Mental Illness Disability Lawyer in California

Mental Illness: Understanding the Condition and Your Disability Benefits

Millions of people qualify for mental illness disability benefits through programs managed by the Social Security Administration. That does not mean that all mental health disorders meet the strict definition used by the SSA to determine if a person with mental illness is disabled.

Social Security does not approve disability claims for mental illnesses that are short-term or cause only partial disability. To qualify for Social Security disability for mental illness through the Supplemental Security Income and Social Security Disability Insurance programs requires medical evidence documenting a permanent medical condition severe enough to prevent you from working.

The application process for claiming disability for mental illness through SSI and SSDI presents many challenges. The following information explains mental illness and disability qualifications to make it easier to understand what the SSA requires for you to be approved for mental illness disability benefits.

Remember that help is available from a disability lawyer at Sackett Law for SSDI and SSI for mental illness claims. Sackett Law is the disability law firm that Northern California residents have trusted and relied upon to guide them through the Social Security disability process for more than four decades.

Is Mental Illness A Disability? A Comprehensive Guide to Symptoms and Treatment

To qualify for SSDI or SSI disability benefits, you must have a medically determinable physical or mental physical or mental impairment expected to last for at least one year or be expected to result in your death. The impairment or a combination of impairments must be severe enough to keep you from doing substantial gainful work activities.

One of the methods used by the SSA to determine if mental illness prevents an applicant from working is the listing of impairments or Blue Book. The Blue Book lists physical and mental health conditions with evaluation criteria for each.

Meeting the evaluation criteria for a listed condition means you have severe limitations preventing you from working at a substantial and gainful level. Section 12.00 contains listings of mental disorders with the requirements you must meet for each of them. Some of the mental health disorders with their section in the Blue Book include:

1. Section 12.02 Neurocognitive disorders
2. Section 12.03 Schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders
3. Section 12.04 Depressive, bipolar, and related disorders
4. Section 12.05 Intellectual disorder
5. Section 12.06 Anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders
6. Section 12.07 Somatic symptom and related disorders
7. Section 12.08 Personality and impulse-control disorders
8. Section 12.10 Autism spectrum disorder
9. Section 12.11 Neurodevelopmental disorders
10. Section 12.13 Eating disorders
11. Section 12.15 Trauma- and stressor-related disorders

Sections 12.09, 12.12, and 12.14 have been reserved for future use and do not have disorders assigned to them.

MRFC Method To Qualify Disability With Mental Illness

If a mental illness does not meet the criteria for one of the Blue Book listings, it does not mean the claim is denied. The application review process continues to determine whether to approve or deny benefits for your mental illness as a disability condition through a mental residual functional capacity (MRFC) form.

An MRFC form is completed by the medical provider, usually a psychologist or psychiatrist, treating you. The form lists the limitations you have because of the mental disorder, including, but not limited to, the following:

1. Understanding and remembering
2. Following instructions
3. Getting along with other people
4. Adapting to change
5. Completing tasks on time

The MRFC is used to determine if you can do the kinds of work you did in the past or adjust to other types of work available in the national economy. If you cannot do the work you did in the past or adapt to different kinds of work because of a mental illness, you could be approved for disability benefits.

Proving A Mental Illness Disability

Medical records are essential to proving a claim for mental illness and SSDI or SSI. The medical evidence supporting your claim should include:

1. A specific diagnosis by a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other medical professional qualified to diagnose and treat mental illness as a disability condition.
2. A treatment plan prescribed by the doctor treating your condition.
3. Medications prescribed by your medical professional to treat the condition.
4. Documentation of follow-up appointments you kept with your doctors with notes about the treatment plan and your compliance with it.
5. Results of testing conducted by your doctors to diagnose and treat the condition.

Proof that you complied with the treatment prescribed by your doctor is essential to being approved for mental illness disability benefits.

Learn How A Disability Lawyer Makes A Difference

If you need assistance with an application for mental illness disability, a disability lawyer at Sackett Law gives you experience, knowledge, and an unsurpassed familiarity with the SSI and SSDI mental illness disability eligibility process. If you received a denial of claim, our disability lawyers fight to have the decision reversed through the appeal process.

Whether you live in Northern California or anywhere in the United States, you have too much at stake, so contact Sackett Law today for a free consultation and claim evaluation.