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Social Security is dedicated
to helping people with heart conditions throughout the year, but
we’d like to take this opportunity to tell you about the most recent
initiative to help people who file claims for monthly disability
benefits due to heart disease.
Recently, Social Security held
a public Compassionate Allowances hearing on cardiovascular disease.
Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue and leading experts on
cardiovascular disease met to discuss possible methods to identify
disabling cases and expedite those claims for both adults and
children.
Social Security is
committed to ensuring Americans with devastating illnesses receive
benefits quickly. The Compassionate Allowances process is one of the
initiatives to speed up the disability application process for
people with severe conditions.
“This fiscal year, about
150,000 people will benefit from our fast-track disability
processes,” said Commissioner Astrue. “With this hearing, we
continue to look at broader categories of conditions to determine if
a subset or certain diagnosis might clearly meet our disability
standards and qualify as a Compassionate Allowance.”
Currently, 88 specific
diseases and conditions qualify as Compassionate Allowances and, as
a result, claims filed by people who are disabled due to these
conditions are put on the fast track to receive benefits.
To see a complete list of
Compassionate Allowance conditions and to view a web cast of the
hearing on cardiovascular disease, visit
www.socialsecurity.gov/compassionateallowances.
To learn more about
disability benefits, visit
www.socialsecurity.gov/disability.
To apply for disability benefits, go to
www.socialsecurity.gov/applyfordisability.
By Judith Bartels
Social Security District
Manager in Springfield, IL |
