Aurora Social Security Disability Law Blog

In some ways, poverty can lead to poor health, particularly for those who can't afford medical care. That can cause a greater rate of disability, which can in turn lead to more poverty. It's a vicious cycle.

It may help to explain why those relying on Social Security disability benefits frequently live in poor, rural areas. According to the Kansas City Star, data released recently shows that the highest concentrations of people relying on disability benefits are in historically rural and poor communities.

Cystic fibrosis is a potentially disabling disorder that affects about 30,000 people in this country. The disease is genetic and causes heavy mucus to build up in people's lungs, leading to a lifetime of health problems. The disease often damages the lungs so severely that people suffering from it die by the time they reach middle age.

Scientists are hoping an expensive new drug may change that outlook. While the drug, called Kalydeco, may only help a small fraction of patients, it's hoped that it can be paired with other drugs in the future to help nearly all suffers of cystic fibrosis. Kalydeco was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The effects of heart disease are staggering. Heart-related issues cause approximately 2,200 deaths per day in the U.S. Suffering from heart disease can also lead to disability and prevent people from working.

Many heart-related problems qualify as impairments, according to the Social Security Administration. Chronic heart failure, recurrent arrhythmias and ischemic heart disease are just a few. Others qualifying issues include heart transplants, aneurysm of the aorta or its major branches, peripheral arterial disease and chronic venous insufficiency.

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's National Survey on Drug Use and Health, approximately 20 percent of Americans experienced mental illness in the last year. And about 5 percent of the U.S. adult population, or 11.4 million people, suffered from a serious mental illness, which is defined as a mental illness that resulted in serious impairment and severely limited at least one major life activity.

Among those suffering from serious mental illness, the rate of substance abuse or dependence was over 25 percent, compared with 6.1 percent of those who had not suffered from mental illness.

There's no question that brain injuries are serious. Traumatic brain injuries, serious though they can be, do not always result in permanent problems. But a long-held belief in the medical community that children are not as vulnerable to the negative effects of such an injury is being called into question by two new studies.

According to a CNN article, the studies show that children who have severe traumatic brain injuries early in their lives may see impaired long-term intellectual ability and cognitive development.

In a blog post last summer, we reported that new studies indicated that there is no link between a virus and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Scientists have now even more firmly concluded that the virus theory is all but "dead and buried."

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a debilitating illness, and a frustrating one at that. There is no cure and it is notoriously difficult to diagnose. The new theory had given many sufferers hope, and many are disappointed that recent studies linking the disease to a virus just aren't true.

Sometimes it takes an unconventional method to help improve one's mental or physical health. According to a recent report published in the International Journal of Person Centered Medicine, volunteering can lead people to be happier and healthier in their lives.

Of course, people suffering from severe mental illness or a debilitating disease are not going to see an immediate fix. But particularly for people suffering from mild to moderate depression, the elderly and those with substance abuse problems or chronic diseases, volunteering can help them feel somewhat better, according to the new research.

In Illinois, there is a 14-year-old state law that requires municipalities to pay full health insurance costs for public safety employees responding to emergencies who are injured catastrophically, or for the family of a worker who is killed.

Many people who are injured on the job rely on Social Security disability benefits. For public workers in Illinois, however, municipalities will help them out.