Your medical impairment must have lasted or must be expected to last 12 months or longer, or to result in death.
The requirements for obtaining Social Security disability can be confusing — to put it mildly. Even for people who are relatively well-versed in applying for benefits, the laws and regulations surrounding Social Security disability can be challenging. This is particularly true when it comes to one of the most misunderstood requirements for Social Security disability benefits: the duration requirement.
Under the Social Security Act and the various regulations interpreting it, to qualify for benefits, an applicant must prove (among other things) that he or she is suffering from a severe medical impairment that has lasted or is expected to last 12 months or longer — or that will result in death. As a seasoned Social Security disability lawyer can explain, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has interpreted this provision strictly, so that any application that does not meet this duration requirement will be denied.
First, it is important to understand how a disability is defined. A disability is the “inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.” Under this definition, any shorter-term disability, such as one that would allow a person to return to work in under a year, does not qualify as a disability for purposes of benefits. For example, if you had major surgery on your neck that required you to be out of work for a period of 6 to 8 months, there is no question that this would be a substantial impairment — but because the duration of your disability is not 12 months or longer, it does not qualify.
Of course, many people have more complicated health problems that are not simply resolved with one surgery. A person might need ongoing treatment that may leave him or her unable to work for periods of time — but able to return to work at other times. In some situations, those returns to work may be deemed unsuccessful. A skilled Social Security disability lawyer can assess the facts of your case and determine if you may be able to meet the duration requirement by establishing that you were not successful at returning to work.
Another issue that may arise is if a person develops a second impairment while out of work for a separate issue. For example, if the person having neck surgery has an unrelated stroke while recovering, and that stroke requires another 6 to 8 months off of work, he or she has now been out of work for more than 12 months. This would seem to meet the duration requirement of 12 months — yet the SSA will not combine two unrelated impairments to meet the test. If neither impairment is expected to last for 12 months and the impairments are not related (i.e., the stroke was not caused by the surgery), then the SSA will not find the person disabled by adding the two periods of disability to reach 12 months.
As demonstrated by these examples, the duration requirement is unexpectedly complex — particularly given the unusual health situations that often arise for people during their lives. That is why it is so important to have a knowledgable Social Security disability lawyer to represent you. Your attorney can work with you to determine if you meet the duration requirement, and make an argument to help your application be approved.
At PLBH, we work with our clients to help them obtain Social Security disability benefits. Contact us today at (800) 435-7542 or info@plblaw.com to schedule a consultation or learn more about how we can help you.