Can You Get Disability Benefits for Parkinson's Disease?

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative neurological disorder that primarily affects how you move. Resting tremors are a well-known early sign of Parkinson's, but symptoms such as muscle stiffness, decreased coordination, trouble standing and walking, and slurred speech can present themselves as the disease progresses. When these symptoms have kept you from working on a regular basis for at least one year, you can qualify for Social Security disability benefits.

Parkinson's disease is typically diagnosed in people over 60, but younger people can develop the disorder as well. (Michael J. Fox, famous for his portrayal of Marty McFly in Back to the Future, has been an outspoken advocate for Parkinson's research since he was diagnosed at age 29.) Social Security takes age into consideration when determining if you're disabled, so it's important to know the different rules for getting benefits before and after you turn 50 years old.

Is Parkinson's Disease a Disability?

The Social Security Administration (SSA) awards disability benefits to people who have a medically determinable impairment that prevents them from engaging in substantial gainful activity for twelve months or more. That means that if your Parkinson's symptoms meet the requirements of a Blue Book listing or cause functional limitations that rule out all full-time employment, your application for disability benefits will be approved.

Causes and Symptoms of Parkinson's Disease

Parkinson's disease typically begins with minor symptoms but progressively gets worse over a period of years. The loss of motor control characteristic of Parkinson's is related to a decrease in dopamine production in the parts of the brain responsible for smooth movements, but the underlying disease is associated with a misfolded protein known as "alpha-synuclein." In the later stages of Parkinson's, dementia often becomes an additional problem as the degenerative process caused by alpha-synuclein spreads throughout the brain.

The tremors, slowed movements, and speech changes linked to Parkinson's are collectively known as "Parkinsonian syndrome." Classic Parkinson's disease causes most cases of Parkinsonian syndrome, but other disorders can result in the same signs and symptoms. Damage to the brain caused by strokes, traumatic brain injury, tumors, infections, or chronic drug abuse can also cause Parkinsonian syndrome.

Treatment of Parkinson's Disease

Most symptoms of Parkinsonian syndrome are not reversible, and in the case of Parkinson's disease, the disorder is progressive. Medications can make some symptoms of Parkinson's disease manageable for a while. For instance, the movement problems you experience might be helped by drugs that replace dopamine (called "dopamine agonists"). But as the disease progresses, dopamine agonist medications tend to become less effective over time, and Parkinsonian syndrome symptoms return—because the real culprit is alpha-synuclein.

In some severe cases that no longer respond to drugs, patients' tremors have been helped by the placement of deep brain electrodes, but the procedure is highly invasive and not a cure. Until neuroscientists discover how to stop the formation of abnormal alpha-synuclein, Parkinsonian symptoms can only be mitigated rather than curing the disease entirely.

How to Qualify for Disability Benefits for Parkinson's

The SSA considers Parkinson's disease severe enough to include in its "Blue Book"—a category of medical conditions that can qualify you for disability benefits automatically, provided certain criteria are met. As with most disorders, the agency doesn't evaluate Parkinson's based on just having a diagnosis of the disease, but on how the disease causes limitations in your physical and mental functioning.

Getting Disability by Meeting the Requirements of Listing 11.06

The SSA evaluates Parkinson's disease under Blue Book Listing 11.06 for Parkinsonian syndrome. People of any age can qualify by meeting a listing. To get benefits under listing 11.06, you'll need medical records that document one of the following sets of symptoms:

• You can't control the movements of both of your arms or legs (or one of each), despite at least three months of treatment, and you have extreme difficulty balancing while standing or walking; standing up from a seated position; or using your arms.
• You have "marked limitations" in physical functioning along with a marked limitation in at least one area of mental functioning, such as comprehending information, interacting with others, finishing tasks, or managing your daily needs.

"Marked" means that you are "seriously limited" in your ability to independently perform a task or activity on a sustained basis. For example, you might be able to go grocery shopping by yourself, but you need to use a motorized scooter to move from aisle to aisle, and you need assistance getting your groceries into and out of your car. Or you may maintain relationships with your friends and family, but you struggle with your speech to the degree that they often need you to repeat yourself or communicate in writing.

Getting Disability Based on a Reduced Functional Capacity

Meeting a listing isn't the only way someone with Parkinson's disease can qualify as disabled. Under a "medical-vocational allowance," the SSA can also consider you disabled if your symptoms interfere with your ability to function so much that you can't work full-time at all. (Here's where the different rules for younger claimants and those over 50 start to apply.)

In order to decide whether you can work, Social Security reviews your medical records and activities of daily living to come up with your residual functional capacity (RFC). Your RFC is an assessment of the most you're still able to do, physically and mentally, in a work environment, despite your Parkinson's symptoms. Your RFC will almost certainly include "exertional" restrictions on how long you can sit, stand, and walk, as well as how much weight you can lift. It's likely that your RFC will also contain "non-exertional" restrictions on what types of tasks you can perform (skilled or unskilled) and how well you can interact with others.

The more combined exertional and non-exertional limitations you have in your RFC, the less likely Social Security will conclude that you're able to work. The agency first compares your current RFC with the demands of your past jobs to see if you could do them today. If not, the agency looks for other jobs that somebody with your RFC might be able to perform. If no such jobs exist, your disability claim will be approved.

Claimants 50 years of age and older have a better chance of being approved using Social Security's "grid rules." The grid rules take into account factors such as your age, education, and transferable skills to determine whether you could be expected to switch to another type of work given your current RFC. Claimants younger than 50 generally need to have an RFC for "less than sedentary" work in order to qualify for disability benefits.

Is It Hard to Get Benefits for Parkinson's?

It depends on how severely the disease has progressed. Remember that Social Security doesn't make disability decisions based on diagnosis alone, but rather any functional limitations that result from the diagnosed disorder. But thanks to the advocacy of people with Parkinson's, the condition has become more visible in recent years, which means that the disability examiner assigned to your claim is more likely to be aware of what the disorder entails. You probably won't have much of an uphill battle convincing the SSA that your diagnosis is legit.

Still, the agency needs to see solid medical evidence containing objective imaging, clinical notes from your doctors, and ongoing treatment for the disease before it can make a finding of disability. Physical and mental examinations provide context for how quickly the disease is degenerating. Speech therapy records and medication lists can help the SSA understand how you're responding to treatment. And having a medical source statement from your physician or neurologist can provide important insight about why you should be found disabled.

Can I Get a VA Disability Rating for Parkinson's Disease?

Veterans who have service-connected Parkinsonian syndrome may qualify for a VA disability rating. Using the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities (38 C.F.R. §4), Parkinson's disease can be evaluated under diagnostic code 8004, Paralysis agitans, with a minimum rating of 30%. However, any "residual" impairments can increase your rating, depending on the degree to which your movement or cognition is limited. For more information, see our article on how VA disability ratings work.

Does Parkinson's Qualify for Long-Term Disability?

If you have private long-term disability insurance, you may be able to recoup a percentage of your average wages for a certain period of time if you become unable to work due to Parkinson's disease. Some LTD plans will pay if you're unable to return to your "own occupation," while others will pay if you're unable to return to "any occupation." Many plans switch from "own occupation" to "any occupation" after a certain period of time, typically 24 months, and they often require you to file for Social Security disability as well. (You can learn more in our article on filing a long-term disability claim.)

How Much Can I Get in Disability Benefits for Parkinson's?

Social Security doesn't award benefits based on the type of medical condition you have. Instead, the amount you'll receive if you're approved depends on whether you're eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). SSDI eligibility is based on your work history and how much you've contributed to the program in payroll taxes, while SSI is a needs-based benefit available to people with limited resources.

For 2026, the maximum you can receive in SSDI benefits is $4,152 per month (although the average amount is much lower, at $1,630). SSI benefits are tied to the federal benefit rate, which in 2026 is $994 per month minus any countable income you have in that month. Some states also offer modest supplemental payments in addition to the federal SSI rate. You can learn more in our article on SSDI and SSI monthly check amounts.

VA benefits are calculated differently, using a combination of your disability rating and your living situation. For example, in 2026, an individual veteran with no dependents and a 30% rating can get $552.47 monthly in disability compensation from the VA, while a similarly situated veteran with a 60% rating can get $1,435.02 every month. But if these veterans were instead married with one child, the one with a 30% rating would receive $666.47 each month and the one with a 60% rating would receive $1,663.02. (Visit the VA website listing the current disability compensation rates to see the tables used to determine monthly benefit amounts.)

Applying for Disability Benefits for Parkinson's Syndrome

Applying for Social Security benefits is a fairly straightforward process, and there's nothing special you need to do when you're filing based on Parkinson's. You have several methods to choose from:

• File online using the agency's SSDI application portal (or SSI portal, for certain eligible claimants).
• Call the Social Security national hotline at 800-772-1213 (TTY 800-325-0778 for the hearing impaired) between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday.
• Go to your local Social Security office and speak with a representative in person.

(The VA application process works much in the same way—see our article on filing for veterans disability benefits for more information.) After you've submitted your application, the SSA will request records from your doctors, send you questionnaires to complete, and potentially ask you to attend a consultative examination. Once the evidence in your file is complete, the agency will issue a decision. On average, this takes four to five months, but it could take longer.

What Happens If My Condition Doesn't Qualify for Benefits?

Many people with Parkinson's can't work at all, but their applications are still denied on their first try. Fortunately, if your application is denied, you have 60 days to appeal the decision. Most disability claims are won on appeal, especially for progressive conditions like Parkinson's.

But if you can still do some limited type of work, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to help you perform your job. (42 U.S.C. §12112(a)(5))(2026). These accommodations may include adjustments to your work setting or schedule, such as:

• stand-lean stools
• periodic rest breaks
• extra time to perform duties
• white noise machines or noise-canceling headsets
• on-site mentoring or job coaching
• hands-free telephones, and
• typing/keyboarding aids.

You aren't required to have a lawyer to appeal a denial or ask for accommodations. But you may want to seek legal counsel if your employer denied your request for reasonable accommodations or you need to schedule a hearing with an administrative law judge. An employment discrimination attorney can make sure that your ADA rights are respected, while an experienced disability lawyer can represent you at your disability hearing. Many attorneys offer free consultations, so there's little risk in seeking help.