What is a Medical Vocational Allowance?

Indianapolis Social Security Disability Attorney Scott D. Lewis has many clients that win their Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claim by means of a Medical Vocational Allowance. You may wonder what this means when it comes to Social Security disability claims. As Attorney Scott Lewis explains to his clients, it is a way of winning a disability claimant’s claim not based on one of the Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) qualifying “Listing of Impairments.”

So, how can a disability claimant possibly win a disability claim if they don’t meet or exceed one of the medical listing of impairments defined by the SSA? A Medical Vocational Allowance (also known as Med-Voc) is a term used by the Social Security Administration (SSA) to define when someone is awarded Social Security disability benefits when the disability claim does not match one of the disabilities listed in the “Listing of Impairments.” How does this work? When the SSA is reviewing a disability claimant’s application, the examiner will request all medical records from sources the claimant has listed on their application. Once the medical records are received, the SSA will evaluate the claimant’s condition and compare the impairment with the listings of the SSA’s “Listing of Impairments” (Blue Book). The “Listing of Impairments” is a list of all qualifying conditions and impairments with their symptoms that a claimant must meet in order to be eligible for SSDI or SSI benefits. If a claimant does not meet or exceed a particular listing, the claimant is often denied disability benefits. However, this is how the Med-Voc comes into play. When a disability claimant does not meet a listing, but the SSA examiner decides based on the claimant’s medical evidence that the claimant’s disability is severe enough, that the claimant is unable to work, and the claimant is not able to engage in Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA), the claimant may be approved for disability benefits. If this is the case, the claimant is given a Medical Vocational Allowance and is approved for disability benefits.

Some common examples of impairments or conditions that may not meet a listing but might be able to get approved by a Medical Vocational Allowance are back problems, diabetes, obesity, or fibromyalgia. Attorney Scott D. Lewis has experience in representing disability claimants that have been denied SSDI or SSI benefits. If you are a disability claimant that has been denied disability benefits, call Indianapolis Social Security Disability Attorney Scott Lewis for a free consultation regarding your appeal at (866) 950-5116.