If you suffer from macular degeneration, you may no longer be able to work and earn a living. In that case, you may qualify for Social Security Disability benefits. Age-related macular degeneration is a common occurrence in the country with 10-15 million people suffering from the condition.
Some people are at greater risk of developing the condition than others. The top risk factors include a family history of the condition, being older than 60 years of age, smoking, obesity, and hypertension. The condition is also linked to heart disease and exposure to sunlight.
How Macular Degeneration Affects Your Physical Capacity To Work
If macular degeneration has advanced, you may not be able to see well enough to perform routine tasks. The symptoms of the condition include darkness, haziness of vision, inability to see fine details, and blurred vision.
Treatments often include laser treatments, prescription drugs, or telescopic lens implantation in an eye. Some medications can stop the progression of the disease, but some can also reverse some effects of the disease.
The vision loss can be so severe, you may not be able to drive or work equipment or machinery. You may find it difficult to read directions or labels. If the condition advances to a level where the damage is irreversible, you may not be able to perform any kind of work.
How Macular Degeneration Affects Your Mental Capacity To Work
When you suffer from macular degeneration, it can also affect you mentally. You may suffer from stress, anxiety, and depression. While these can be treated with medications, you may find it difficult to stay focus, challenging to remember things, and to complete tasks.
This may make it impossible to maintain files, to handle your daily work duties, and to learn new responsibilities. With the vision loss plus the mental affects, it may be completely impossible to work and earn a living.
Macular Degeneration and Applying for Social Security Disability
If you are unable to work for at least twelve months because of macular degeneration, you may qualify for disability benefits using the disability listings for vision loss in the Blue Book, which is the medical guidelines the the Social Security Administration (SSA) uses to help establish if a claimant qualifies for disability benefits medically. There are three listings applicable to vision loss and they apply to remaining visual acuity in your better eye when it pertains to central vision loss, the level of the peripheral field contraction in the better eye, and loss of visual efficiency in the better eye.
The disability claims process can be challenging, and the key to a successful claim is providing medical documentation to confirm your condition, detail the symptoms and side effects, and explain any limitations and restrictions. To ensure your disability claim for macular degeneration gets on the right track, complete the Free Case Evaluation form found above on this page and share the details with a lawyer who is licensed in your state.
