Massachusetts Social Security Disability Lawyers Blog

A new drug that would ease the pain symptoms of sickle-cell anemia sufferers has been moved to Phase II clinical testing trials by a team of researchers – some from the Dana-Faber/Children’s Hospital Cancer Center in Boston – with an $11 million federal grant from the National Institutes of Health.

Our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance lawyers understand that the research involves experimentation with a drug called Lexiscan, which is already in use for the diagnosis of heart disease. What researchers are attempting to figure out is whether the anti-inflammatory properties of the drug could help to significantly decrease the pain and blood flow disturbances experienced by those with sickle-cell anemia.

Recruitment efforts for the latest phase of clinical trials is underway in eight major U.S. cities – including Boston. Earlier results suggested that the drug could reduce pain and tissue damage associated with sickle-cell, without any significant side effects.

Still, researchers say they are cautiously optimistic.

Sickle-cell disease is one in which normal, round blood cells are altered into the shape of crescent moons. Normally, blood cells would move easily throughout the blood stream. But sickled cells get clogged in the vessels, causing blockages and stopping oxygen from getting through. In addition to being excruciatingly painful, it can cause harm to major organs, bones and muscles.

Those born with this genetic condition, mostly African Americans, face a life-long battle that will include infections, stroke and anemia. That doesn’t mean patients can’t have a good quality of life, but it also means that many times, they may qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits.

Sickle-Cell Disease is listed in Section 7.05 of the Social Security blue book. However, a diagnosis alone is not enough. In order to meet the required listing, a person must have at least one of the following:

• Documented painful crises or blood clots that have occurred at least three times in the last five months;
• Extended hospitalization that extended beyond emergency care at least three times in the last year;
• Severe, chronic anemia accompanied by a persistence of hematocrit of 26 percent or less;
• A resulting impairment (such as congestive heart failure, kidney problems, vision problems or stroke) that can be evaluated per its own SSDI listing.

However, even if you don’t meet these specific criteria, you might still be able to secure SSDI benefits for your sickle-cell anemia if it’s determined that you can not work because of the symptoms of your condition. Determining this will involve a Residual Functional Capacity assessment, conducted by SSA reviewers.

Some of the functions that will be tested will likely include:

• Your limitations for strenuous exertion and exposure to cold;
• Your level of constant pain and fatigue;
• Your constant bouts of shortness of breath;
• Your pain levels that could affect your ability to maintain concentration or carry out physical tasks;
• Your vision levels that could limit your ability to carry out most kinds of work.

Any kind of treatment, hospitalization, medications or averse affects from your sickle-cell should be meticulously documented for as long as possible prior to your application of benefits.

If you think you might be to the point of considering seeking SSDI benefits for your sickle-cell anemia, contact an experienced Boston disability lawyer who can help you determine whether you have a strong case and what your next step should be.
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The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has come under heavy scrutiny in recent months for its sizable backlog of disability claims, stemming from an increase in disabilities claimed by returning servicemen and servicewomen from overseas duty.

Our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance attorneys understand that the agency has made an aggressive effort in the last month to clear some of those oldest claims, with about 70 percent, or 611,000, more than 125 days old. Some of the oldest have been pending for more than two years.

With a veteran’s disability claim, the VA will provide compensation to an individual who suffered an injury or disabling condition during his or her time in active military service. Some of the most common disabling conditions among veterans include post-traumatic stress disorder (or PTSD), brain injuries and musculoskeletal injuries.

By contrast, the federal SSDI program is available to all U.S. citizens, regardless of their military service. Typically, it’s available regardless of whether the injury or condition occurred while on-the-job. However, in order to qualify for an expedited claim, a military member or veteran has to show the condition began while on-duty. He or she need no longer be an active military member to qualify.

The key point that must be proven is that the condition is severe to the point that it prevents the sufferer from working for at least one year.

There are a number of conditions for which military veterans could obtain disability benefits from both the VA and the Social Security Administration.There is nothing barring a veteran from collecting both.

In fact, a veteran’s claim for SSDI benefits may actually be fast-tracked. It’s called the Wounded Warriors program. It’s available for military service members who became disabled while on active military service either on or after Oct. 1, 2001 – regardless of where the disability occurred.

Service members of all branches of the military are eligible for expedited claims. These include:

• Service members who were on full-time duty in the U.S. Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marine Corps or Navy;
• Service members who were on active duty for training purposes at any of the aforementioned branches;
• Students in U.S. Military academies, including the U.S. War College, West Point or the Naval Academy;
• Students at pre-deployment training centers;
• Air Force or Army National Guard members who were ordered to active full-time duty pursuant to a presidential order during a time of national emergency or war;
• Reservists who were called to active duty;
• Reservists who were undergoing annual training or full-time training;
• Reservists who were attending a school designated as a Military Service School.

Military veterans would be wise to apprise themselves of this opportunity, as claim expedition is only extended to others who can prove dire need (an inability to afford food, medical care and shelter without it) or in cases of terminal or severe illness in Compassionate Allowance claims.

An expedited claim doesn’t mean you’re necessarily guaranteed benefits. You’ll still have to prove your disability per the stringent standards outlined by the SSA. Having an attorney to help you can exponentially improve your chances.

What an expedited claim does mean, however, is that you won’t have to wait years to get a decision. If your initial application is denied, you can quickly move onto the next phase of a hearing before an administrative law judge.

An award of VA benefits won’t automatically result in SSDI benefits, or visa versa, so it’s important to secure separate legal representation when applying for SSDI.
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Earlier this month, A-list Actor Michael Douglas confessed that his struggles with Stage IV throat cancer were caused not by years of drinking and smoking, as many had suspected, but rather as a result of his contraction of the sexually-transmitted human papillomavirus (or HPV).

The revelation has resulted in a wave of sensationalized media coverage, but also in a healthy dose of discussion about this condition and the devastating effects it can have. Not everyone with an HPV diagnosis has access to the high level of medical care and treatment as a well-paid Hollywood actor.

Thankfully, our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance lawyers know, not everyone with an HPV diagnosis will need it. Many go through life never even knowing they have it, and suffer no ill effects whatsoever. In the vast majority of cases, the body’s own immune system will clear out the infection entirely over the course of two years.

HPV is the most common sexually-transmitted infection, and there are more than 40 types that can affect both males and females, resulting in infections of the genitals and also of the mouth and throat.

This can result in uncomfortable – but non-life-threatening – conditions such as genital warts. However, it can also result in potentially fatal forms of cancer. In fact, of the 16 million Americans (about 7 percent of the population) with oral HPV, about 15,000 will develop a cancer.

Mainly, cervical cancers are cited, though mouth and throat cancers, like Douglas’s, as well as other types of genital cancers have also been known to occur. While the warts appear typically rather soon after infection, cancer can take many years, even decades, after exposure to develop.

Because of the wide range of potential outcomes of HPV, a diagnosis alone will not be enough to secure disability benefit from the federal government. This is why you won’t find a Social Security blue book listing for HPV that spells out benefit approval for the condition.

However, that does not mean someone with HPV will be denied benefits. It’s just that the determination of benefits will be made based on the resulting condition, rather than the underlying cause.

So for example, if you develop cervical cancer as a result of HPV, your SSDI claim would focus on the cancer, rather than the HPV that caused it.

Almost all cases of cervical cancer – about 12,000 new cases diagnosed each year – are caused by HPV.

The 2013 Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer indicated that the instances of HPV-induced oropharyngeal cancers in both men and women spiked to about 13,000 in 2009, with the vast majority of those individuals being men. The National Cancer Institute reports that about 60 percent of all oropharyngeal cancers can be traced to HPV. There has been a nearly 30 percent rise in oropharyngeal cancer diagnoses since 1988.

Many of those who receive these diagnosis are still of working age, between 40 and 65.

Those with esophageal cancer will find their condition listed under Section 13.16 of the disability blue book listings, and, in some extreme cases, may even qualify for a Compassionate Allowance listing that could result in their case being rapidly expedited.
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The latest report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has been released, presenting labor force characteristics for persons with disabilities and revealing unique challenges for those who suffer from disabling conditions.

Of course, our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance Attorneys recognize that these figures reflect all disabled persons, some of whom retain the ability to work in spite of their condition. Many of them, however, are not able to continue working, particularly as the condition may worsen over time with age.

Even for those who have the physical ability to continue working, finding a job can be tough.

The BLS reports that last year, only 18 percent of individuals with a disability were employed full-time. That’s compared to about 64 percent of those without a disability. Of course, the job market in the past couple of years has been rough for everyone. However, while the employment-population ratio for those with disabilities was unchanged year over year from 2011 to 2012, it increased for those without a disability.

What’s more, the unemployment rate for persons with disabilities was almost double what it was for those without disabilities. The unemployment rate is measured in terms of how many people are actively looking for work versus how many are currently working. The jobless rate for disabled workers in 2012 was 13.4 percent. For individuals with no disability, it was 7.9 percent.

These figures go to the heart of the argument that disabled workers are somehow milking the system by turning to SSDI. The stereotype is that somehow, disabled people can work and they simply are too lazy to do so. In many cases, disabled workers have tried for years to find alternative employment options, with employers repeatedly denying opportunities. Meanwhile, their conditions worsen and their health deteriorates, making them an even less desirable candidate. Eventually, they may reach the point where they are simply no longer able to continue working.

The standards one must meet in order to qualify for federal disability benefits are stringent. They are by no means a given, and in all but the most extreme circumstances, one should expect to be turned down at least in the initial application process. Odds of securing benefits are substantially boosted with the aid of an experienced disability lawyer.

The latest BLS data just goes to further show how so many people find themselves impoverished before they even begin to ponder applying for benefits. The data was collected as part of the agency’s Current Population Survey, which is a monthly study of about 60,000 U.S. households.

Last year, some 33 percent of workers with a disability were only employed part-time. That’s compared to 19 percent of workers with no disability.

Interestingly, individuals with a disability were more likely to be self-employed than those with no disability. Again, this data strikes at the heart of the erroneous theory that those with disabilities are lazy. In fact, when no opportunities are offered, these individuals are taking steps to forge their own opportunities, when possible.

Survey results indicate that persons with no disability tend to be older, which is no surprise given that the incidence of disability grows with age. In fact, more than 45 percent of the disabled population last year was over the age of 65. That’s compared with 13 percent of the population with no disability.

Women were slightly more likely to have a disability than men, reflecting in part the higher life expectancies of women. Among the different ethnic groups, black Americans had higher rates of disability than their white, Asian or Hispanic counterparts.
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The Department of Veterans Affairs has issued a new report indicating it is now spending about $1.2 billion for disability claims regarding and treatment of sleep apnea among veterans.

The number of veterans and military retirees receiving disability compensation for this condition was about 115,000 last year – which was nearly double what it was in 2009.

Our Boston Social Security disability attorneys understand that part of this is a function of the fact that there are simply more veterans and military retirees today than there were even a few years ago. We’ve been embroiled in two major wars and numerous conflicts and we’ve sent our soldiers to dangerous and traumatic battlegrounds. Modern medicine means many more are returning than in other previous periods of history – which is great news. But it also means many more are suffering disabilities, sleep apnea among them.

It’s a similar situation to what we see with federal disability claims on Social Security: there have simply been more workers, people are getting older and workplace safety protections aren’t as improved as they should be.

In the same way that pundits have grossly overstated the levels of fraud and abuse in the public sector disability claims, similar arguments have arisen with regard to sleep apnea disability claims for military veterans.

The truth of the matter is that sleep apnea is a very serious condition that can result in severe fatigue, lack of concentration, high blood pressure, heart failure, depression, diabetes and even death. It’s characterized as a serious sleeping disorder in which a person’s breathing is interrupted multiple times when he or she is asleep. A person who goes untreated can stop breathing over and over again throughout the night – sometimes hundreds of times. This results in the person’s brain and body being chronically starved for oxygen.

Even knowing this, the SSA will not automatically grant benefits to someone diagnosed with sleep apnea. One has to prove that the condition is severe enough to have significantly impacted the functions of every day living and that medical interventions have been largely ineffective.

Those individuals who are the most at-risk are men who are overweight, have thick, short necks and are between the ages of 30 to 60. It’s believed that men in the aforementioned age group suffer from the condition at a rate of 10 to 25 percent.

Part of the reason we may be seeing more claims of it recently in the military is that is becoming a more highly recognized condition. Someone who years ago may not have known what was causing their extreme tiredness or depression now may have an answer. Better yet, they may be able to receive treatment.

Such treatments might include use of a nighttime breathing mask, which can often help to alleviate some of the worst symptoms.

However, in some cases, sleep apnea has proved resistant to these interventions. The result of months or years of not properly breathing during sleep will inevitably begin to wear on a person’s body and mind and could most definitely result in that person meeting the qualifications for disability benefits.

If sleep apnea or some combination of conditions including sleep apnea has resulted in your inability to function at work, call us today to see how we can help.
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June is National Safety Month, and the National Safety Council initiated a four-week campaign focusing on:

• Prevention of slips, trips and falls;
• Employee wellness;
• Emergency preparedness;
• Ergonomics.

Additional information was provided on driving safety and summer safety.

Our Boston Social Security disability attorneys know that not all workplace accidents will result in serious or lifelong disabilities that will qualify you for federal benefits. However, some undoubtedly will.

You benefit by choosing representation from a law firm that also has experience with workers compensation claims. We can help you determine whether your condition qualifies for one or the other, and to which you might have the most success applying. While you can technically collect both, your workers’ compensation benefits could end up affecting what you are paid by the Social Security Administration, so it helps to have an adviser who is highly knowledgeable on the subject.

Because we also are experienced with personal injury claims, it may be that you file for SSDI alongside civil litigation against your employer or the company that caused you to suffer this debilitating injury.

The federal government’s definition of disability is a very strict one. At the risk of oversimplifying, it basically means that you have been unable to work for at least a year or you are expected to be unable to work for at least that long. Of course, sometimes the interpretations are subjective, and this is why having strong legal representation is important.

In order to qualify for federal benefits, you don’t have to prove that your injury or illness happened on the job. But many of those who apply have a disability that stems from workplace exposure to some hazard.

A recent report released by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO and MassCOSH, entitled, “Dying to Work in Massachusetts,” detailed some of the more hazardous occupations in the state over the last year. Conservative estimates are that about 50,000 workers were serious injured last year, with about 1,800 newly diagnosed with cancers caused by workplace exposures. Again, not all of those 50,000 are going to qualify for federal benefits, but depending on the severity of their injury, they might.

What primarily causes these serious injuries and illnesses? Among the top injuries and illnesses in the state:

• Tree working accidents;
• Construction industry falls;
• Exposure to asbestos resulting in mesothelioma;
• Occupational asthma;
• Fishing industry accidents.

It doesn’t help that the Occupational Safety & Health Administration is sorely underfunded and understaffed and that fines for workplace violations are abysmal. Even workplace violations that result in death were, on average in Massachusetts, only about $9,500. It’s cheaper to violate federal regulations and then pay later than to simply comply.

Of course, it’s not cheaper for the workers who suffer life-altering injuries. That’s where we can help.
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More and more, we continue to hear about the effects of Social Security Administration field office closures, particularly on wait times for Social Security Disability Insurance claims.

Our Boston Social Security disability lawyers know that office closures and office hour reductions are the result of cost-saving measures implemented by the administration. The agency is operating with about $250 million less this year than what it had requested of Congress, according to figures from the Internal Revenue Service.

Obama had signed off on a stop-gap measure that aided the agency through the end of March, but since then, people are learning – sometimes abruptly – that their local field offices have been shuttered.

Recently in North Philadelphia, there was no warning that the SSA’s field office would close. People just showed up one morning and the office never opened. They were later directed to the downtown location, where the Philadelphia Inquirer reported there hundreds were waiting and staffers were clearly overwhelmed.

In other cases, many SSA offices were forced to close a half hour earlier than they normally would, in an effort to reduce employee overtime. That’s a story that’s been echoed in field offices across the country.

In all, the agency expects to initiate a hiring freeze, alongside the loss of some 3,500 positions nationwide. A total of 19 field offices were closed during the last fiscal year. One of those was the Greenfield location, just outside of Boston. Since fiscal year 2010, the agency has consolidated more than 40 field offices and closed nearly 500 contact stations, according to the administration.

All this has hoisted additional burdens on those who are disabled or are trying to prove their disability with the agency. The agency was already suffering from severe backlog as it was.

A report by USA Today at the end of last year says that average wait times vary from 10 months to two years, depending on the region, with about 750,000 applications pending at any given time. That figure continues to climb as the number of applicants arise with the aging of the baby boomers, who are at the prime age for disability claims.

Shrinking the number of offices capable of processing those requests or the hours worked at those offices that remain open will inevitably result in even longer wait times and cases that become even more bogged down in bureaucracy.

The government is still invested in ensuring that claimants aren’t gaming the system, so the process to gain approval remains complex and cumbersome. Most people are denied outright with their first application.

With the additional burdens placed on the system, it has become all but impossible to make a successful SSDI claim without a good attorney. Even people with disabilities or qualifying conditions that seem fairly straightforward are vulnerable to denial if all the t’s aren’t crossed and the i’s aren’t dotted.

We don’t anticipate the fiscal woes of the agency subsiding anytime soon. Call us to learn more about how we can help assist you with your claim. The process can immeasurably less stressful when you aren’t the one directly dealing with that bureaucracy.
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The Social Security Trustees just released the 2013 annual report.

Our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance Attorneys know that this report is likely to get a great deal of attention from the media and both sides of the political aisle. Pundits and advocates from all sides will be attempting to bend the results to fit their own version of the truth, so it’s going to be important for those with disabling conditions to be able to cut through the hype.

First of all, one of the primary points of the report is that despite the extensive criticism that the Social Security Disability Insurance program has received for its recent growth, it has basically operated quite well for people with disabilities and their families. It has allowed them to stay afloat financially when they otherwise would have been unable to do so. In this way, the government has been able to significantly reduce the number of people living in poverty and reliant on other more extensive government support systems.

The report also shows that the Social Security System overall can continue to pay all benefits – including those for old age, survivors and disability – for at least the next 20 years. If modest adjustments were made, the report indicates, these benefits could be available for many more generations.

In fact, Social Security is going to be fully solvent until at least 2033. Last year, the agency raked in nearly $55 billion more than it paid out. The reserves are somewhere in the neighborhood of $2.7 trillion right now, and in the next eight years, it’s expected to expand to about $3 trillion.

If Congress did nothing at this point, we would have to start drawing from those reserves in several decades, while the revenue would cover about 77 percent of the overall benefits.

The one exception to this is the Disability Insurance trust fund. On its own, it’s fully solvent until 2016. After this point, the trust would be able to pay about 80 percent of its benefits.

If Congress were to reallocate funds between payroll taxes and the Social Security trust funds, it wouldn’t be an unprecedented move. This has been done to address anticipated shortfalls in the past. In fact, it’s been done almost a dozen times. The association’s chief actuary recently testified that a modest reallocation sometime in the next three years would allow the SSDI program to pay full benefits through 2033, without affecting the other programs.

This kind of a shift should not be controversial, as the report points out that studies consistently show that we as Americans believe the Social Security Disability Insurance system, and are willing to pay for it. Many even believe strongly in expanding it.

The report also points to the fact that we’ve long known that disability rolls were going to be on the rise at this point. Baby boomers are at their peak disability years, people are living longer with disabilities, there has been an overall growth in population and more women entered the workforce in the 1970s and 1980s. All of this has contributed to the increase. As has the fact that Social Security’s full retirement age was upped from 65 to 66. That means people are being paid disability for longer periods before they are ultimately switched over to retirement benefits.

What’s important to note is that this increase isn’t expected to continue unabated. In fact, it’s already beginning to level off as more baby boomers retire.
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June is men’s health month.

As such, our Boston Social Security Disability Insurance Lawyers wanted to take the time to offer some insight into the top health concerns for men, some of which can be considered disabling conditions.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women are far more likely to die of old age than men, who usually succumb to some other conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, injury or stroke.

Men should consider that they are not the only ones affected by this, according to the Men’s Health Network. Because many women enter retirement as widows, many are also living in or hovering just above poverty. In Massachusetts, the ratio of men-to-women at retirement age was 84-to-100, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

This should motivate men to do two things:

1. Take better care of our health;
2. Secure Social Security disability insurance benefits, which allows for survivor benefits of up to 75 percent in the event you pass away.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has kicked off its Men’s Health Month awareness campaign with the slogan: Man Up. Take Control of Your Health.

The top causes of death and disability for men are heart disease, cancer and unintentional injuries. For the first two, the sooner your doctor can diagnose you the better your outcome. So frequent upkeep of check-ups and preventative screenings are important.

Prevention of unintentional injuries involves meticulously practicing workplace safety guidelines, driving carefully and indulging only moderately in alcohol or other substances.

However, once you have been afflicted with one of these conditions, rendering you unable to work, it may be time to apply for federal disability benefits.

Let’s explore each of these top situations individually.

First, there is heart disease. This is a broad, umbrella diagnosis that encompasses a number of different conditions, including coronary heart disease, heart attack, congestive heart failure and congenital heart disease. A diagnosis of any of these may not necessarily be enough to qualify you for benefits (unless your congenital heart disease is deemed terminal, though mostly, this would affect infants and young children).

Section 4.02 of the Social Security Administration’s Impairment Listing addresses chronic heart failure, offering very specific signs and symptoms that would qualify you for disability. Basically, the administration will want to know if your condition has seriously limited your ability to independently initiate, sustain or complete activities of daily living.

Under Section 4.09, anyone who requires a heart transplant will be automatically considered as having a disability for at least one year after surgery, with your condition evaluated after that 12-month mark.

Next, we look at cancer. This is a broad term, and SSDI administrators are going to want information on the specific type of cancer, how it has affected your daily life, your treatment and your prognosis. Some types of terminal cancers, such as mesothelioma, will qualify you for a Compassionate Allowance that will fast-track your claim. In other cases, it’s going to depend on whether you can prove that the cancer, the treatments and the combination of other conditions has affected your ability to work for at least a year or more.

And finally, we end with injuries. Like cancer, this encompasses a broad scope of possible conditions. The key is whether your ability to work has been impaired for at least a year or more. So if your leg is broken in a car accident, you probably wouldn’t qualify because your recovery time will most likely be under a year. However, if you suffered significant and permanent injury to your back during a work accident, there’s a strong chance you might qualify for benefits.

If you have questions about whether your condition qualifies you for federal disability benefits, contact us today.
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In this third and final installment detailing the changes made by the American Psychiatric Association to its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), our Boston Social Security Disability Lawyers are focusing on conditions that affect everyone from war-weary soldiers to troubled children.

The first of these changes involves updates to the section on Trauma and Stressor-Related Disorders. The definition for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, for example, has changed significantly from the previous version. It is now more explicit with regard to how a person might experience events that are deemed “traumatic.” Additionally, a person need not have a highly specific set of conditions, but rather might experience a persistent negative emotional state. Additionally, there had been three major clusters of symptoms before, which had included arousal, avoidance/numbing and re-experiencing. There are now four clusters, as avoidance and numbing are determined to be two separate symptoms. It’s no surprise that the definition for this condition has expanded, as we have had hosts of soldiers returning from war in the last decade, which has widened our perspective on the issue.

There are two ways someone with PTSD might obtain disability benefits through Social Security. Either he or she would have to meet the criteria under Impairment Listing 12.06 Anxiety-Related disorders, or he or she would have to get a medical-vocational allowance, which means even if you don’t meet the criteria, your condition may be severe enough to warrant benefits.

Next up are the changes made to Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders. The APA took steps to combine a number of these disorders in the previous manual so as to avoid overlap that could have been problematic or confusing.

The APA also attempted to clarify on some of the conditions. For example, pain disorder for which there is no physical explanation in the previous DSM version was assumed to be solely associated with psychological factors. This new version indicates that there is significant evidence that there are a number of factors that might contribute, and that could help some individuals to receive a diagnosis more readily.

With regard to Feeding and Eating Disorders, the APA eliminated the requirement that these conditions have a childhood or adolescence onset. Under the condition of Anorexia Nervosa, the requirement for amenorrhea, or failure to menstruate, has been eliminated. With Bulimia Nervosa,, the APA reduced the required minimum average frequency of binging and purging from twice every week to just once every week.

The next set of changes involves Sleep-Wake Disorders. The major change was that a number of sleep disorders that co-exist with other mental disorders or sleep disorders that are related to a general medical condition have been removed. There is a specification that just because someone has two different disorders, one of them being related to dysfunctional sleep, doesn’t necessarily mean one causes the other and each may require its own unique treatment. Conditions like insomnia, hypersomnolence and narcolepsy – each with its own specific neurobiological and genetic evidence outside of the realm of psychiatry – have been removed from DSM-5. That doesn’t mean one can’t get disability for them, but actually, he or she may have a better chance as the bio-markers are clearer than they would be for the average psychiatric condition.

Finally, the section on Disruptive, Impulse-Control and Conduct Disorders is new to this version of the DSM. All disorders under this umbrella are characterized as stemming from problems with emotional and behavioral self-control. Such conditions include: Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Conduct Disorder and Intermittent Explosive Disorder. The definition of these conditions have expanded to include verbal threats and outbursts, as well as physical outbursts. A severity rating has also been added to offer psychiatrists guidance in diagnosing a condition where many of the symptoms may be present in normal, developing children and adolescents (stealing, talking back, shouting, experimentation with fire, etc.).

Again, many of these conditions may be treated with long-term care and individuals may have no trouble working. But for those who have struggled long-term and find the condition debilitating, help may be available in the form of SSDI benefits.
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