What is the Compassionate Allowance Program?

The Social Security Disability program allows many people to get the benefits they need in order to receive medical treatment and wage replacement when they’ve suffered a serious injury. However, the program is inundated with new claims each and every day, and getting and ultimate decision on your claim is not a short process. In fact, it can take anywhere from several months to even a year or more before you receive your first decision. To make matters worse, if a claim is ultimately denied (like so many are the first time around), the process could drag on for even longer.

And that can be a real problem for some people, particularly those who have a serious ailment and are depending on being able to receive their benefits as quickly as possible. Fortunately, there is a shortcut for those with particularly serious conditions to essentially skip ahead in line and start receiving benefits in an expedited fashion. This is known as the Compassionate Allowance Program, and our Waterbury workers’ compensation attorneys will discuss it in more detail on this blog.

What is the Compassionate Allowance Program?

The Compassionate Allowance Program is an expedited claims processing service for those who suffer from a small and limited range of particularly debilitating conditions. For those who qualify, this program allows cases to be reviewed within a matter of days, not months, and decisions to be issued quickly so that those who need Social Security Disability benefits can get them quickly. In some cases, people have received their first benefits check in as little as just ten days through this program!

Do I Qualify?

The Compassionate Allowance Program is limited to an extremely small, and currently only accepts claims from a small number of different conditions. Currently, many cancers are on the list, along with ALS, some types of muscular dystrophy or atrophy, early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, and a few other conditions qualify consideration under Compassionate Allowance. Even then, these conditions are not a guarantee: some cancers need to have progressed to a certain stage before they’re covered. However, some diseases such as ALS or esophageal cancer are enough to qualify after a diagnosis alone.

Not all severe or fatal conditions qualify for this program either. HIV or AIDS are both not part of this program, and you’ll need to fulfill the severity requirements of the HIV/AIDS listing to qualify for Social Security Disability benefits at all.

Applying for Compassionate Allowance

There are two things you should do in order to apply for compassionate allowance. First, you should talk to your doctor and collect as much documentation and evidence as possible to support your condition. Everything from the history of your condition (including the onset date) to current treatments should all be included, and possibly even a plan for your treatment in the future.

Second, you’ll want so speak with a Waterbury workers’ compensation attorney if you sustained your condition due to your employment. A legal representative can help you fill out the proper paperwork and see to it that common mistakes are avoided, deadlines are met, and proper evidence is included to give you the best chance at a successful outcome. This is invaluable when you consider how much is riding on a quick acceptance.