If you or someone you love were recently diagnosed with malignant multiple sclerosis and you’re wondering if that may qualify for Social Security disability benefits, this video is for you.
My name is Kaitlin Wildoner and I’m an attorney who helps disabled clients obtain their disability benefits as quickly as possible so they can focus on getting better.
Today, we are going to discuss when malignant multiple sclerosis may qualify for the Social Security Disability compassionate allowance program. Malignant multiple sclerosis is an aggressive and rare form of MS that is characterized by rapidly progressive inflammation and destruction of the protective covering that’s surrounding your nerves. It also involves the increased formation of lesions and plaques in the brain and the loss of myelin, which affects the brain’s ability to transmit the electrochemical impulses between the nerve cells of the brain and the spinal cord. This results in a deterioration – or complete loss – of neurological functioning.
As the disease continues to progress, lesions develop in the areas of the brain that are responsible for information processing, which results in cognitive impairments, such as difficulties with concentration/attention/memory/language/judgment.
Patients with malignant MS tend to have damage to the regions of the brain that are responsible for behavior and emotions, resulting in disorders such as manic depression and paranoia.
Social Security will often evaluate cases that involve malignant MS under listing 11.09, which is the multiple sclerosis listing. When evaluating malignant MS cases, Social Security is specifically looking for clinical records from the claimant’s medical sources that document the progression of neurological and cognitive decline. They will also be looking for any reports that are completed by family members or caregivers that document that loss of ability to function, as well as any neuroimaging studies, such as MRIs and any other tests that can be used to detect central nervous system lesions, myelin loss, and white matter abnormalities.
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