Disability Claims: Based on recent studies, one-quarter of the adult population will suffer a disability of some type before they reach age 65. Unfortunately, approximately 50% of those people won’t have enough money saved to pay their living expenses for even a single month without their regular pay check.
This is why personal injury lawyers in Toronto are advising people to get long-term disability insurance that will cover at least some of their lost wages if they suffer one of these common disabilities or any other disability.
Musculoskeletal/Soft Connective Tissue Conditions
Almost one-third of all long-term disability claims are related to musculoskeletal or soft connective tissue conditions. Back, neck, joint, and tendon injuries are frequent causes of disabilities, particularly because many jobs can’t be performed without the use of these body systems. Actual musculoskeletal and soft connective tissue diagnoses that lead to long-term disability claims include arthritis, osteoporosis, rheumatism, degenerated disk, and general back pain.
Nervous System Conditions
While most conditions of the nervous system can be treated or managed with medication and therapy, they are also usually degenerative, which means they’re going to get worse over time. This also means they may stop responding to therapy and medication after a certain point, making full- and part-time work challenging. Some of the nervous system diagnoses that lead to long-term disability claims are multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, and shingles.
Cardiovascular/Circulatory Conditions
Cardiovascular and circulatory conditions can arise seemingly out of the blue and if a person survives a cardiovascular event, the resulting surgeries and therapies can disrupt their ability to work for a significant amount of time, if not forever. Heart attacks, strokes, heart valve problems, heart failure, arrhythmia, and other cardiovascular and circulatory diagnoses can take a long time to recover from, especially if open-heart surgery is required.
Cancer and Tumours
More than one-third of all people are expected to develop some form of cancer during their lifetime and even those who live extremely healthy lifestyles can be affected.
Chemotherapy and radiation treatments for many forms of cancer are harsh and can result in the inability to keep up with job duties.
Often, it’s better for sufferers to take off work while they are undergoing treatment for cancer or tumors. Unfortunately, without a long-term disability policy, this can be difficult, especially if they rely on their employer-provided healthcare.
Mental Health Conditions
Mental health hasn’t always been treated like physical health when it comes to taking a break from work to get treatment. Fortunately, many mental health conditions, including depression and anxiety, have to be treated like any other illness for insurance and disability purposes. Mental health conditions can prevent people from fully engaging at work, and it is often recommended by physicians that they not work while they’re getting treatment, particularly if in-patient treatment is necessary.
Conclusion
These five conditions are responsible for the most long-term disability claims, but if you have a different type of medical issue, it doesn’t mean you don’t qualify for long-term disability compensation. Contact an experienced personal injury attorney to review your rights and if necessary, initiate a claim.
FAQ
Why do disability claims get denied?
SSDI is the benefit program for workers who paid into Social Security over many years. One of the main reasons you might be denied benefits, is that you work above the limit which is considered “substantial gains activity”.
Do most disability claims get denied the first time?
The Social Security Administration (SSA), does not deny every applicant. It does however initially deny almost two-thirds all Social Security disability claims.