Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) provides money to people who cannot work due to a chronic condition.
While people can apply for SSDI with any illness or injury that limits their ability to earn an income, some conditions qualify for automatic coverage.
How do people qualify for SSDI?
To qualify for the resource, people must have worked a certain number of years based on their current age and paid FICA or SECA taxes to earn the minimum number of credits. Additionally, for an injury or illness to meet the qualifications of a disability, it must be terminal or prevent someone from working for over a year.
What ailments warrant expedited SSDI benefits?
While the range of disabilities covered by SSDI is broad, some qualify by diagnosis alone under the Compassionate Allowances program. People with specific afflictions may get their claims processed quickly instead of the usual months or years-long process. The following categories summarize the over 200 covered conditions that warrant expedited benefits:
- Autoimmune diseases – such as lupus and inflammatory arthritis
- Traumatic brain injuries – as a result of strokes, car crashes, combat and sports
- Cancers – specific metastasized, stage 4, rare or untreatable cancers
- Heart conditions – patients requiring a heart transplant or with congestive heart failure
- Rare diseases – such as Congenital Zika Syndrome or Angelman Syndrome
- Other unique conditions – for example, malignant multiple sclerosis
- Mental impairments – like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder
The Compassionate Allowances program provides immediate assistance to those who need it most. The Social Security Administration adds new covered disabilities yearly and encourages people to submit suggestions for rare and unrecognized medical conditions.