Many Kentuckians who have spent their lives working hard to make a living or who have suffered traumatic injuries know what chronic pain is. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) says about 21% of adults in the U.S. experience pain that occurs most days or every day.
If your chronic pain keeps you from working for a living, you may be able to claim Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. Social Security pays SSDI benefits to qualifying workers who can no longer work because they have a medical condition that is expected to last at least one year or result in death. However, the Social Security Administration says that statements about your pain alone are not enough to establish that you are disabled.
If you are disabled by chronic pain and have been denied SSDI benefits, the Social Security Disability attorneys at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer in Kentucky can help you appeal the decision. We can help you dig deeper into the causes of your disability and seek to overturn a denied SSDI claim.
Our attorneys are known for summoning Kentucky Courage when advocating for injured Kentuckians. We will handle your chronic pain claim with respect and dignity. Contact us today to schedule your free consultation about how we can seek the disability benefits you deserve by law.
How Does Social Security Define Disability?
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits are intended for workers with an established work history who have paid into the Social Security system for a number of years and then become disabled and unable to work before retirement age.
The Social Security Administration considers a worker to be disabled if:
- You cannot perform your old job, or your need for frequent breaks prevents you from performing essential job tasks.
- You cannot perform another type of work, or your skillset does not transfer to another job.
- Your disability prevents you from working for one year or is expected to be a terminal condition.
Is Chronic Pain a Disability?
The Social Security Administration uses two methods to determine whether an applicant for Social Security Disability benefits is disabled.
If an applicant’s condition matches the criteria outlined in the SSA’s Listing of Impairments, the applicant automatically qualifies for benefits. The Listing of Impairments describes impairments for each major body system that are considered severe enough to prevent an individual from maintaining any gainful employment. The Listing of Impairments is also known as “The Blue Book.”
Unfortunately, chronic pain is not listed in The Blue Book.
When an SSDI applicant’s medical condition cannot be matched to a Blue Book impairment, SSA examiners must decide whether it is of equal severity to a condition on the list. They must decide whether the applicant can perform their previous job or any other available job they are trained to do.
When the SSA evaluates medical symptoms, including pain, it considers an applicant’s statements about symptoms and any records or statements from medical or nonmedical sources that explain how the symptoms affect the applicant’s daily life and ability to work.
However, statements about severe pain or other symptoms alone will not establish that you are disabled. The Social Security Administration says there must be objective medical evidence from an acceptable medical source that shows you have an underlying medical condition that could “reasonably be expected to produce the pain or other symptoms and that … would lead to a conclusion that you are disabled.”
Put simply, you must have been diagnosed with a medical condition that causes continual; pain.
There are many medical conditions associated with chronic pain, including many that are in the Blue Book. They include:
- Cancer of various kinds
- Chronic headaches (migraines, cluster headaches, tension headaches)
- Chronic kidney disease
- Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS)
- Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD)
- Endometriosis
- Fibromyalgia
- Gout
- Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBS)
- Lower back and spinal injuries
- Lyme Disease
- Neuropathy
- Osteoarthritis
- Reflect Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD)
- Sciatica
Build a Strong SSDI Chronic Pain Claim in Kentucky
Do you have a diagnosis for a specific medical condition associated with chronic pain? Has your pain limited your daily activities and ability to perform your job duties on most days or every day during the past three months? If either of these are so, we may be able to help you file an appeal and seek disability benefits for chronic pain.
If you do not have a diagnosis of a medically determinable impairment, we can refer you to medical providers who understand chronic pain symptoms as well as the SSDI system and its eligibility requirements for chronic pain sufferers.
The first appeal of a denied disability application is a Request for Reconsideration, a review of your disability claim by someone who was not involved in the original decision. You are allowed to submit any new information or medical evidence to supplement your original application.
In addition to other information required by a benefits application, our knowledgeable SSDI lawyers would seek to ensure your file includes:
- Medical records documenting your diagnosis, treatment history, and limitations caused by your chronic pain and/or medical condition.
- Vocational rehabilitation records that indicate your residual functional capacity and inability to return to work.
- Documentation of your chronic pain conditions and how pain affects your ability to perform daily activities and work-related tasks.
If the SSA does not grant your disability benefits upon reconsideration, our experienced disability benefits attorneys can request a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge. We can represent you at the hearing and present testimony from medical professionals and evidence of your functional limitations caused by pain. The appeals hearing offers applicants the best opportunity to present their most persuasive case for disability benefits. Our attorneys will be representing you throughout the process.
If necessary, there are two more opportunities to appeal a faulty SSDI decision.
Contact a Social Security Disability Attorney in Kentucky
If you are suffering from disabling chronic pain and can no longer work, you should not have to do without the SSDI benefits you are qualified to receive. At Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, our Kentucky Social Security Disability attorneys can help you appeal a chronic pain claim denial and obtain the benefits you are due without undue delay.
Contact a Social Security Disability attorney in Kentucky today for a free consultation about obtaining benefits available to you.
