Social Security Disability for Legally Blind
Whether you are completely blind, legally or partially blind, you may be entitled to disability benefits from the Social Security Administration for the blind. To be eligible, the SSA requires that your vision loss be significant and present in both eyes. Those who are blind in one eye are not eligible. One. The law defines blindness as central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye using a corrective lens. We use your best corrected central visual acuity for elimination in the best eye when determining if this definition is met. (See 2.00A5 for visual acuity tests.) About 6.8 percent of children under the age of 18 in the United States have a diagnosed eye and vision disorder. Nearly 3% of children under 18 are blind or visually impaired, defined as vision problems, even if they wear glasses or contact lenses. Some of the most common causes of blindness include diabetes mellitus, macular degeneration, traumatic injuries, corneal or retinal infections, glaucoma, amblyopia (“lazy eye”), strabismus, uveitis, stroke, optic neuritis (for example, associated with multiple sclerosis), retinitis pigmentosa, and retinal detachment.
c. Rating less than 2.03A. To determine the legally required blindness based on the visual field loss of your best eye (2.03A), we need the results of a visual field test that measures the central 24 to 30 degrees of your visual field. That is, the range measures 24 to 30 degrees from the point of attachment. Acceptable tests include Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA) 30-2, HFA 24-2 and Octopus 32. Visual impairment is one of the top 10 disabilities in adults 18 years of age and older and one of the most common disabling conditions in children. If you are blind, you can use some or all of the deductions from earnings that apply to the SGA decision. Yes. SSI has a lot of great work incentives that can help people who want to return to work or work for the first time.
The strongest of these work incentives for blind people is the blind labour expense deduction (BWE). Very few people who meet this definition experience complete blindness. In some cases, a person who meets the definition can print or navigate without a cane or guide dog. For more information on work incentives for the blind, Social Security provides: We use the term essential employment (SGA) to describe a level of employment and income that is both substantial and profitable. SMBG involves performing significant physical or mental activities, or a combination of both. For your professional activity to be important, you do not need to work full-time. A part-time activity may also be SGA. If your impairment is something other than blindness, average earnings of more than $1,350 per month (for 2022) generally indicate GAS. See the definition of blindness for an adult or child in the section WHAT IS “BLINDNESS” FOR AN ADULT OR CHILD? In addition to loss of visual acuity, you may be eligible for a disability award if you have a visual field restriction (“tunnel vision”) such that the widest diameter of the visual field is 20 degrees or less. Social Security considers you blind if your vision can`t be corrected to better than 20/200 in your best eye, or if your field of vision in your best eye is 20 degrees or less.
90% of blindness caused by diabetes is preventable. Most people who receive a disability award can access work incentives or employment benefits, but some rules are more generous if your disability is blindness. For more information, see this document with frequently asked questions (FAQs) about work incentives for blind people in Social Security. The Social Security Administration (SSA) defines “blindness” as visual acuity of 20/200 or less (“legally blind”), with the use of a corrective lens. To qualify for Social Security (SSDI) benefits, blindness must be in both eyes If you are blind in one eye but have more than 20/200 vision in the other, you may not qualify for benefits under SSA guidelines. Sometimes Social Security needs to contact you with important information. There are several ways to get information from us if you are blind or visually impaired and your average income falls above policy after any deduction for work incentives, Social Security may suspend or terminate your benefit depending on when the income occurs. The important difference is that the SGA guideline for blind people is significantly higher.
For example, the SGA policy for blind people in 2019 is $2,040.00 per month, but only $1,220.00 per month for people who are not blind. Typically, Social Security adjusts this amount at a different rate each year. Learn more about substantial employment (SGA). We do not count the earned income you use to cover the expenses you need to earn that income when we decide if you qualify for the Additional Security Income (SSI) and calculate the amount of your payment. To be eligible, you must be eligible for SSI due to blindness. The required documentation includes a report on your visual acuity and/or visual fields and the cause of vision loss. Although the cause of your blindness does not determine whether benefits are provided, medical records must include a diagnosed “cause” in order to receive benefits. As part of the determination of disability or blindness, Social Security also looks at any work you do.
If you work and earn more than $1,350 per month (as of January 2022), we generally won`t find you disabled. This is what we call substantial employment (GAS). We charge a higher living allowance of $2,260 if you are blind (as of January 2022). A. Consider under a disability for 1 year after the first implantation. When you apply for Supplementary Security Income (ISS) benefits because of disability or blindness, we will first determine if you meet the income, resources and other eligibility criteria. If you do, we`ll ask you the following questions: Social Security has rules called “work incentives” that help people who receive benefits due to blindness go to work without their benefits ending immediately. If you receive benefits, there are certain work incentives that can help you keep your Medicare or Medicaid even if you`re working. Most people who receive a disability award can access work incentives or employment benefits, but some rules are more generous if your disability is blindness. See the definition of disability for a child under 18 in the section WHAT DOES “DISABLED” MEAN FOR A CHILD? See also the definition of disability for persons 18 years of age and older in the section WHAT DOES “DISABLED” MEAN FOR AN ADULT? DDS verifies the information you have provided to us.
They also review your medical records, information about your functioning and, if applicable, your employment history, and then decide whether you are disabled or blind for ISS purposes. There is a special rule to help people who work because of blindness and receive an additional security income (SSI). This rule allows a blind person to exclude from work income all expenses that enable him or her to work. Effort does not need to be related to blindness. BWE items don`t need to be related to your blindness. When we calculate the amount of your SSI payment, we treat BWE items differently from IRWE. We do this because it always results in a higher SSI payment amount for you. The table below shows how BWE would affect your monthly payment compared to IRWE.
b. The law also provides that an eye that has a visual field limitation such that the widest diameter of the field of vision has an angle not exceeding 20 degrees is considered an eye with a central visual acuity of 20/200 or less. (See 2.00A6 for visual field test requirements.) c. You will only be legally blind if your visual impairment meets the criteria of 2.02 or 2.03A. You do not have legal blindness if your visual impairment medically meets the criteria of 2.02 or 2.03A or meets the criteria of 2.03B, 2.03C, 2.04A or 2.04B or medically meets because your disability is based on criteria other than those of the legal definition of blindness. If you do not perform AGS, we will send your case to the DDS to determine your impairment(s). We refer to the DDS as “we” in the following sections because Social Security uses the DDS to decide whether you are disabled according to Social Security`s definition of disability. In order to take advantage of work incentives for blind people, your Social Security records must include proof of blindness. If your records are not blind, or if you have become blind since you became eligible for benefits, you should contact your local Social Security office and ask to update your record. To find your local social security office, use the Social Security office locator.
There are several rules that apply to totally or legally blind applicants that do not apply to applicants with disabilities who are not blind. For example: This book, the Red Book and some other publications are available in alternative media. You can obtain some of these documents in Braille, audio cassette, floppy disk, or enlarged printout. A list of publications available in alternative formats can be found on our website at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/braillerequest.htm. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 11 million Americans aged 12 and older could improve their vision through proper refractive correction.