Heart Disease Disability Process
Heart Disease Disability Benefits Eligibility
Social Security Disability Heart Disease
Heart Disease benefits eligibility is primarily based on how your heart disease affects your ability to work. Social Security examines the “functional limitations” caused by your heart disease unless you meet one of the SSA impairment listings under cardiovascular disease.
Social Security medical listing 4.00 defines a cardiovascular impairment that results from one or more of four consequences of heart disease:
1.        Chronic heart failure or ventricular dysfunction.
2.        Discomfort or pain due to myocardial ischemia, with or without                                necrosis of heart muscle.
3.        Syncope, or near syncope, due to inadequate cerebral perfusion                            from any cardiac cause, such as obstruction of flow or disturbance                             in rhythm or conduction resulting in inadequate cardiac output.
4.        Central cyanosis due to right-to-left shunt, reduced oxygen                                     concentration in the arterial blood, or pulmonary vascular disease.
Heart Disease Disability Evaluation Process – 5 questions
- Are you working?
If you are working in 2007 and your earnings average more than $900 a   month, you generally cannot be considered disabled.
If you are working in 2008 and your earnings average more than $940 a month, you generally cannot be considered disabled.
If you are not working because of heart disease, we go to Step 2.
- 2. Is your condition “severe”?
Your heart disease must interfere with basic work-related activities for       your claim to be considered. If it does not, we will find that you are not            disabled. If your condition does interfere with basic work-related      activities, we go to Step 3.
- 3. Is your condition found in the list of disabling conditions?
For each of the major body systems, we maintain a list of medical   conditions that are so severe they automatically mean that you are     disabled. If Social Security decides that your heart disease meets one    of the impairment listings it is presumed that you cannot function well       enough to do any type of substantial work.
Examples of heart disease disorders that appear on the list include:           chronic heart failure, ischemic heart disease and aneurysm. If your heart   disease condition is not on the list, we have to decide if it is of equal         severity to a medical condition that is on the list. If it is, we will find that      you are disabled. If it is not, we then go to Step 4.
- 4. Can you do the work you did previously?
If your heart disease is severe but not at the same or equal level of severity as a medical condition on the list, then we must determine if the          heart disease interferes with your ability to do the work you did previously. If it does not, your claim will be denied. If it does, we proceed to Step 5.
- 5. Can you do any other type of work?
If you cannot do the work you did in the past, we see if you are able to      adjust to other work. We consider your medical conditions and your age,          education, past work experience and any transferable skills you may have.            If you cannot adjust to other work, your claim will be approved. If you can         adjust to other work, your claim will be denied.
Fields Law heart disease disability attorneys will assist you in the disability process for your heart disease disability. If you are unable to work because of heart disease we can help you apply for social security benefits. If you have been denied disability benefits we can appeal your case.
We offer a Free case review. Our Minnesota disability lawyers understand how frustrating it is to have heart disease and be denied disability benefits when you are unable to work. There are never any fees unless we win your disability case.