social Security Administration (SSA) sends it automatically. However, decisions you make along the way can impact whether you receive back pay and how much.
What is Disability Back Pay?
Disability back pay is payment of Social Security disability benefits you were entitled to, but didn’t receive because your application hadn’t yet been approved. Disability back pay is paid at the same rate it would have been if you’d been approved all along. So, you’ll receive one month of pay for each month you were eligible, in the amount you would have received if you’d been paid from the beginning. But there are some rules and restrictions that can make it complicated to determine exactly how much back pay you will receive.
When Does Disability Back Pay Start Accruing?
The first thing to consider when calculating back pay is the date you became disabled. But that’s just the starting point, not the date your benefits start. That’s because:
You will not receive Social Security disability benefits for the first five months after you became disabled, and
Back pay cannot reach back further than one year before you filed your application for disability benefits, no matter how long ago you became disabled
Here’s an example of the difference your application date makes, and why you should generally apply for Social Security disability as early as possible.
Imagine that Joe and Fred both became disabled on January 15, 2022, but followed different paths to secure disability benefits.
Joe applied for Social Security disability benefits on March 1, 2022. His initial application was denied. His request for reconsideration was denied. The administrative law judge (ALJ) decided in his favor, and his benefits were approved on September 10, 2024.
Since Joe became disabled in January of 2022, he wasn’t eligible for benefits for the five month period from February through June. He’d already applied for benefits when that waiting period expired so he is entitled to benefits beginning in July of 2022–27 months of back pay.
If Joe receives the average amount of Social Security disability benefits–$1,537/month–that means more than $40,000 in back pay.
Fred applied for Social Security disability benefits on April 5, 2024. Though Fred became disabled on the same day as Joe, he waited two years longer to apply for Social Security disability benefits. He was more fortunate in the process than Joe, and his initial application was approved on September 10, 2024.
Both applicants became disabled on the same day, and both were approved for benefits on the same day. But, because Fred applied later, his back pay is more limited. The SSA can only go 12 months back from the date of the application. That means Fred’s back benefits start in May of 2023. He’ll still get 17 months of back pay, but will lose out on 10 months compared with Joe–a difference of about $15,000.
How Failing to Appeal in Time Can Affect Back Benefits
If your Social Security disability benefits are denied, you’ll have the opportunity to appeal. At each stage, you’ll have 60 days to initiate the next step in the process. When an applicant chooses not to appeal or misses the appeal deadline, the case is closed. Usually (though not always), the applicant can reapply later. However, what most people don’t know is that by reapplying instead of appealing, you stand to lose thousands or tens of thousands of dollars in back benefits.
Imagine, for example, that a Social Security disability benefits applicant becomes disabled on June 10, 2021 and files their application for benefits on November 15, 2021. She receives a notice that her application has been denied on April 1, 2022. If that applicant follows through on all appeals and is eventually approved on December 15, 2024, they will be eligible for back benefits dating all the way back to December of 2021, when the five month waiting period expired. That’s about three years of back benefits.
But what if the applicant requested reconsideration and then, when she was denied again, gave up or missed the deadline to request an ALJ hearing? The denial issued on the reconsideration becomes permanent. That doesn’t necessarily mean that the applicant can’t try again. But the SSA has already determined that as of the date of the last denial, the applicant was not disabled.
When a new application is filed, the start date of the disability must be later than the last determination that the applicant was not disabled. If this applicant went through the reconsideration process before abandoning the application, the last denial would likely have been issued eight to nine months after the original application–in this case, approximately August of 2022. Even if the SSA determines that the applicant became disabled almost immediately after the denial, the five month waiting period will still apply. Rather than receiving benefits dating back to December of 2021, this applicant will–at best–be entitled to benefits starting in January or February of 2023. If the applicant receives the average monthly benefit, that’s a loss of about $20,000.
Get Help with Your Social Security Disability Application or Appeal
Wherever you are in the process, innocent mistakes and oversights can harm your case. The best way to ensure that your application is thoroughly and correctly completed and that you are providing the type of evidence the SSA wants to see is to work with an experienced disability benefits advocate from the start. We can also protect your access to back pay by ensuring that you have provided information necessary to allow the SSA to assign the right start date for your disability, and keeping the appeals process moving forward.
To learn more about how we can help, call 800-800-3332 or fill out our contact form here.
SSD is intended to provide support for workers who can no longer earn a living due to an injury or medical condition. While these disability benefits can be a lifeline for someone who can’t continue working, timing presents a problem for many Social Security disability applicants.
Securing benefits can take several months to two years or more. That can put significant stress on a disabled worker who may have no other source of income during that time. So, why the gap?
Factors Impacting the Social Security Disability Timeline
The first built-in delay in receiving disability benefits is that the Social Security Administration (SSA) doesn’t pay benefits for the first five months you are disabled. As a practical matter, though, that waiting period doesn’t affect when most people start receiving benefits. That’s because for nearly all applicants, the waiting period has passed by the time benefits are approved.
Initial Disability Application Timeline
According to the SSA, the average time to receive a determination on an initial Social Security disability application is 232 days. That’s nearly eight months. In part, that wait is due to high application volume. The complexity of the decision-making process also plays a role, since the SSA must first consider technical requirements, then review extensive medical documentation and other evidence. In some cases, they may need to obtain additional information.
Unfortunately, most disability applications are initially denied. That means additional steps that add time to the process.
Reconsideration Timeline
The first step in appealing a Social Security disability denial is to request reconsideration. You have 60 days to request reconsideration. Reconsideration is typically the quickest step. Still, by the time the process is complete, an average of about 475 days have passed since the initial application–about 15.5 months.
ALJ Hearing Timeline
If your application is denied on reconsideration, the next step is a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Just getting to the ALJ hearing takes a long time. The timeline for scheduling the hearing varies a lot depending on geography, and is typically between eight months and two years. Then, the applicant can expect to wait an average of 285 days for a decision.
Timelines May Get Longer in 2025
Just two years ago, the average wait time for a hearing decision was 450 days. The drop to the current 285 days was due in large part to a concerted effort on the part of the SSA to cut down wait times. However, early in 2025, several thousand positions were eliminated, meaning there are fewer workers available to keep the process moving efficiently.
How You Can Minimize the Wait for Disability Benefits
While you can’t control the SSA’s timelines, there are steps you can take to keep your application moving forward as smoothly as possible. The first is ensuring that you include everything necessary to process your application so the SSA doesn’t have to pause and request additional information. Another is making sure that you fully understand what is required to allow the SSA to approve your claim at the initial application stage, since having to appeal creates a significant delay.
To learn more about how an experienced disability benefits advocate can help, call 800-800-3332 or contact us here now.
When you apply for Social Security disability benefits (SSD) for muscular dystrophy or any other condition, there are two possible ways to show that you are disabled. One is to show that your medical condition meets or equals a listing in the Social Security Blue Book, formally known as Disability Evaluation Under Social Security – Listing of Impairments. The other is a more complex assessment of the amount of work you can still do, combined with information about your age, work history and education.
Muscular Dystrophy is in the Social Security Blue Book
When you apply for muscular dystrophy disability benefits, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will first look to see whether you meet the Blue Book criteria.
To meet the listing for muscular dystrophy, the applicant must show “disorganization of motor function in two extremities resulting in an extreme limitation in the ability to stand up from a seated position, balance while standing or walking, or use the upper extremities.”
To better understand what’s required, it’s important to know how the SSA uses some of those terms. For example, extreme limitation of the ability to stand up from a seated position means that when you are sitting down, you are unable to stand without help from another person or using an assistive device like a walker, two crutches, or two canes. The assessment for balance while standing or walking uses the same criteria.
Extreme limitation in the use of the upper extremities means “loss of function of both upper extremities that very seriously limits your ability to independently initiate, sustain, and complete age- appropriate activities involving fine and gross motor movements.”
What if I Don’t Meet the Blue Book Listing for Muscular Dystrophy
If you don’t meet the listing criteria, you may still qualify for muscular dystrophy disability benefits if you can show that your medical condition prevents you from engaging in substantial gainful activity. During this part of the analysis, the SSA will take into account any and all medical conditions that may impair your ability to work.
Give Yourself the Best Chance at SSD for Muscular Dystrophy
As you can see, extensive medical documentation is required to establish your eligibility for SSD for muscular dystrophy. Putting together the strongest, best-documented application possible can make the difference between approval and denial. To learn more about how Disability Help Group can help you submit the most effective application or appeal possible, call us today at 800-800-3332 or fill out our contact form here.
It is possible to receive Social Security disability (SSD) for Lyme disease. However, it’s not a given that a person suffering from the disease will qualify for disability. Pursuing disability for Lyme disease can be challenging for a few reasons.
First, Lyme disease is typically treatable. That’s good news for a person who has been infected, but it also means that many people with the disease won’t meet the requirement that the disabling condition last or be expected to last for at least 12 months.
The second hurdle is that this disease is not listed in the Social Security Blue Book. While a Blue Book listing isn’t necessary to qualify for disability benefits, the SSA lays out clear criteria for each listed condition. When a condition isn’t listed, a more complicated process is applied.
An experienced disability benefits advocate can be your best resource for understanding what’s required to establish a claim for disability for this disease. The information below provides an overview of the disease and the requirements to qualify for SSD.
What is Lyme Disease?
“Lyme disease” is used to refer to two different conditions: Lyme disease and chronic Lyme disease. Both originate in the same way, usually from an infected tick. The initial infection generally starts with a rash, and may involve fever, headache and fatigue. People infected with this disease who are promptly treated with antibiotics typically make a full recovery.
This disease can be dangerous if left untreated, with the infection potentially advancing to the joints and heart. Though the condition is typically still treatable at later stages, the patient may not fully recover from the damage done by the infection.
Chronic Lyme Disease
Some people who have contracted Lyme disease and been properly treated with antibiotics still experience long-term symptoms. Symptoms may include fatigue, dizziness, body aches, sleep problems, memory problems, depression and anxiety.
Disability for the Disease
Someone who has long-term or chronic symptoms of Lyme disease may qualify for SSD. With no Blue Book listing, the SSA will have to assess the applicant’s residual functional capacity–the amount of work a person can still do even with their medical limitations. Then, the SSA will use grids with factors such as your age, past work experience, and educational level to determine whether there is still work you can do.
The diagnosis can also be sticky, since long-term effects of the disease often occur because a person wasn’t properly diagnosed at the time they were infected. Later, they may or may not still test positive for the disease.
An experienced SSD advocate can help you put together the strongest possible application for disability for Lyme disease, and help ensure that you provide the medical documentation the SSA will be looking for. To learn more, call Disability Help Group at 800-800-3332 or fill out our contact form here.
