Can I Get Disability for Depression?
You can get disability for depression, or almost anything else, if a qualified medical condition keeps you from working. Contrary to popular myth, Social Security Disability is not limited to “physical” conditions, such as a bad knee, a bad back, or cancer. Mental conditions, like anxiety, depression, and PTSD, can be just as disabling as any “physical” condition, if not more so.
Disability benefits are available for depression, but the Social Security Administration does not give these benefits away like toys at Christmas. Instead, a Tampa Social Security Disability lawyer must carefully build a case, file the correct paperwork in the correct way, and tirelessly advocate for applicants. Only then can disabling depression victims get the medical and other benefits they need.
Five-Part Disability Test
As a preliminary matter, all applicants must have a sufficient number of work credits to be eligible for disability benefits. The 20/40 rule applies in most situations. Applicants must have at least forty work credits, twenty of which must have been earned in the last ten years. Most full-time workers get four credits a year. Different rules apply for minors and young adult applicants.
Next, all Social Security Disability applications, for disability or anything else, must pass muster under the SSA’s five-part disability test, which is:
- Not Working: Under the complex SSA rules, applicants can be working but not working. Let us explain. “Working” means earning more than $1,620 ($2,700 if you’re blind) a month.
- Severe Condition: The applicant’s depression or other medical condition must significantly limit your ability to do basic work-related activities, such as lifting, standing, walking, sitting, or remembering, for at least 12 consecutive months. Or, the condition must be terminal.
- Listed Condition: Presumptively disabling conditions are listed in the Social Security Blue Book. If the applicant has a non-listed condition, a Tampa Social Security Disability lawyer must prove the condition is substantially similar to a listed condition.
- Able to Do Previous Work: The applicant’s medical impairment(s) must make it unable to perform any past work. Sally’s depression might make it impossible to be a construction supervisor, but she might be able to do ordinary construction work.
- Able to Work At All: The SSA considers your medical conditions, age, education, past work experience, and any transferable skills you may have. Other factors include the employment market at the time and the ability to earn enough to support a household.
The claims denial rate is very high at initial reviews. So, to obtain maximum benefits, a Tampa Social Security Disability lawyer must normally appeal these matters to an administrative law judge.
Special Issues in Depression Applications
Inaccurate medical examinations and disputes over the disability onset date may be the most common issues in depression applications.
Many SSA doctors focus on the aforementioned “physical” disabilities. So, they’re very adept at determining range of motion and other such issues. But they aren’t familiar with mental disabilities, such as depression. So, the results of these examinations may be inaccurate.
The disability onset date is usually much different from the application date. Typically, people struggling with debilitating depression keep working as long as possible. So, the onset date may be several months, or even several years, before the application date. This issue is significant because the disability onset date usually determines the amount of back pay in these cases.
Connect With a Savvy Hillsborough County Lawyer
Injury victims are entitled to important financial benefits. For a confidential consultation with an experienced Social Security Disability lawyer in Tampa, contact Kobal Law. The sooner you reach out to us, the sooner we start working for you.
Source:
usa.gov/benefit-finder/disability
