According to the Internet Stroke Center, approximately 795,000 people in the United States experience a stroke each year. According to the CDC, 34% of stroke victims are younger than 65 years of age. If you’ve had a stroke before the age of retirement and are unable to work, you may be facing the difficulty of figuring out how to make ends meet. Does a stroke qualify for disability? The Social Security Administration (SSA) disability insurance programs, either one or both, may provide the solution you’re looking for. Disability benefits may be available if your stroke led to the development of additional medical conditions and/or a limitation in your ability to work, and the experts at KKB Law can help you apply for disability benefits.

When A Stroke May Cause Disability

A stroke can be caused by either a brain hemorrhage (hemorrhagic stroke) or a blocked blood vessel (ischemic stroke), both of which result in decreased blood supply to the brain and can cause damage. Speech, walking, and vision problems can all be various impacts of a stroke. Stroke patients commonly have muscular weakness, generally on one side of the body, as well as numbness and sensory loss. For some, the damage is temporary; for others, it is permanent. For some stroke sufferers, the lingering symptoms of the stroke make it impossible to return to work. In these cases, a stroke may qualify for disability benefits. 

Financial Impact of a Stroke

According to the CDC, “stroke-related costs in the United States came to nearly $46 billion between 2014 and 2015.” Medical treatments, health care services, prescription drugs and missed work hours for all impacted adults each year all go into this total. Diagnostic and early treatment costs, as well as long-term or permanent deficiencies, are all things to consider when it comes to your direct personal costs. Initial diagnosis and treatment expenses are influenced by the kind of stroke. In many cases, patients are simultaneously suffering from a variety of other ailments, such as heart disease, diabetes, or a traumatic brain injury.

Main Qualifying Factors for a Stroke

Similar to other types of disabling conditions, you may be eligible for Social Security disability benefits or Supplemental Security Income. SSDI may be available to you if you have worked and paid Social Security taxes for five of the previous 10 years. If you are under the age of 31, you may not be required to have worked for as long. The SSA will use a five-step process to determine eligibility, including asking questions like:

  • Are you currently working?
  • Is your condition severe?
  • Is your condition included in the Blue Book list of disabling conditions?
  • Can you do the work you did previously?
  • Can you do a different type of work?

Many people want to know “does a stroke qualify for disability” and there are three basic ways people qualify:

  • You meet or equal disability listing 11.04, Vascular insult to the brain
  • You meet another disability listing
  • You are not able to perform your past work or any other work based on your physical and mental limitations

Let The Law Offices of Karen Kraus Bill Help You Apply for Disability Benefits

Having a disability attorney by your side during the application process for Social Security disability benefits can increase your chances of being awarded benefits by ensuring that all deadlines are met, accurately and favorably completing the complex paperwork, and providing representation at a hearing. Reach out to one of our qualified disability attorneys today.