Claim Disability for Heart Failure in TX

Getting Financial Relief When You Can’t Work

You can claim disability for heart failure, but you need to show Social Security that you meet its high standards for awarding benefits.

This is rarely easy. The experienced Dallas disability lawyers of Morgan Weisbrod can help you show that your health issue qualifies as a disability because it makes it impossible to work and support yourself.

We know what the Social Security Administration (SSA) looks for in a disability claim for heart failure. We’ve been helping people win benefits that can return dignity and stability to their lives for more than 50 years.

This process is easier when you have help from people who know the system well.

You’re stressed about your finances. You may think you can’t afford a lawyer’s help, but there’s little financial risk to talking to our team.

The initial consultation is free and there’s no obligation. You won’t pay a fee until you win benefits.

We’re ready to help you with your heart failure disability claim.

When Does Heart Failure Qualify for Disability in Texas and Nationally?

You can’t claim disability benefits just because your symptoms are difficult. Heart failure only qualifies for disability if it stops you from working any job for 12 months or longer.

Social Security keeps a list of health impairments that can be eligible for financial assistance and ways of evaluating them. Heart failure is on that list.

A claims examiner will want to see one of two medical symptoms:

Systolic failure—when your heart doesn’t contract normally and expel enough blood due to weakness in the left ventricle
Diastolic failure—when your heart muscle fails to relax and fill with blood due to a thickened or stiff left ventricle

You then need to show that your heart failure results in one of the following:

Persistent symptoms that seriously limit your ability to independently complete day-to-day activities
Three or more separate episodes of acute congestive heart failure within a consecutive 12-month period that required hospitalization or ER treatment
An inability to perform on an exercise tolerance test at a workload equivalent to 5 METs (a measure of oxygen used during physical activity) or less

Social Security will also need to see that you’ve been prescribed treatments for your cardiovascular issues and that you’re sticking to these treatment plans.

When you’re applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), you also need to show that you have a history of working and paying into Social Security.

What happens if you haven’t worked enough to qualify for SSDI?

Then Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a need-based benefits program, could be an option.

Our Texas Social Security Disability lawyers can help you explore all your avenues if your heart failure symptoms stop you from working.

Get started with your FREE case evaluation.

What Do I Need for a Heart Failure Disability Claim?

A claims examiner won’t just award you benefits because you say your heart failure should qualify for SSDI benefits.

You need to back up your claim with objective evidence, including:

Your doctor’s diagnosis of your condition
Results of ejection fraction (EF) tests
Chest X-rays
Results of echocardiograms and electrocardiograms (ECG)
Blood work, like results from a BNP test
Hospitalization records
Information about any exercise tolerance or stress tests you’ve undergone
A record of which treatments you’ve tried and their effects
A list of prescription medications you’re taking
Your doctor’s assessment of your physical and mental limitations
Your doctor’s assessment of how stress can make your condition worse
Statements from friends, family members and coworkers who have witnessed your health struggles

The key is to have a medical history of your condition over time that you can show Social Security.

Social Security needs to see you’ve suffered from heart failure, you’ve worked with your doctors to treat it, and you still can’t work.

Our Texas disability attorneys can help you gather and organize all the evidence you need to make your SSD claim more convincing.

How Much Can You Get in a Heart Failure Disability Claim?

How much you can receive in disability benefits depends on a number of factors, including your past income, which benefits program you qualify for and if you’re receiving any other benefits.

The type of impairment you have, whether it’s heart failure or anything else, doesn’t change how much you receive.

Social Security Disability also doesn’t consider the severity of your impairment in calculating your monthly payments. You receive benefits or you don’t. There aren’t any levels of payment with SSD.

If you apply for SSDI benefits, Social Security will use up to 35 years of your past earnings to calculate your average indexed monthly earnings, or AIME.

Then it applies a formula to that AIME to calculate how much you should be paid each month.

You’ll receive a portion of what you made at work, not close to the full amount. But how much you made when you worked (not the nature of your medical condition) affects whether you receive more or less in disability benefits. Everybody’s amount is different.

If you apply for SSI benefits, the SSA starts you at a maximum payment that is the same for everyone and then deducts from that amount based on any income or other benefits you’re receiving, or other financial resources available to you.

Most years, Social Security increases what it pays in monthly disability benefits by granting a cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA).

Both benefits programs can also qualify you for medical coverage—Medicare for SSDI recipients (after a waiting period) and Medicaid for SSI recipients.

Everyone’s situation is different, but we can help you get a better understanding of how much you could receive in benefits once you’re approved.

Reach out to our Texas disability law firm now.

Do I Need a Disability Lawyer?

You’re not required to have a lawyer when you apply for Social Security Disability, but we recommend it.

And that’s not just because we’re lawyers. It’s because we’ve seen people get better results with lawyers, both in the cases we handle and others.

You’re going through a lot, and this application process is confusing and unforgiving. There’s no shame in asking for guidance.

Some firms will tell you to apply for disability benefits on your own and come back when you get denied, but we help you from the very first step.

Our Texas Social Security Disability lawyers can:

Help you fill out application forms
Identify evidence that can support your heart failure disability claim
Listen to your story and take the time to understand how heart failure limits your everyday life
Help you avoid making common mistakes that result in delays and denials
Answer any questions you may have during this process
Keep you updated on the status of your disability claim
Support your appeal if Social Security denies your initial claim
Represent you at a disability hearing in front of an administrative law judge (ALJ)
Cross-examine expert witnesses at your disability hearing
File your appeal with the Appeals Council or Federal District Court, if needed

Convincing Social Security that you qualify for SSDI benefits won’t be easy. You don’t want to leave your disability claim to just anybody.

Meet with the Morgan Weisbrod team and see why we’re one of the top disability firms in Texas measured by how much we win for our clients as seen in SSA data.

We’re ready to help you fight for the benefits you deserve.

Contact Us Today.