Your Rights to Social Security Disability Benefits and Vision Loss

The Social Security Disability system does provide for the payment of Social Security Disability benefits for vision loss.

The Social Security Administration has created a “listing book” which creates criteria for a number of known impairments. Unfortunately, the Social Security Administration really does not have any listings that specifically address low vision loss, mass immaculate degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.

There is a listing 2.02 which involves visual accueil which is similar to vision loss. However, most people who are entitled to Social Security Disability as a result of vision loss are approved at steps four and five of the five step Social Security Disability sequential evaluation.

If your vision loss prevents you from doing the lightest job that you have held in the last fifteen years, you have met step four of the five step sequential evaluation. The burden of proof will now shift to the Social Security Administration to show that there is a job available within your age, education and transferable skills that you are capable of performing even though you have vision loss.

To qualify for Social Security Disability benefits on the basis of vision impairment, it is important that you develop the medical and vocational reasons why your vision impairment prevents you from performing your occupation or any occupation in the open labor market. So, for example, if your have problems with low vision, double vision, or other visual problems that impair your ability to write or keyboard, you most likely are not going to be able to return to the lightest job you have held in the last fifteen years.

More importantly, when the burden of proof shifts to step five to the Social Security Administration to show that there was other work available in the National Economy, your vision problems can establish that, in fact, there is no such job that exists in the national economy for you with your vision problems. If you have applied for Social Security Disability benefits as a result of a vision disorder and your claim has been denied, don’t give up! Appeal your vision loss and hire an experienced vision Social Security Disability attorney to help you with winning your Social Security Disability claim.