Can You Get
Disability Benefits
for Autism in Louisiana?

Deciding Whether SSDI or SSI Benefits for Autism Are Right for You

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) may provide more financial support than Supplemental Security Income (SSI), but it can be difficult to access for families managing autism.

• For SSDI, you must show you or your loved one has worked and paid a qualifying amount into the Social Security system. Your benefit amount will be based partly on your past income. The nature of autism makes this hard. It doesn’t necessarily get more severe over time. So if you worked before, it can be hard to prove you can’t work now because of your condition.
• For SSI, you don’t need a work history to qualify. It is based on having limited financial means. Because autism appears in childhood, people applying for disability benefits with autism often have never worked much. So SSI applies to many autism cases, whether it is you, an adult loved one, or a child who has autism.

If your child is still underage, your family could receive financial assistance from special children’s SSI benefits. Your child’s functioning must be significantly different from others the same age, and your family must qualify financially.

For adults, regardless of work history, you always have to prove that the person applying for benefits cannot work.

Are you looking for more information about whether you may have a strong Social Security Disability case?

You can talk with the experienced Louisiana disability lawyers at Empower Disability for a review of your situation at no cost to you.

How to Qualify for Social Security Benefits for Autism in Adults

The benefits system doesn’t make it easy for families looking for support. Most applicants are denied on their first try.

Don’t be discouraged. Empower Disability can help.

Autism exists on a spectrum with wide-ranging symptoms. People with autism can struggle to communicate, and they often misread social cues. They may show repetitive behaviors and have trouble consistently completing tasks and adapting to new situations.

These symptoms can put a job out of reach.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) defines symptoms of autism in its “Blue Book,” also called the “Listing of Impairments.”

For adults with autism to qualify for benefits, Social Security says they must have medical evidence for the following:

• Significant limitations in verbal and nonverbal communication and ability to socially interact
• Significant repetitive and restricted behavior and interests
• An extreme limitation in one—or marked limitations in at least two of these:

1. 1. Remembering, understanding, and applying information
   2. Interacting with others
   3. Concentrating, persisting, or maintaining pace in tasks
   4. Adapting to changes in daily life and managing oneself

Gathering the documentation to prove these circumstances can be a lot of work. The Empower Disability attorneys relieve the burden on you.

How to Qualify for Social Security Benefits for a Child with Autism

For children with mental disorders including autism, Social Security will take into consideration what is age appropriate for the way they function and look at how they interact at home and at school.

Social Security says you must use medical documentation to show childhood versions of similar conditions as adults with autism:

• Deficits in verbal communication, non-verbal communication and social skills
• Behavior, interests and activities that are significantly restricted or repetitive
• Extreme limitation in one or marked limitations in two of these:

1. 1. Understanding, remembering, or applying information
   2. Interacting with others
   3. Concentrating, persisting, or maintaining pace
   4. Adapting or managing oneself

The SSA requires that you prove the condition in question has lasted—or will last—for more than a year to qualify for benefits. They also take into account your household’s income and resources.

No matter how autism impacts your life, you don’t have to grapple with this alone. Our role is in our name: Empower Disability empowers you, your child or your family to live the fullest life.

With offices in Metairie, Empower Disability helps people in Kenner, New Orleans, Chalmette, Gretna, Marrero, Houma, the Northshore, Hammond and across Louisiana.

We’ve helped thousands of people secure the benefits they need. We carry the load for everyday people—people like you