As a very rare genetic disorder for which the exact cause is unknown and no effective treatment exists, Marshall-Smith Syndrome is medically eligible for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits. As an inherently disabling condition, this syndrome also qualifies for rapid review through the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) Compassionate Allowances (CAL) program.
Leptomeningeal carcinomatosis occurs when a solid tumor spreads to the leptomeninges (the membranes surrounding the brain). Usually these tumors begin as lung tumors, breast tumors, or malignant melanoma. The condition is rare, occurring in only about 5 percent of people who develop cancer. The condition is almost always terminal. Left untreated, the median survival rate is four to six weeks. When treated, the median survival rate increases to two to three months.
Intracranial hemagiopericytoma, also known as HPC, is a very rare malignant tumor that develops in the blood vessels adjacent to the lining of the brain. These tumors are very rare, accounting for less than 1 percent of all tumors found within the skull. While surgery is often the best approach to such tumors, the recurrence rate of this type of cancer is very high, as is the mortality rate.
As a rare, progressive, and ultimately terminal genetic disorder that typically presents in early childhood, Giant Axonal Neuropathy (GAN) is a condition the Social Security Administration (SSA) recognizes as automatically qualified for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits.
Joubert syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the area of the brain that controls coordination and balance. Individuals who are born with the condition suffer from an underdevelopment or complete absence of the cerebellar vermis and a malformed brain stem.
Esthesioneuroblastoma is a rare form of cancer and one that can qualify you for not only disability benefits but also expedited review and approval of your disability claim through the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) Compassionate Allowances (CAL) program.
When your application is submitted, it will be flagged for quick review under the CAL program. This means you wait only a matter of weeks for a decision on your claim rather than several months, which is the average for all non-CAL applications.
Males who have this rare genetic disorder typically experience more pronounced and severe symptoms, while females may have mild to severe effects from Coffin-Lowry Syndrome (CLS). Whether severe or mild, Coffin-Lowry can qualify a child or an adult for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits.
If you are approved for disability benefits through the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program, then the monthly SSDI payment you receive from the Social Security Administration (SSA) is considered “Title II” benefits.
If you are statutorily, or legally blind, you can continue to work and still receive SSDI benefits. Your benefits are required to be designated Title II FZ under the SSA’s rules governing disability for statutory blindness.
The concept of “full range of work” is a part of the Social Security Disability (SSD) evaluation process involved in examining an applicant’s “residual functional capacity” or RFC.
An RFC evaluation is typically only performed if disability applicants do not meet or match a listed condition in the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) manual of impairments or disabilities, which is known as the Blue Book.
When an RFC analysis is required to determine eligibility for disability benefits, the SSA looks at several factors, including the applicant’s:
To be found eligible for benefits through an RFC analysis, the SSA must determine that you are unable to get and keep a job for which you are otherwise qualified given all of the factors listed above and given the limitations your impairment or medical condition imposes on you.
For example, if you are no longer able to do the kind of work you have done in the past, but your medical condition or impairment does not prevent you from performing the “full range of work” associated with sedentary jobs, like clerical, administrative, or office jobs, then the SSA will deny you disability benefits.
This is because your RFC shows you are not completely disabled and should therefore be able to find a job in which you are capable and qualified of performing the “full range of work”, even if that job is not in your traditional career field.
If however you apply for disability benefits and your RFC analysis shows you are not able to perform the “full range of work” in any job for which you are otherwise qualified, then the SSA will grant you disability benefits through what is known as a medical vocational allowance.
To be found eligible to receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, you must meet the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) earnings requirement rules.
There are two “earnings tests” that fall under these rules:
This test requires you have:
And
Generally speaking, one work credit is earned for each quarter of a year in which you worked and paid Social Security taxes on your income. This means you must have a minimum of 20 work credits from the last 10 years to satisfy the recent work test for the SSDI earnings requirement.
This test is based on your age at the time you become disabled. The test basically requires you worked and paid into the Social Security fund through the payment of Social Security taxes for a long enough time to be covered by SSDI.
In general, the following table shows the age of disability onset and the years of work requirements that are needed for SSDI benefits; however, some applicants are eligible for benefits even if they do not pass this test. This means you should go ahead and apply for benefits, even if you are unsure whether or not you will qualify.
| Age at Disability Onset | Years of Work Required |
| 28 or younger | 1.5 |
| 29 – 33 | 2 |
| 34 – 37 | 3 |
| 38 – 41 | 4 |
| 42 – 43 | 5 |
| 44 – 45 | 5.5 |
| 46 – 47 | 6 |
| 48 – 49 | 6.5 |
| 50 – 51 | 7 |
| 52 – 53 | 7.5 |
| 54 – 55 | 8 |
| 56 – 57 | 8.5 |
| 58 – 59 | 9 |
| 60 – 61 | 9.5 |
| 62 or over | 10 |
