Regardless of whether your affliction is physical or psychological, there are only two methods by which you can apply for Social Security disability for mental disorders. The first is to meet the criteria for a specific disability in their Listings of Impairments. The second is to show the SSA you have a condition that is the equivalent of one of these listed disabilities.
Option one is by far the most straightforward path to take, so matching a listing should always be your primary goal if you are applying. To do this, you first have to understand what the Listings of Impairments is.
As the name suggests, it is a defined list of medical conditions the SSA has agreed qualify as disabling conditions. But it is more than this – each qualifying condition has a specific set of criteria the SSA has laid down. In order to “have” this disability as defined by the SSA and get the benefits you need, you must be able to show you meet these criteria.
Criteria for Listing 12.02
Organic mental disorders, or Listing 12.02, is defined as “psychological or behavioral abnormalities associated with a dysfunction of the brain.” You need to have lost functional abilities you previously possessed, and there has to be a specific organic factor present related to this loss and your “abnormal mental state” that can be demonstrated through lab tests, physical exams, or your history.
Specifically, qualifying means you need to show medically documented evidence of something from both category 1 and 2 below OR meet the requirements in category 3.
- Demonstrated loss of cognitive abilities:
- Time and place disorientation
- Impairment of short-, intermediate-, or long-term memory
- Delusions, hallucinations, or other perceptual disturbances
- Personality changes
- Mood disturbances
- Sudden emotional outbursts and lack of control
- Loss of 15 IQ points or more, or be clearly within the severely impaired range based on testing
- Display two of the following results:
- Activities of daily living severely restricted
- Trouble in functioning socially
- Trouble with pace, persistence, or concentration
- Ongoing episodes of decompensation (personality disturbances) that last for an extended time
- Have a chronic organic mental disorder that has been medically documented and:
- Has lasted at least 2 years
- Has severely limited basic work activities
- Involves signs or symptoms that require medication or psychosocial support
- Involves one of the following:
- Episodes of decompensation
- A history of at least 1 year of an inability to function without support
- A residual disease process where even minimal change can lead to decompensation
Some of the tests that you can take to help bolster your claim include:
- Visual Evoked Responses (VER)
- Transcranial Doppler (TCD)
- Somatosensory Evoked Potentials (SEPs)
- P-Tau Protein
- Positron Emission Tomography of Brain (PET)
- Motor Evoked Potentials (MEPs)
- Magnetoencephalography (MEG)
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Brain (MRI)
- Electroencephalography (EEG)
- Echoencephalography
- Deep Tendon Reflexes (DTRs)
- Computerized Tomographic Scanning of Central Nervous System (CT)
- Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers for Alzheimer’s Disease
- Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF)
- Cerebral Angiography
- Brain Scan
- Beta Amyloid – Plasma
- Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR)
For a free legal consultation, call 800-562-9830
Not Meeting the Listing Is Not the End
As you might imagine with so many specific requirements, meeting this listing isn’t easy. But even if you can’t prove to the SSA that you meet one of their listings, remember that you don’t have to give up on benefits. People who can’t match a specific definition just need to show they suffer from an issue that is the equivalent of something the SSA has already defined as an impairment.
You can do this by using the Five Step Sequential Evaluation Process and proving that your condition has prevented you from working for at least 12 months. Because the process is more complicated and the path isn’t as clear, anyone who decides to try this route is advised to work with an experienced Social Security disability attorney.
Whichever route you choose to qualify through, it pays to understand how the SSA works and what evidence truly helps your case. Because of this, your chances of success can increase if you work with an experienced professional who can answer your Social Security questions and guide you through the process. Learn even more about the claims process by reading our Social Security Disability eBook for free!
Call or text 800-562-9830 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
