When Kidney (Renal) Failure or other Kidney Disease Disability Keeps You from Working
Over the past 19 years, Marc Whitehead & Associates has helped thousands of people nationwide win their long-term disability insurance benefits, Social Security Disability Insurance benefits and Veterans disability compensation.
If your benefits for kidney disease were denied unfairly, contact us about your disability claim. We know the law, and will help you every step of the way to secure the benefits you deserve.
About Kidney Disease Disability
Someone suffering from kidney disease is severely ill and may quickly see a reduction in their ability to work.
Physical disabilities from kidney disease may include high blood pressure, nerve damage, anemia, loin pain, and painful swelling in the legs and ankles that limits your ability to walk. Medications and treatment may further disable you causing extreme fatigue, weakness, nausea, and frequent urination or constipation.
There are many causes of kidney disease, with diabetes and high blood pressure being the most common. Chronic kidney disease generally advances to end-stage renal disease. Over time, the kidneys can no longer filter wastes and excess water from the blood, sustain the correct balance of salt and minerals in the blood, or regulate blood pressure.
If kidney failure develops, the person will require dialysis or a kidney transplant. Heart disease is the primary cause of death for victims of chronic kidney disease.
For a free legal consultation, call 800-562-9830
Getting Kidney Disease Disability Benefits under a Group or Private Insurance Policy
Long Term Disability insurance companies often take advantage of an unrepresented claimant. Until now, you have been doing business with a friendly insurance sales rep, or your employer’s claim representative.
These individuals play no part in the actual decision-making that goes on once you’ve filed a claim on your policy. The final decision is generally made by the insurance company’s claims examiner.
The language and terms in your policy control everything about your claim, and this often gives the examiner the latitude to deny or delay benefits based on a technicality (regardless of your doctor’s diagnosis).
Typical stall and denial tactics used by insurance companies include:
- Insurer claims that you do not meet their definition of “disabled”
- Insurer denies your claim based on a pre-existing condition clause
- Insurer uses their own paid medical consultants to support denial
- Insurer uses medical evidence against you that is unrelated to your kidney disease
Insurance companies realize that most policyholders get frustrated with the denials and eventually give up.
If your kidney disease has disabled you from working and the insurance company won’t pay, call our firm without delay, for a free evaluation of your claim: 800-562-9830.
We represent disability insurance claimants all over the United States, and deal routinely with the “big deniers” of group and individual LTD insurance.
Winning Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) for Kidney Disease Disability
The medical listing in the Social Security Listing of Impairments for kidney disorders is found in Section 6.00 – Genitourinary Impairments, and specifically under the listings for 6.02 Impairment of renal function, and 6.06 Nephrotic syndrome.
To be successful in a kidney disease claim with the SSA, you must either
- meet or equal a kidney condition as defined in the listing, or
- prove that your condition has reduced your “functional capacity” for work to the point that you would not be able to work at a simple desk or other “sitting” job for 8 hours a day, five days a week.
SSA specifies renal conditions that qualify as meeting a listing, including:
Chronic dialysis: With proper documentation, if you are undergoing hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis on an ongoing basis, you will meet the requirements of SSA listing 6.02A.
Kidney transplant disability: If you have received a kidney transplant, you automatically meet the listing of 6.02B, and quality for SSDI benefits for the 12 months following the transplant. After the 12 months has passed, SSA will base further disability benefits on your residual impairments.
High Serum Creatinine: If your creatinine has reached a certain level for at least three consecutive months, you may meet the SSA listing for kidney disease disability if you also have one of the following four conditions:
- Bone disease (renal osteodystrophy)
- Severe nerve damage (persistent motor or sensory neuropathy)
- Fluid overload syndrome with diastolic hypertension (elevated diastolic blood pressure) or vascular congestion
- Anorexia (digestive disorder)
The criteria to meet or equal the listings are not always easy. If you do not meet or equal an SSA listing, the examiner will then consider whether your kidney disease is severe enough to prevent you from doing work you have done in the past, or your ability to do any other job.
Most SSDI claims are denied at first. The process is difficult and frustrating. If this has happened to you, don’t give up. Call 800-562-9830 or request a free Social Security disability consultation here.
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Veterans: Was Your Claim for Kidney Disease Disability Benefits Denied?
Disabilities for kidney disease are rated according to the VA schedule for rating disability, under the section for Genitourinary System-Dysfunctions. Renal dysfunction is broken down into different levels of disability, but first must be found to be service-connected.
Service connection may be granted if your kidney disease is
- directly related to your term of service,
- a pre-existing condition that was aggravated during service, or
- a condition that was caused or aggravated by a direct service-connected condition.
Kidney disease disability will also be considered a secondary service-connected disorder under the “paired organs” and extremities clause. If you have lost the use of one kidney due to service-connected disability, and later you lose the use of your remaining kidney, the VA will award disability benefits.
If you have received a VA decision denying your claim for kidney disease disability, contact our Accredited Veterans’ Attorneys and call 800-562-9830. Marc Whitehead & Associates are trusted practitioners of veteran’s law, and represent veterans nationwide.
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National Attorney Advocates for the Disabled
Ask a question to a lawyer today about your denied claim. Our attorneys will review your case and give you honest answers about how we can help you fight back and get the disability benefits you deserve!
Call or text 800-562-9830 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form