Residents drop off Covid-19 PCR tests at a testing site run by the Centers for Disease Control, Federal Emergency Management Agency and eTrueNorth in Washington, D.C., January 5, 2022.
Eric Lee | Bloomberg | Getty’s paintings
When Christopher Perry fell ailing in July 2021, he thought he just had a cold.
But after Perry’s adult son found him unconscious in his lounge, he was taken to hospital and resuscitated on account of Covid-19.
The diagnosis of pulmonary respiratory failure results in long-term health consequences.
Today, 44-year-old Perry of Newport News, Virginia, can only walk short distances and gets drained quickly. His respiratory difficulties result in emergency room visits at the very least once a week.
“I’m beginning to break down and cry and I can not catch my breath,” Perry said.
His weight, blood pressure and sugar levels increased, requiring treatment. He is also receiving medication for respiratory and oxygen.
“That is all they will really do,” Perry said.
Perry’s condition prevented him from resuming his old full-time job at a NASA steam plant, where he climbed ladders and maintained boilers.
He was initially in a position to obtain short-term after which long-term disability insurance through his employer. Today, after a “very long and arduous trial,” Perry relies solely on Social Security disability advantages, with monthly checks of about $1,600 a month.
“I didn’t know Covid would do all this,” Perry said.
So far, the Social Security Administration has filed roughly 44,000 disability claims that mention Covid-19, although this is not necessarily the first reason for these claims. This represents only about 1% of the disability claims received because the agency began following these claims.
Nonetheless, it is possible that future claims for disability on account of long Covid could increase.
Applying for federal advantages can take months
As much as 30% of Americans who contracted Covid developed long-term symptoms, affecting as many as 23 million people with regard to the US Department of Health and Human Services.
Long Covid has put 2 to 4 million Americans aged 18 to 65 out of labor. recent research from the Brookings Institute. These lost earnings could amount to about $170 billion a yr, and potentially as much as $230 billion, the general public policy non-profit estimates.
To compensate for lost income, patients often use short-term or long-term disability insurance, in the event that they have already got one.
In case your health condition is prone to prevent you from working for 12 months or more, or will result in death, it’s possible you’ll be eligible for Social Security Disability or Supplemental Income Security advantages.
Social Security disability advantages are generally available to employees who’ve gathered enough payroll tax credits – typically 40 credits, although younger employees may qualify for less. In 2023, one credit is equal $1640 in earnings or self-employment income.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a federal profit available to individuals with disabilities who may not qualify for a Social Security disability pension based on their work history.
Average waiting time for initial Social Security disability decision lengthened during pandemic, reaching an all-time high of 6.6 months in August, data shows Center for budgetary and political priorities. Greater than 1 million disability claims are pending within the state’s disability adjudication services.
The strategy of applying for federal disability advantages is lengthy. In response to Andrew Wylam, a lawyer and president of Pandemic Patients, a non-profit patient advocacy organization dedicated to helping Covid patients get the services they need, this has left some patients with no other available source of income in a desperate financial situation.
“Some people hold on to their only hope of getting SSDI advantages, and that is a six-, eight- or 12-month process,” Wylam said.
Meanwhile, Wylam has seen these patients drain their lifetime savings, money in on their investments, and liquidate their assets, hoping Social Security disability advantages will eventually be available to assist them stay afloat.
“It’s extremely demoralizing and really heartbreaking when people undergo a situation like this,” Wylam said.
Applicants are also not guaranteed success at the tip of this wait. “Reward Rate” for Disability Claims, as measured by the Social Security Administrationaveraged 31% in 2011-2020. Meanwhile, rejected disability claims averaged 67%.
“Invisible” symptoms increase the problem
Allsup, which works with people claiming Social Security disability advantages or appealing claims, sees about 4% to five% of monthly Covid or long-Covid cases, in response to TJ Geist, the firm’s chief attorney.
In response to Geist, essentially the most successful apps are for more severe cases. Often, these cases required hospitalization and ventilators, and led to long-term serious health consequences similar to organ failure.
Allsup, which works with NASA, helped Perry get his Social Security disability application approved.
“Those which can be tougher are still those cases which have more invisible long-term symptoms, similar to fatigue, brain fog, depression,” Geist said.
“And unfortunately they’ve more difficulty getting approval,” he added.
My advice in situations like this might be to ensure your doctor tracks all of your symptoms, documents them, and has a complete history of your patient.
TJ Geist
Chief Advocate at Allsup
These cases may achieve success, but they take longer, in response to Geist. A call on an initial application can take six to eight months. If an appeal must be made, it could take about six months. After which, if there’s a trial, which could take one other yr.
“It could take up to a few years for the case to be settled at trial,” Geist said.
When Perry applied for Social Security disability advantages, he needed to fill out extensive paperwork that asked all the pieces from how far he could walk without losing his breath as to whether he was in a position to cook his own dinner.
The approval took about six months and would probably have been unimaginable without the assistance of a lawyer, he said.
In response to Geist, careful documentation of medical records also helps, especially with the “invisible” symptoms related to long-term Covid.
“My advice in situations like this might be to ensure your doctor tracks all of your symptoms, documents them, and has your patient’s complete history,” Geist said.
“It really could put a Social Security disability case on hold,” he said.
“No one Sees Us”
For patients and healthcare professionals, the query is how long the disease can last. Social Security disability advantages are targeted at long-term conditions.
“A whole lot of individuals with long Covid wish to work, and what they need is work accommodation,” said Alice Burns, associate director of the Medicaid and Uninsured program on the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Adele Benes, 57, was in “excellent health” when she was exposed to Covid while working at a Chicago hospital in 2020. Now, 26 months later, he continues to suffer from debilitating symptoms including fatigue, brain fog and cognitive difficulties that led to frequent visits to the emergency room.
Adele Benes continues to struggle with symptoms after contracting Covid-19 in 2020.
Courtesy of Adele Benes
To enhance his condition, Benes tried all the pieces from unconventional medical treatments to hypnosis. At times she had difficulty getting from bed to toilet and thought the pain and discomfort would kill her.
“The sensation was overwhelming,” said Benes. “How are you going to feel so bad and never die?”
Benes applied for Social Security disability advantages in February and is still waiting for a response. But what she wants most is to regain her health and return to normal life.
She cries as she remembers her old job helping sick patients as an ultrasound machine. “It was a joy,” she said.
The toughest part could also be knowing there is no cure.
“It’s a crazy disease and it’s invisible because we’re all hiding in our homes,” Benes said. “Nobody can see us, and from the skin we glance normal.”