You can get disability benefits if you suffer from an autoimmune disease. Living with an autoimmune disease can make daily life difficult and make it hard for you to work a full-time job.
If your condition prevents you from working, you may qualify for short-term or long-term disability insurance benefits through your employer.
However, securing those benefits can be complicated and confusing. Insurance companies often deny autoimmune disease claims, arguing that the symptoms are subjective or not well-documented.
That’s where a skilled long-term disability lawyer can help. Let’s take a closer look at whether you can get benefits for an autoimmune disease and how an attorney can help.
Understanding Autoimmune Diseases and Disability Benefits
Autoimmune diseases occur when the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues. There are more than 80 recognized autoimmune conditions, and many of them are chronic, meaning they last for years or a lifetime.
Autoimmune conditions like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and Crohn’s disease are unpredictable and often invisible to others, yet they can cause severe pain, fatigue, and long-term health complications.Â
If you’re dealing with one of these conditions, you’re probably wondering if you can get disability benefits for an autoimmune disease.
An attorney can assess your situation and advise you on what autoimmune diseases qualify for disability. Some of the most common autoimmune diseases that may warrant benefits include the following:
- Lupus
- Multiple sclerosis (MS)
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis
- Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis
- Sjögren’s syndrome
- Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
- Myasthenia gravis
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Disability Benefits You Can Get if You Suffer From an Autoimmune Disease
When you ask an attorney, “Does autoimmune disease qualify for disability?” they’ll offer a straightforward answer and explain which types of benefits you can receive for your condition.
Depending on your unique situation, you could be eligible to receive one of the following types of disability:
- Short-Term Disability (STD): This type of disability benefit provides partial wage replacement for a few weeks or months if your symptoms prevent you from working temporarily.
- Long-Term Disability (LTD): This benefit offers longer-term income replacement if your condition makes it impossible to work for six months or longer.
Both of these types of benefits are often governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), a federal law that sets strict rules for filing claims, appeals, and lawsuits against insurers. To get the ERISA benefits you deserve, you’ll need to work with a skilled attorney.
Challenges With Autoimmune Disability Claims
Insurance companies regularly deny autoimmune disease claims. To get the benefits you need to support yourself, you’ll need a dedicated attorney who is familiar with common insurance company tactics and can fight for the benefits you’ve earned.Â
An attorney can answer the question “Is an autoimmune disease a disability?” and help you overcome the following challenges with autoimmune disability claims:
- Subjective nature of symptoms: Fatigue and pain from autoimmune conditions are often difficult to measure and may lack objective medical evidence, giving insurers an excuse to downplay them.
- Periods of remission: Companies may argue you can still work during “good days,” when your condition isn’t as debilitating as usual
- Failure to meet policy definitions: Each plan defines “disability” differently, and insurers often interpret these definitions narrowly. Your attorney will know whether you can get disability benefits for your autoimmune disease and won’t let insurers take advantage of you.
- Doctor disagreement: Insurance company physicians may claim you can perform some type of work, even if your treating doctor disagrees.Â
These tactics are designed to protect the insurer’s bottom line, not your health. A committed lawyer will combat these tactics, present strong medical evidence and expert witness testimony, and strive to get the results you need to live a comfortable life.
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How a Lawyer Can Help With Autoimmune Disease Disability Claims
Autoimmune disability claims require careful preparation, and appeals demand even more precision. A skilled lawyer will focus on every detail that could make the difference in your case and work hard to get a favorable outcome.
Here’s how an attorney will help with your claim:
- Explain whether you can get disability benefits if you suffer from an autoimmune disease
- Review your disability insurance policy and answer any questions you have about it in a clear, simple way
- Collect medical evidence, test results, and expert witness statements
- Prepare your appeal and ensure it addresses every issue raised in the denial letter
- Ensure your administrative record is complete and strong, which is important if your case goes to court
- Represent you in court if insurers refuse to pay your benefits
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Take the Next Step Toward Securing Benefits
If you are living with an autoimmune disease and can no longer work, disability benefits may provide the stability you need. That said, insurers often make the claims process unnecessarily difficult. Don’t give up if your claim has been denied.
At ERISA Insurance Claim Attorneys, we fight to protect the rights of employees who have been unfairly denied benefits. With 30+ years of experience, we know how to hold insurance companies accountable.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation and find out if you can get disability benefits if you suffer from an autoimmune disease.
Call or text (225) 201-8311 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
