Social Security Adds 9 Health Conditions That Qualify for Expedited Benefits

The logo of the US Social Security Administration outside a Social Security building in Burbank, Calif., on Nov. 5, 2020. VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images

The Social Security Administration has added nine new health conditions under its Compassionate Allowances designation. This means that people with these conditions will now have faster access to Social Security disability benefits than through the usual process.

Many conditions on the program’s list are rare diseases, although some are more common.

The additions announced on Aug. 12 by Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley are:

• Bainbridge-Ropers Syndrome. This rare genetic disorder affects one’s ability to learn and grow.
• Costello Syndrome. This is a rare genetic disorder that affects many parts of the body, causing developmental delays, heart problems, and short stature.
• Adult Heart Transplant Wait List - Status Levels 1-4. 
• Histiocytic Malignancies. This occurs when too many histiocytes—a type of white blood cell—build up in certain tissues and organs, causing damage to tissue or tumors to form in one or more parts of the body.
• Neonatal Marfan Syndrome. In Marfan syndrome, the body’s connective tissue, including the major blood vessels and the heart valves, are abnormal. Newborn babies with this condition usually suffer a severe, rapidly progressive cardiovascular disease.
• PACS1 Syndrome. Affected individuals have intellectual disability, speech, and language problems, and a distinct facial appearance.
• Plasmablastic Lymphoma. This type of blood cancer is developed in people who have immune system problems, such as HIV infections.
• Renal Medullary Carcinoma. This type of rare cancer grows in kidneys and predominantly affects young men of African descent.
• Snijders Blok-Campeau Syndrome. The condition is characterized by intellectual disability, speech problems, and distinctive facial features.

The SSA has also revised two conditions already on the list. They are:

• Child Heart Transplant Wait List - Status Levels 1A/1B.
• Histiocytosis Syndromes. Histiocytosis is a generic name for a group of syndromes involving the abnormal increase in the number of histiocytes.

With the latest changes, the Compassionate Allowances program now covers 287 conditions, including several types of cancers and brain disorders. All of the conditions on the list cause severe and obvious disabilities, and many are considered terminal illnesses.

When the program launched in 2008, only 50 conditions qualified for Compassionate Allowances. New conditions have been added periodically based on recommendations from medical and scientific experts, according to the SSA. Members of the public may also suggest a condition or disease for inclusion.

More than 1 million people with conditions eligible for Compassionate Allowances have received benefits through the expedited process. Due to the severe nature of many of those conditions, claims are often approved based on medical confirmation of the diagnosis alone.

“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,” Commissioner O'Malley said in a press release.

“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.”

The federal agency said it is using electronic medical records to identify potential Compassionate Allowance cases and make quick decisions.