If you have developed osteoporosis your life could be affected by permanent restrictions that may prevent you from earning an income to cover your daily needs. This includes going to work and undertaking everyday tasks.
Osteoporosis means your bones are porous and is a condition which causes the bones to become thin, weak and fragile. It can be so bad that just a minor bump or accident could cause a broken bone.
This could happen when falling off a chair or bed, or tripping and falling while out walking. Fractures due to osteoporosis may result in chronic pain, disability, loss of independence and even premature death.
Permanent Restrictions You May Experience with Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis commonly affects the bones in the hip, spine and wrist where the bones lose their density and strength. Once this has taken place it is impossible to work if your bones are so weak you are unable to undertake the job that you used to do.
Work History and Job Skills
If the osteoporosis is so severe that you cannot work you will need to apply for disability benefits. There are two types of benefits available for those suffering from a permanent impairment.
One is called a social security disability insurance benefit (SSDI), which is assessed based on your work history and how many work credits you have collected over time. The second type of benefit is supplemental security income (SSI) which is means tested and is awarded after assessing the value of your savings and assets.
If the treatment you have been receiving for osteoporosis is effective the disability benefit examiner will consider your medical records and your work history before reaching a decision. The disability examiner will use this information to determine if you are able to return to your usual job or if you have a permanent impairment whether there are other job openings available to you.
Can I Perform Sedentary Work?
Sometimes the decision about your entitlement to Social Security disability benefits is based on your capability to work in a more sedentary job. If the disability examiner denies your claim because it thinks that you can undertake a more sedentary job, you will need to request an appeal hearing.
At this hearing you will be required to offer appropriate evidence that proves that the symptoms from your osteoporosis will not allow you to take part in sedentary work. Your disability claim could still be denied if a vocational expert brought to the hearing agrees that, although you are not fit enough to do your usual job there is other work you are still able to do.
At the hearing you may be required to provide proof of your ability to perform sedentary work such as the results of a residual functional capacity (RFC) evaluation conducted by your physician, which shows what you are capable of doing while suffering from osteoporosis.
Get a Free Case Evaluation Today
It is never easy to win a disability benefits claim for a permanent impairment caused by osteoporosis. Contacting a disability lawyer will help you get the disability benefits you deserve.
