A Savannah Disability Attorney Discusses Step Three of the Sequential Evaluation Process
Step Three of the Social Security Administration sequential evaluation process involves the Listing of Impairments, a series of disability-defining medical criteria in the Social Security regulations. What this entails is determining whether your medical issues and limitations are found in, or medically equivalent to, the medical issues and limitations described in the Listing of Impairments. A Savannah disability attorney can help clarify what is applicable in your case.
A Savannah Disability Attorney Discusses Alternative Ways to Qualify for Disability
Do not be discouraged if your particular impairment does not appear in the Listing of Impairments. There are four instances in which you may be able to argue that your medical issues are medically equal to one found in the Listings:
- You are not affected by a necessary finding in the Listings for your specific problem but you can demonstrate other findings;
- You do have all the necessary findings but one or more of the findings is not quite at the required level, in addition to other findings;
- Your impairment is not found in the Listings but may be as serious as a similar impairment that does appear in the Listings;
- You suffer from a mixture of impairments. Although none of them are in the Listings, the sum total of your impairments may end up equivalent to the Listings.
Making Comparisons
You may able to compare your medical issues and functioning restrictions as a claimant whose impairment is not in the Listings to another claimant whose impairments do appear in the Listings. Prior to this, however, a medical professional appointed by the Social Security Administration must provide his or her opinion on the validity of such a comparison. Then, an administrative law judge can assess whether your impairment is indeed medically equivalent to a listed impairment.
Assistance Is Available
The sequential evaluation process can be daunting. Enlist the help of a Savannah disability lawyer at Durden Rice & Barfield, P.C. To schedule an appointment, call (888) 705-8672.