Getting Long-Term Disability (LTD) for Chronic Pain
Chronic pain can prevent someone from working. Yet it can be challenging to get long-term disability benefits due to its subjective nature. There are no diagnostic tests that can show pain. Thus, many insurance companies will deny LTD claims based on this condition.
In this article, CCK Law will discuss:
- Chronic pain and conditions associated with it
- How chronic pain can prevent a person from working
- How LTD claimants can prove that chronic pain disables them
- And more
Understanding Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is persistent pain that lasts for weeks, months, or years and can result from a variety of sources. Some medical conditions that cause chronic pain include arthritis, fibromyalgia, and Lyme disease.
Additionally, sometimes after an injury heals, the pain persists for a prolonged period of time and is greater than would be expected from the causal injury. This is known as complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) or reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD). The treatment of certain conditions, like cancer, can also result in persistent pain. Occasionally, even mental health conditions such as depression can manifest as chronic pain.
Studies have suggested that chronic pain can be linked to certain glands and how they interact with your nervous system. Abnormalities in these interactions can cause some people to react to pain differently.
Further, additional studies have shown that those suffering from persistent pain have a low level of endorphins in their spinal fluid. Endorphins help our bodies naturally control pain, thus, a low level of endorphins can result in chronic pain that persists after the injury has healed or the illness has been treated.
How Can Chronic Pain Impact Your Ability to Work?
Chronic pain can be very restricting in any work setting. It may impede your ability to lift objects and walk around if you have a physical job; and even if you have a sedentary job, it can limit your ability to sit at a desk for a prolonged period of time.
Furthermore, persistent pain can be distracting and reduce your ability to focus on your work throughout an 8-hour workday, potentially causing you to be unproductive for a substantial portion of the day.
Additionally, chronic pain is often extremely fatiguing and can disrupt your sleep; this could cause you to need to take naps throughout the day. Typically, you would not be able to work reliably and consistently if you had extended periods of time in which you were unable to remain energized or perform any work activities or duties.
Your condition might also require you to take frequent breaks while performing activities, which are typically unacceptable in most jobs. Depending on the location and nature of your chronic pain, any job could become impossible. You should consider contacting an attorney if you are not sure if your chronic pain would qualify you for long-term disability benefits.
Are Disability Benefits for Chronic Pain Covered Under My Long-Term Disability Policy?
Some long-term disability policies contain provisions that entirely restrict subjectively reported symptoms from qualifying for long-term disability benefits. Likewise, some policies may limit the amount of time you can receive benefits for such conditions. Many claimants with chronic pain have difficulties proving their disability objectively because there are often no medical exams or tests that can prove its existence.
It is crucial to read your policy carefully if you are suffering from persistent pain and can no longer work. You may also want to consider contacting an attorney if your policy contains provisions restricting you from or limiting the amount of time you can receive long-term disability benefits due to chronic pain.
How Can I Prove That My Pain is Real and Debilitating?
Insurance companies will likely challenge a long-term disability claim for chronic pain, especially if it relies on subjective symptoms. Unfortunately, even with supporting documents and medical evidence, such companies will still scrutinize chronic pain LTD claims. However, there are ways to demonstrate the existence of chronic pain.
For example, functional capacity evaluations (FCE) can measure your ability to complete physical tasks. These evaluations often contain validity tests, which will indicate whether you are being sincere in your effort to complete certain tasks based on the results of the test. The physical therapists or specialists completing the evaluation will not tell you when you are working on a validity test, so it is important to give your best and honest effort during every exercise or task.
An FCE with valid results can serve as evidence of the existence of your pain and demonstrate your inability to engage in work tasks as a result. These evaluations can be expensive, and providing proper documentation indicating your medical history and background is important when arranging an FCE. You should consider seeking the assistance of an attorney if you believe an FCE may be useful in proving your claim.
If your condition is the result of joint or nerve damage, you may be able to prove its existence through CT scans, MRI scans, or X-rays. These scans may also reveal muscle or bone damage from previous injuries that could continue to cause you pain.
Reports from your doctors or your family, friends, or co-workers who have witnessed how your pain affects you can also help demonstrate that it exists and is disabling.
Contact Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD
At Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick, our team of attorneys and professionals has the experience required to assist you with your long-term disability claim for chronic pain. We can gather various kinds of evidence, including arranging expert opinions, to help demonstrate your condition and how it disables you. Contact us now at (800) 544-9144 for a free case evaluation to see if we can assist you in getting the benefits to which you are entitled.
