What Medical Conditions Qualify For Long Term Disability?
While you may purchase long-term disability insurance (LTD) from an insurance broker, it is typically offered by employers as part of a compensation package, but what medical conditions does long-term disability cover? A debilitating injury from an acute accident is the qualifying option. This assumption is only slightly true since there are a variety of physical, psychological, and medical conditions that could potentially qualify an applicant for long-term disability.
Qualifying Long-Term Disability Medical Conditions
The following is an inexhaustive list of medical and psychological conditions that an insurance company may consider severe enough to qualify as a disability. We should point out that depending on the disabling condition, the individual may have complete functionality, partial functionality, or none at all.
Musculoskeletal Conditions
Musculoskeletal functionalities include supporting the body, protecting internal organs, and facilitating movement. When affected, long-term disability may cover conditions that include:
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Arthritis or inflammatory arthritis
- Back pain
- Scoliosis
- Spinal disorders
- Herniated disks
- Amputations
- Degenerative joint disease
- Fractured bones and dislocations
- Fibromyalgia and fibromyositis
Psychological Disorders
These are mental or behavioural conditions that hinder personal functionality or result in the individual suffering significant distress.
- Depression
- Bipolar disorder
- Chronic anxiety
- Schizophrenia
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Drug addiction
- Autism
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- Agoraphobia
- Panic attacks
- Mood disorder
- Organic mental disorders
- Borderline personality disorder
Respiratory Conditions
Respiratory diseases are pathological conditions affecting the tissues and organs that facilitate gas exchange in humans.
- Asthma
- Lung cancer
- Cystic fibrosis
- Chronic lung infections
- Sarcoidosis
- Pneumoconiosis
- Influenza
- Pleural effusion
- Emphysema
- Chronic restrictive ventilatory disease
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- Bronchiectasis
- Acute respiratory distress syndrome
Cardiovascular Conditions
Medical conditions that affect the functions or structures of the heart may qualify for long-term disability. They may include the following:
- Recurrent arrhythmias
- Peripheral vascular disease
- Congenital heart disease
- Rheumatic heart disease
- Deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism
- Heart failure
- Heart muscle disease
- Heart valve disease
- Pericardial disease
- Other severe vascular diseases
Nervous System Disorders
Medical conditions that affect the nerves and neurons may interrupt transmission signals between different parts of the body.
- Epilepsy
- Parkinson’s disease
- Cerebral palsy
- Multiple sclerosis
- Myasthenia gravis
- Syringomyelia
- Stroke (cerebrovascular accident)
- Traumatic brain injury
- Alzheimer’s disease
- Guillain-Barré syndrome
- Seizure disorder
- Bell’s palsy
- Paralysis
- Neuropathy
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
- Meralgia paresthetica
- Empty sella syndrome
- Dystonia
Digestive System Disorders
The following are infections and diseases that affect the digestive tract. Depending on the policies your insurance company has in place, you may be eligible to receive coverage.
- Hernia
- Colitis
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Liver disease
- Crohn’s disease
- Short bowel syndrome
- Gastritis
- Wilson’s disease
- Temporomandibular joint disorder
- Kidney failure
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Gastroparesis
- Cirrhosis
Hematologic Diseases
Primarily, these disorders affect the blood and the organs that form them. If you have any of the diseases listed below, call your insurance company to verify your eligibility.
- Sickle cell anemia
- Coagulation defects and hemophilia
- Waldenström macroglobulinemia
- Thalassemias
- Hereditary telangiectasia
- Hemochromatosis
- Chronic anemia
- Pernicious anemia
- Chronic granulocytopenia
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Polycythemia vera
- Pancytopenia
- Chronic thrombocytopenia
Skin Disorders
Depending on the policies set in place, your insurance company may provide coverage for the following skin conditions and infections that cause the skin to act in unusual ways.
- Basal cell carcinoma
- Severe burns
- Lupus
- Wart
- Genetic photosensitivity disorders
- Cellulitis
- Psoriasis
- Dermatomyositis
- Bullous diseases
- Sebaceous cyst
- Ichthyosis
- Chronic skin diseases
Other Medical Conditions That May Qualify for Long-Term Disability
From neoplastic diseases and endocrine disorders to metabolic and parasitic diseases, the following are a wide range of diseases that may receive long-term disability insurance coverage.
- Diabetes
- Phenylketonuria
- Parathyroid gland disorders
- Myelofibrosis
- Hodgkin’s disease
- Lymphoma
- Macroglobulinemia
- Fetal alcohol syndrome
- Tuberculosis
- Mesothelioma
- Anorexia
- Obesity
- Malnutrition
- Caudal regression syndrome
- Coma
- Salmonella
- Uterine prolapse
- Cervicitis
- Meningitis
- Urinary tract infections
- Genital organ disorders
- Prostatitis
- Acute leukemia
- Chronic lymphocytic leukemia
- Chronic myelogenous leukemia
- Seasonal affective disorder
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Tumors
- Migraines and other severe headaches
- Insomnia
- Polio
- Hepatitis
- Sleep disorders
- Sleep apnea
- Gout
- Nephrotic disorder
- HIV/AIDS
We May Be Able to Provide Legal Help
As a personal injury law firm in Ontario, Canada, Preszler Injury Lawyers has been assisting people with injuries and long-term disability claims since 1959. If you need legal representation to navigate a claim against your insurance company, we are the company for you. Our lawyers support you with a free initial consultation, contingency fees, and direct communication. To speak to us about your legal needs, call now at 1-800-JUSTICE.
