Does a St. Louis Disability Claimant’s Age Affect Whether He or She Qualifies for Social Security Disability Benefits?

St. Louis Social Security disability attorney - Smiling WomanAn older St. Louis disability claimant has better odds than a younger St. Louis disability claimant of being awarded Social Security disability benefits. The Social Security Administration’s regulations make it easier to qualify for Social Security disability benefits for a few people at age 45 (those who are illiterate), for more people at age 50, for most people at age 55, and even more people at age 60. Speak to  a St. Louis Social Security disability attorney today!

Social Security law requires the Social Security Administration to consider age as part of its five-step sequential evaluation process, which is discussed in greater detail below. As part of the evaluation process, the St. Louis Social Security Administration considers if you can perform other work that exists in significant numbers in the national or local economy. This requires adaptability on the part of the individual. Generally, as you grow older you become less adaptable – and less able to switch to a different job as a result of your disability. For example, a severe knee injury that might cause a 35-year old to switch to a job in which he or she can sit down most of the time, might disable a 60-year old person who could not make the adjustment to a different type of work.

Your age as a factor in the St. Louis Social Security Administration’s five-step sequential evaluation process

The St. Louis Social Security Administration applies a five-step sequential evaluation process to analyze whether you are disabled and qualify for disability benefits. If it finds that you are disabled or not disabled at a step then the determination is over and it does not go on to the next step.

The Social Security Administration’s five-step approach is summarized immediately below. Please note that the words in quotes have special meaning to the Social Security Administration.

  • Step 1: Are you working? You will not be found disabled if you are doing “substantial gainful activity.” Substantial gainful activity is work that pays you $1,000 per month or more and involves more than minimum duties. If you are doing substantial gainful activity, the St. Louis Social Security Administration will not find you disabled. If you are not doing substantial gainful activity, go to Step 2.
  • Step 2: Do you have a “severe” impairment? An impairment or combination of impairments is severe if it significantly limits your physical or mental ability to do basic work activities. Examples of basic work activities include: seeing, hearing, and speaking; walking, standing, sitting, lifting, and reaching; understanding, remembering, and carrying out simple instructions; and use of judgment. If you do not have a “severe” impairment, then the Social Security Administration will not find you disabled. If your impairment is severe, move on to Step 3.
  • Step 3: Does your disability meet or equal one of the impairments described in the Social Security Administration’s regulations known as the Listing of Impairments? The Listings of Impairments are Social Security regulations that set medical standards for a variety of common mental and physical conditions. They are available on the Internet at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/index.htm. The Social Security Administration will find you disabled if you impairment (a) meets or “equals” one of the impairments described in the Listings, and (b) has lasted 12 continuous months (or is it expected to last that long) or result in death. If you satisfy this step, you will qualify for disability benefits and there is no need to continue to the next two steps. If your impairment does not meet or equal a listing, move on to the second way to qualify for disability benefits – Steps 4 and 5.
  • Step 4: Can you still do any of your previous jobs? Considering your “residual functional capacity,” are you able to do your past relevant work (any work you have performed in the last 15 years)? To meet Step 4, you usually must prove that you can no longer do the easiest job that you held in the last 15 years. In making its determination, the Social Security Administration will compare the physical and mental demands of your easiest job with your current ability to work. If you can do past relevant work, then you will not be found disabled. If you cannot do past relevant work, go on to Step 5.
  • Step 5: Can you perform other work that exists in significant numbers in the economy? This is the most complicated step in the evaluation process. At this step, the Social Security Administration will consider your age, education, work experience, and remaining capacity for work (“residual functional capacity”). If you can make an adjustment to perform other work that exists in significant numbers in the economy, you will not be found disabled. If you cannot do any other generally available jobs, you will be found disabled and will be eligible for Social Security disability benefits.

See The Sequential Evaluation Process for more information about the sequential evaluation process, and our video  for more information about qualifying for Social Security benefits.

Will you qualify for Social Security disability benefits?

As you can see from the above five steps, there are two ways to be found disabled in order to qualify for St. Louis Social Security disability benefits: (i) your impairment must meet or equal an impairment described in the Listing of Impairments (the sequential evaluation process culminates at Step 3); or (ii) you must meet all the other requirements of the sequential evaluation process culminating at Step 5. Step 5 is where your age really plays a role – the older you are, the easier it becomes to satisfy this step.

Your age is a factor in determining whether you have the ability to adjust to other work

At Step 5, the St. Louis Social Security Administration will look at your age, education, work experience, and remaining capacity for work, and determine if you have any transferable work skills that enable you to work despite your disability. If a St. Louis disability claimant has any transferable work skills, he or she may not be entitled to disability benefits even if that claimant cannot perform substantially all sedentary work. A claimant’s background might allow him or her to work in a new field.

Step 5 is an important step for St. Louis disability claimants under age 50 that have a disability that prohibits them from doing substantially all sedentary work. The Social Security Administration believes that claimants under age 50 are not old enough that their age should limit their ability to adjust to other work.

If you are over 50 and can no longer do the sort of work you have done in the past, the Social Security Administration’s rules require that your age be taken into account when considering whether or not you can do other work. These rules are embodied in the Medical-Vocational Guidelines, which are used by the Social Security Administration to determine disability at Step 5 of the sequential evaluation process. The guidelines, popularly known as the “grids” or “grid system,” can be complicated, but generally result in making it makes it easier for people over age 50 and especially those over age 55 to meet the definition of disability.

Evaluation under the grid system is limited to medical conditions that result in physical impairments. It does not apply to non-exertional impairments such as mental impairments. To be found disabled under the grid system, you still must meet other criteria that include a clearly documented, medically determinable impairment and a physical inability to do the type of work you performed in the past 15 years.

If you are between age 45 and 49

If you are under age 50, the Social Security Administration generally does not believe that your age will seriously affect your ability to adjust to other work. However, in some circumstances, the Social Security Administration considers that persons aged 45 to 49 are more limited in their ability to adjust to other work than persons who have not attained age 45.

You will most likely be found disabled if you: are at least 45 years of age; are restricted to sedentary work; are unskilled or have no transferable skills; have no relevant past work or can no longer perform vocationally relevant past work; and are either illiterate or unable to communicate in the English language.

However, if a St. Louis disability claimant is under age 45, age is usually not a significant factor in limiting such an individual’s ability to make a vocational adjustment, even an adjustment to unskilled sedentary work, and even where the individual is illiterate or unable to communicate in English.

If you are between age 50 and 54

If you are between 50 and 54, the Social Security Administration will consider that your age, along with a severe impairment and limited work experience, may seriously affect your ability to adjust to other work.

You will most likely be found disabled if: you are age 50 or older; you are physically limited to sedentary work; your education level is less than a high school diploma; and the work you performed in the past 15 years is unskilled or semi-skilled (or skilled in ways that do not transfer to other work). You would also most likely be considered disabled by the Social Security Administration if you have your high school diploma or have a higher degree of education, but your education doesn’t provide for direct entry into other skilled work.

If you are over 50 years old and are limited to unskilled sedentary work, the Social Security Administration will presume that you are unable to transition to other work due to your age. This can make a big difference in a St. Louis disability case. A St. Louis disability claimant who is limited to unskilled sedentary work may lose his claim for disability benefits at age 48, but will win it at age 50.

If you are over age 55

If you are age 55 or older, the Social Security Administration believes that your age significantly affects your ability to adjust to other work, and you have even a better chance of being awarded disability benefits. The Social Security Administration presumes that a St. Louis disability claimant over age 55 who is limited to unskilled light exertional work is unable to transition to other work.

You will most likely be found disabled if you: are age 55 or older; are physically limited to sedentary or light work; your education level is less than a high school diploma; and the work you performed in the past 15 years is unskilled or semi-skilled (or skilled in ways that do not transfer to other work). You may also be considered disabled by the Social Security Administration if you have your high school diploma or have a higher degree of education, but your education doesn’t provide for direct entry into other skilled work.

Once you are over age 60, if, as a result of your disability, you are unable to perform any of the jobs you performed in the last 15 years, regardless of what type of work you are physically limited to, the Social Security Administration will likely find you disabled.

Sedentary work vs. light work

At age 50, you may be found disabled even if you still possess the physical ability to do sedentary work. At age 55, you may be found disabled even if you still possess the physical ability to do sedentary work or light work. Sedentary work and light work are both defined by the Social Security Administration, and these terms are used as part of Step 5’s determination of the physical exertion requirements of work in the national economy. These terms have the same meaning as they have in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles, published by the Department of Labor.

Sedentary work involves lifting no more than 10 pounds at a time and occasionally lifting or carrying articles like docket files, ledgers, and small tools. Although a sedentary job is defined as one which involves sitting, a certain amount of walking and standing is often necessary in carrying out job duties. Jobs are sedentary if walking and standing are required occasionally and other sedentary criteria are met. Standing and walking should total no more than two hours per eight-hour workday, while sitting would total about six hours per eight-hour workday. In addition, most unskilled sedentary jobs demand good manual dexterity for repetitive hand and finger motions.

Light work involves lifting no more than 20 pounds at a time with frequent lifting or carrying of objects weighing up to 10 pounds. Even though the weight lifted may be very little, a job is in this category when it requires a good deal of walking or standing (approximately six hours of an eight-hour workday). Good use of hands and arms for grasping and holding is also important for light work. A seated position that involves extensive pushing and pulling of hand or foot controls is included in the category of light work.

To be considered capable of performing a full or wide range of light work, you must have the ability to do substantially all of these activities. If someone can do light work, the Social Security Administration determines that he or she can also do sedentary work, unless there are additional limiting factors such as loss of fine dexterity or inability to sit for long periods of time.

An Experienced St. Louis Social Security disability attorney can help

Individuals over the age of 50 face unique challenges when an injury or illness prevents them from working. Because of a disability, they may not be able to perform work quickly enough to satisfy employers; and labor statistics show that there are fewer full-time jobs open to people over 50. The Social Security Administration recognizes this and takes age into consideration when looking at your ability to adjust to other work and in understanding that you may no longer be able to perform the physically demanding jobs you have always held.

Regardless of your age, you may be medically eligible to receive Social Security disability benefits. However, if you are over age 50, it is important to understand the Social Security Administration’s special guidelines and presumptions for those over 50. An experienced St. Louis Social Security disability attorney can use the Social Security Administration’s special regulations for claimants over 50 to help win your disability case.

If you have such a case and are not already represented by a St. Louis Social Security disability attorney and want our evaluation, give us a brief description of your claim using the form to the right. Or you may contact us at:

David M. Hicks, P.C.

St. Louis Social Security Disability Attorney

St. Louis, Missouri office

Two City Place Dr., 2nd Floor
St. Louis, Missouri 63141
Tel: (314) 812-4885
Fax: (314) 812-2550

Alton, Illinois office

528 Henry Street
Alton, IL 62002
Tel: (618) 343-0901
Fax: (618) 301-3360