Does Social Security Consider Asthma a Disability?

Disability Benefits Can Reduce Your Stress

Asthma symptoms are painful and disruptive, but can they qualify you for Social Security Disability benefits in Texas and nationally?

The answer is yes, but only if you can show that your asthma is severe enough to stop you from working any job for 12 months or longer.

It’s tricky to make this case on your own. Let the Dallas disability lawyers at Morgan Weisbrod help with your asthma disability claim.

Getting approved for disability benefits is a fight. Asthma disability claims present additional challenges.

More than 28 million Americans have asthma according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Many of them can work. But Social Security will want proof of why you cannot work.

Our disability attorneys help you show how your situation warrants financial assistance, making it clear how your asthma attacks and other symptoms severely interfere with your life.

Morgan Weisbrod is one of the top disability firms in Texas measured by how much we win in benefits for our clients as reported by Social Security.

We know the Social Security Disability system thoroughly because we only handle disability cases. We’ll assist you with your asthma disability claim from the very first steps.

No matter how long this process takes, you don’t pay an attorney’s fee until you win benefits.

Is Asthma Included in Social Security’s List of Qualifying Impairments?

Social Security’s general definition of disability is important, but if you’re trying to receive benefits for asthma, you should know about their specific criteria for these kinds of disability claims.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) keeps a list of impairments, which gives details on how it determines whether each health problem should qualify for disability benefits.

Asthma is included here, under the listing “Respiratory Disorders – Adult.”

When a claims examiner looks at your asthma disability claim, they’ll want to see two things:

Breathing test results: A Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1) from a spirometry test less than or equal to a specific threshold set by Social Security based on your height, age and sex.

Need for medical intervention: You experienced complications from asthma requiring three hospitalizations within a 12-month period and at least 30 days apart, with each stay lasting at least 48 hours.

Your breathing test results also should be within 12 months of a hospitalization. And when you get your test, it should not be close after you had a medication change or a respiratory infection.

But if you don’t meet these requirements exactly, it doesn’t mean you can’t qualify for benefits.

You can still claim disability for asthma if you show that your individual symptoms are debilitating enough to interfere with your work.

Asthma can obviously make it impossible to do heavy physical work. But the disease can also impose mental stress that undercuts your ability to concentrate on work tasks.

Trouble breathing and chest pain can trigger serious anxiety. Maybe your symptoms interfere with sleep, meaning that you’re always exhausted during the day.

It’s important to be clear about exactly how asthma affects your daily routine and your ability to work and support yourself.

Our Dallas Social Security Disability lawyers can help you seek financial relief.

Get a FREE asthma disability claim evaluation.

What Evidence Do I Need for an Asthma Disability Claim in Texas?

No matter how well you describe your symptoms and how they derail your ability to work, the SSA won’t take your word for it without supporting evidence.

The more medical evidence you have when you apply for disability benefits, the better.

We’re talking about these kinds of evidence:

The diagnosis from your doctor
Spirometry results measuring your FEV1 and Forced Vital Capacity (FVC)
Results from lung diffusion testing (DLCO)
Medical imaging results
Blood test results
Records of treatments you’ve tried, like inhalers, corticosteroids, nebulizer treatments and intravenous bronchodilators
Evidence that you’ve stuck to prescribed treatment methods and that attacks still happen
Records relating to asthma attacks that were severe enough to seek medical help
Information about what kinds of factors (weather, emotional distress, physical exertion, air pollution) can trigger attacks
Evidence of disruptions to your work, like frequent missed days
Statements from friends, family members, neighbors and anyone else who has seen how your asthma symptoms affect you

Our Dallas Social Security Disability attorneys can help you identify the evidence that strengthens your claim. We’ll make sure you’re not leaving out anything important.

What Should I Do If My Asthma Disability Claim Gets Denied?

Around 60% to 65% of people who apply for disability benefits in Texas get denied on their initial applications according to SSA state data.

It’s always tough to win benefits, but it can be even more difficult to get approved for a health issue like asthma that isn’t traditionally thought of as a “disability.”

You should be prepared for what happens when you get denied disability benefits. Follow these steps:

Step #1: Be aware of the SSA’s deadline.

Social Security only gives you 60 days to respond after a denial. Wait too long and you may need to start the process over again.

The same applies at every stage of appeals. If you get denied again at reconsideration (the first level of appeal), you again have 60 days to respond and ask for a disability hearing.

Step #2: Review your rejection letter.

Your denial letter should give you a reason why your claim was denied.

Maybe you lacked medical evidence or didn’t give enough information about your work history. It’s also possible that Social Security just didn’t think your health problem was serious enough.

Sometimes their explanation isn’t extremely helpful. A disability lawyer can do more digging to identify what might have held back your claim. Knowing why you were denied Social Security Disability benefits helps you make your claim stronger on appeal.

Step #3: Update your medical evidence.

If you recently experienced new symptoms, had a change in severity of your symptoms, got new test results, started a new treatment regimen or have any other updates to your medical situation, make sure that all of this is included in your file when you appeal.

Step #4: Consult a Dallas Social Security Disability lawyer.

You’re not required to use an attorney to appeal a denied disability claim, but it’s hard to recommend trying to appeal on your own.

Appeals are complicated, and they get more complex as they go on. Each phase is almost guaranteed to add months of waiting time to this process.

The Texas disability lawyers of Morgan Weisbrod are ready to guide you.

We can help you interpret your denial letter, identify additional evidence that can support your claim and stay aware of Social Security’s tight deadlines, so you don’t need to start this process over.

We’ll let you know what to expect from a disability hearing, so you can walk in prepared to tell your story.

If you need to go to higher levels of appeal, like Social Security Appeals Council review and federal court, our team can assist you with that, too.

The SSA’s standards are high, but we’ll do everything we can to help make it clear that your asthma qualifies you for disability benefits.

We’ve helped thousands of people in Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, Irving, Plano, Garland, Tyler and across the state of Texas win disability benefits that made an enormous difference in their lives.

Reclaim your financial stability and independence.

Talk to Us.