Does Parkinson’s Disease Qualify for Disability in Wisconsin?

When Does Social Security Consider Parkinson’s Disease a Disability?

Social Security has a specific entry for “Parkinsonian syndrome” in its listing of impairments that qualify for disability benefits. This is a broader term for a family of neurological ailments with symptoms like tremors and slowed movement.

The listing says the Social Security Administration (SSA) is looking for one of two symptoms when it evaluates your Parkinson’s disease disability claim:

1. Disorganization of motor function in two extremities, resulting in an extreme limitation in your ability to stand up, use your upper extremities or keep your balance while standing or walking.

2. A serious limitation in physical functioning and one of the following:
   1. Understanding, remembering or using information
   2. Collaborating with others at work
   3. Concentrating, persisting or keeping pace with tasks
   4. Handling stress and adapting to changes in a work setting

A claims examiner will want to see that even with treatment for your symptoms, you still suffer from these issues.

If you’ve tried to manage your health and you still can’t work, you could be awarded disability benefits.

It’s also possible to qualify for benefits if you don’t meet these exact standards. To do it, you need to understand a measurement known as residual functional capacity (RFC).

Your RFC is the physical and mental capability you possess despite the limitations imposed on you by your medical condition.

Social Security divides work into five different categories for your RFC. In order of least to most strenuous, they are sedentary, light, medium, heavy and very heavy work.

Social Security wants answers about your capabilities. Can you sit, stand or walk? Can you lift and carry objects? Can you bend or crouch?

Your mental capacity matters, too. A claims examiner wants to know if you can stick with tasks until they’re done, effectively communicate with coworkers, supervisors or customers, and manage your own emotions on the job.

If you did highly physical work before, classified as heavy or very heavy work, Social Security might accept that your health condition stops you from continuing in that.

The problem is that the SSA could determine that you’re capable of less strenuous work. If you’re given a sedentary or light RFC because a claims examiner thinks you can do a desk job, you’ll likely be denied disability benefits.

You need to show that your Parkinson’s rules out even less mentally and physically taxing jobs.

If you want to know more about how you can qualify, a Wisconsin disability attorney can help.

Start with a FREE case evaluation. 

What Evidence Do I Need for a Parkinson’s Disease Disability Claim?

Even if you think it’s clear that symptoms like tremors, muscle stiffness and difficulty communicating make it obvious that you should qualify for disability benefits, Social Security won’t decide based on your word alone.

When you apply for disability, you’ll need to back up your Parkinson’s disease disability claim with objective evidence.

Much of this will come from doctors and other health care professionals you see, including:

• Your diagnosis itself
• Treatment records
• Prescription medications you’re taking to calm symptoms, their dosages and side effects
• A record of how your condition has progressed over time
• Your doctor’s assessment of your everyday functioning
• Evidence that your symptoms caused disruptions at work, like missed days and a need for extra breaks

You can also support your claim with statements from friends, family members and coworkers who have witnessed how your symptoms have affected you.

It takes time and energy to gather all of this. You may have years of medical records to go through. You’ve possibly seen multiple doctors for this condition.

An Appleton Social Security Disability lawyer can identify evidence that will help you win disability benefits for Parkinson’s disease and help you organize everything you need to make a strong case to the SSA.