27 Aug Common Disabilities & List of Impairments
When it comes to figuring out if your impairment and or disability is one that would make you eligible for monthly disability compensation, it can be confusing to say the least. The list of impairments that can register you as eligible for qualifying for such benefits with an impairment is surprisingly very large and the list covers many different types of impairments you may not ever think it would.
One of the most asked about is Respiratory impairments. These include asthmatic illness, sleep apnea and emphysema. Digestive system disorders include chronic liver disease, hepatitis, inflammatory bowel disease,gastrointestinal hemorrhaging, and liver transplantation. Skin disorders consist of ichthyosis and hidradenitis suppurativa. Genitor-urinary system conditions are kidney disease and transplantation. Cardiovascular disorders are coronary artery disease. Chronic heart disease, valvular defects and arrhythmias. Neurological conditions include grand mal seizures, petit mal seizures, TBI, CVA and ALS. Multiple body system conditions include down syndrome. Hematological system conditions include polycythemia, granulocytopenia and anemia. Immune system disorders – inflammatory arthritis, scleroderma, HIV, sjogren’s syndrome and lupus. Special senses/speech disorders – speech pathology, hearing deficits, loss of visual acuity and efficiency, and contraction of visual fields. Musculoskeletal conditions – consists of soft tissue injuries, degenerative disc disease, stenosis, osteoarthritis, scoliosis and fractures.
The list of impairments is used by all disability examiners. That said, regardless of what state you reside in, each condition will be treated the same when it comes to the severity level. States that would approve for benefits at a certain severity level will apply to every other state, making it so it is no longer state specific for your condition. If your condition is not listed in the blue book do not worry! You can still apply for disability benefits. That said, many common conditions are not even listed in the blue book. Most people awarded benefits are from these conditions that are not even posted in the blue book.
Another very common and known condition is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. This disorder, also known as PTSD comes from when a person goes through or experiences a traumatic experience and has a difficulty in trying to recover from this event. This is a popular condition for veterans leaving the military as they have experienced many intense and traumatic things during their time in service. This also does not mean they have to be claiming their PTSD is from combat related events. They can claim their PTSD is stemming from a non-combat related event during their service as long as it qualifies them according to the claim rules.
Another common and often confused disability is known as “bilateral hearing loss”. This is an impairment that decreases a person’s ability to hear in both ears. This is so common as most veterans and military personnel are exposed to loud noises that are the main cause of this condition. One of the most important things to note with this condition is that if you are to be diagnosed by a doctor stating that you suffer from this impairment, unfortunately that is not enough according to the Veterans Affairs.