Martin O’Malley, Commissioner of Social Security, announced nine new Compassionate Allowances (CAL) conditions and revisions to two existing CAL conditions: Bainbridge-Ropers Syndrome, Costello Syndrome, Adult Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1-4, Child Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1A/1B (revised existing condition), Histiocytic Malignancies, Histiocytosis Syndromes (revised existing condition), Neonatal Marfan Syndrome, PACS1 Syndrome, Plasmablastic Lymphoma, Renal Medullary Carcinoma, and Snijders Blok-Campeau Syndrome.
“I am steadfastly committed to reducing the amount of time people wait to receive a decision on their disability claim, and we are making progress,” said Commissioner O’Malley. “Compassionate Allowances helps in this effort by accelerating the disability application process for people who are likely to get approved for benefits due to the severity of their medical condition.”
Let’s review what a compassionate allowance is: A Compassionate allowance is a condition that meets the SSA’s standards for disability benefits. Because of the severe nature of these conditions, these claims are many times allowed/approved based on confirmation of the diagnosis by itself. To date, over one million people with severe disabilities have been approved through this accelerated, policy-compliant disability process, which now includes 287 conditions.
When an individual applies for disability benefits, medical records must be submitted to the SSA so they can make an accurate assessment or determination of the medical condition. Through the Compassionate Allowance program, over 280 conditions have been approved or designated as eligible for disability benefits. This is a huge win for people struggling with these severe conditions and can decrease the Social Security Disability (SSD) decision wait time substantially. For a list of conditions included in the CAL program, click here.
This application process for the CAL program is the same as applying for SSD. Be sure to tell your attorney that your diagnosis is on the CAL list.
The CAL program aims to expedite disability approval for people with conditions on the CAL list. Applications with qualifying conditions are automatically flagged for priority review, significantly reducing the wait time compared to standard disability claims. Most applicants receive Compassionate Allowance benefits within a short timeframe, usually within weeks to a couple of months after applying.
Applying for disability benefits can become a long, tedious, confusing process…especially if you are unfamiliar with the documents you are asked to complete or the language used. The legal team at Parmele Law Firm has been practicing disability law since 2001 and combined, our attorneys have over 135 years of experience. We have also helped 55,000+ people obtain the SSD benefits they were entitled to. We think that is a great testament to our knowledge and competency. Call our office today to schedule your no-cost consultation: 866-889-2570.
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