Multiple Illnesses Can Lead To Disability, Social Security Eligibility

May 23, 2012 (Press-News.org) Anyone who has had to face more than one health problem at a time knows the cumulative effect multiple illnesses may have on your life. From daily treatment regimens to long stays in the hospital, the effects of several illnesses can be more than just disruptive; they can be disabling.

New Study Links Mental Illness, Physical Manifestations

A new report issued in April by an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services details the connection between mental illness and related physical health problems. According to researchers, individuals with major depressive episodes were more likely to suffer from stroke, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and asthma. Furthermore, adults who had experienced any serious mental illness within the past year were found to be almost twice as likely to have been hospitalized within the preceding year compared to those without a recent history of mental illness.

The findings are not altogether surprising. Some 68 percent of Medicare expenditures go to people suffering from five or more chronic diseases. Other research indicates that, compared to other patients, patients with multiple conditions are four times more likely to stay overnight in a hospital, have on average three times more nights spent in hospitals and are 11 times more likely to receive homecare services.

Social Security Disability Benefits Can Help Those With Multiple Illnesses, but Are Not Always Easy To Collect

Any time more than one illness is present, recovery can be more expensive and more difficult; a flare up in one condition often leads to complications with another. For some patients, this destructive interplay can put them out of work indefinitely.

Social Security Disability is a safety net in place for these patients and others like them. Whether it is a single disabling illness or injury, or interactions between multiple health conditions that, taken individually, may not seem as serious, Social Security Disability is there to provide payments for medical services and wage replacement when you are prevented from working.

However, Social Security Disability benefits are not a guaranteed resource; in order to obtain them, you must convince the Social Security Administration that you have a valid claim, that your health prevents you from being able to earn an income. While this showing is easier for some conditions -- the SSA even keeps a list of conditions deemed so severe that a disability finding will flow automatically upon providing minimal objective medical evidence -- others, particularly multiple illnesses, may require stronger evidence and better arguments.

If you are suffering from a range of illnesses, you know when you're disabled -- but the SSA might not. Get help convincing them and getting the benefits you need by contacting a Social Security Disability attorney today.

Article provided by Disability Rights Law Center- Alex Boudov, Attorney at Law
Visit us at www.california-disability.com/