Dialysis is a common form of treatment for many patients who suffer from a kidney disease. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has listed a wide range of conditions that qualify for disability benefits. As such, you may wonder what disability benefits are offered to dialysis patients.
Luckily, the Social Security Administration does consider dialysis a disability. As such, dialysis patients may be eligible to receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), or both based on which program’s criteria they meet.
Disability Benefits When Undergoing Dialysis
The Social Security Administration considers a person to be disabled if they are unable to work due to a medical condition that qualifies them for disability benefits. This includes individuals who get dialysis as a treatment for another medical condition that qualifies them for disability benefits, such as kidney disease.
Having to undergo dialysis three times a week for four hours each session can make it impossible to work, so the Social Security Administration considers dialysis treatment to be a qualifying disability in and of itself.
Dialysis patients can apply for both Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income through the Social Security Administration. SSDI relies on your employment history to determine eligibility, whereas SSI is a need-based program.
SSA’s Definition of Dialysis
Dialysis is a therapy used to treat renal failure. Dialysis is a procedure in which a machine removes waste products and toxins from the blood when the kidneys are unable to do so.
Many other qualifying medical conditions also require dialysis as a standard treatment. Dialysis is a necessary part of treatment for kidney disease, chronic kidney disease, and end-stage renal disease, all of which can be disabling.
Different Kinds of Dialysis
Dialysis can be of various sorts. They all perform the function of blood filtering, although in different ways. These are the most common forms of dialysis:
- Chronic hemodialysis
- Peritoneal dialysis
- Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis
How to Qualify for Disability Based on Dialysis
Dialysis alone can have a significant impact on daily living. When combined with other health issues, such as kidney disease, it can be devastating. Even if you are receiving dialysis, you must still show that you are unable to work in order to qualify for disability payments on the basis of your treatment.
In order to increase your chances of being approved for disability benefits due to dialysis treatment, you should meet the following criteria:
- You are suffering from kidney and/or renal failure. When used as a treatment for kidney or renal failure, dialysis is always considered to be eligible for benefits.
- You have an additional qualifying condition. One of the easiest ways to qualify for disability is to have just undergone a kidney transplant and require dialysis as a result of kidney disease.
- The dialysis treatment you’re receiving is ongoing. To determine disability status, the Social Security Administration often looks at how long you’ve been on dialysis. Dialysis must have lasted for, or be expected to last for, at least 12 months in order to increase your chances of qualification.
- You require dialysis during the daytime. You may be eligible for disability if you need to miss significant time from work due to dialysis treatments, especially if you need them numerous times per week and during the day.
What Happens If My Dialysis Fails to Meet the SSA’s Criteria?
You should still apply for Social Security disability benefits even if your dialysis does not satisfy the medical standards that have been stated by the SSA.
You may still be eligible for disability payments through the use of a medical-vocational allowance, even if you are not now undergoing dialysis or if your dialysis will not go on long enough to qualify.
The SSA will not consider your unique medical symptoms. Rather, they’ll look at all of your limitations together to see if they prevent you from doing the SSA’s minimum $1,470-a-month substantial gainful activity (SGA for 2023).
The Social Security Administration will take into account your symptoms and restrictions before classifying you into one of five work intensity levels: sedentary, light, medium, heavy, or very heavy. After that, they use your work experience and highest degree of education to determine what kind of job you are qualified for.
If the Social Security Administration determines that you are unable to perform even sedentary work due to your medical condition, you may be eligible for disability benefits.
Time commitment aside, dialysis has many undesirable side effects that may prevent you from working. It can be inconvenient to have to take time from work to go to the hospital for dialysis three times a week for four hours. In addition to this, you may also experience mental confusion, trouble sleeping, discomfort in your bones, and swollen legs and feet.
A medical-vocational allowance is more likely to be granted to older people who did not graduate college or who performed physically demanding or unskilled employment because there are fewer sedentary professions that do not require training or education.
If you do not meet the requirements for disability based on kidney dialysis, you may still meet the requirements based on another classification.
Kidney dialysis frequently results in diabetes and other kidney disorders, both of which are considered disabling conditions by the Social Security Administration. Therefore, even if you don’t satisfy the requirements for the dialysis listing, you can still be eligible for other conditions.
Starting An Application for Disability Benefits
The application process for Social Security disability payments involves filling out paperwork. The form is extensive, and supporting medical proof is necessary for the SSA to make a decision. The Social Security Administration website is the most convenient place to submit an application.
Creating an account and logging into the application will mark the beginning of your claim, even if you don’t actually submit it for a while. This is helpful since it means that any retroactive benefits you are due will begin from the day your claim was initially filed rather than the date your claim was submitted.
So, if you are a dialysis patient, there is some good news to help ease the financial burden off your shoulders. You can apply for Social Security’s disability program. If you would like more information on whether you qualify for these benefits, talk to a SSA representative or an advocate who specializes in SSDI.
