The Social Security Administration (SSA) recently added 13 health conditions to the agency’s Compassionate Allowance list. SSA offers fast-track processing for people with certain severe disabilities. Applicants who qualify for the Compassionate Allowances (CAL) Program can receive a decision within weeks rather than waiting for months. All of the conditions on the list are considered to be very serious and difficult to live with, and many are considered terminal illnesses.
The newly added conditions are:
- Au-Kline Syndrome
- Bilateral Anophthalmia
- Carey-Fineman-Ziter Syndrome
- Harlequin Ichthyosis – Child
- Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
- LMNA-related Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
- Progressive Muscular Atrophy
- Pulmonary Amyloidosis – AL Type
- Rasmussen Encephalitis
- Thymic Carcinoma
- Turnpenny-Fry Syndrome
- WHO Grade III Meningiomas
- Zhu-Tokita-Takenouchi-Kim Syndrome
The CAL list now includes 300 conditions, including cancers, early onset Alzheimer's disease, and ALS. Over 1 million people with severe disabilities have been approved through this process since the CAL initiative began in 2008, according to a SSA press release.
If you or someone you care about has a condition which may qualify for Compassionate Allowance consideration, we urge you to apply for Social Security disability benefits right away and make sure that your condition is clearly documented by medical tests and a doctor’s’ statement. For help in navigating the complex path to winning Social Security disability benefits, contact us at Cuddigan Law for a free evaluation of your unique situation.
You are 3 times more likely to be awarded disability benefits if you have a representative such as a disability attorney who will fight for your rights than if you have no representation at all, according to a Government Accounting Office study.
