Like Social Security Disability, to qualify for SSI disability a person must have one or more medically determinable medical conditions (which may be physical or mental in nature) that affect their ability to engage in work activity.
To satisfy the Social Security definition of disability, the condition, or conditions, must last for at least one full year and be severe enough to either A) prevent the claimant from engaging in substantial and gainful work activity or B) satisfy the requirements of a listing in the Social Security list of impairments.
Most claims that are approved are not approved on the basis of a disability listing, but, rather on the basis of a medical vocational allowance. A medical vocational allowance is granted when Social Security determines that the claimant’s medical condition imposes functional limitations that are severe enough to prevent a return to work activity, either performing their past work or performing some form of other work while earning a substantial and gainful income.
