Getting Social Security Disability for Cerebral Palsy

Cerebral palsy is a group of neurological disorders that affect the ability to move and maintain balance. Hallmarks of the condition include stiff muscles, uncontrollable movements, and poor coordination (ataxia). Additional conditions that may be related to cerebral palsy include seizures, limited vision or hearing, spinal abnormalities (like scoliosis), or intellectual disorders.

Symptoms of cerebral palsy commonly begin during infancy or childhood. While the condition doesn't yet have a cure, some people are able to successfully manage their symptoms into adulthood. But others can have trouble holding down jobs due to difficulties with motor coordination, cognitive issues, and sensory impairments. If your cerebral palsy causes functional limitations that keep you from working full-time, it's important to understand how Social Security evaluates the disorder and what evidence you'll need to be considered disabled.

Is Cerebral Palsy a Disability?

The Social Security Administration (SSA) awards disability benefits to children and adults with cerebral palsy whose medical records contain specific evidence set out in the agency's "Blue Book." The Blue Book—also called the listing of impairments—describes the medical criteria needed to determine if somebody can be found automatically disabled.

Adult Cerebral Palsy

Adult cerebral palsy is evaluated under listing 11.07. You can meet this listing in several ways:

• you have trouble with at least two of your arms or legs to the point that you can't get up from a chair, walk without falling, or hold and carry objects without assistance
• you can move independently, but you struggle to maintain mental focus, or
• you're so limited in your ability to see, speak, and hear that you can't communicate well.

Adults with mild to moderate cerebral palsy symptoms might not qualify for automatic benefits under listing 11.07, but can still be found disabled if they can show that they can't work full-time for at least one year.

Childhood Cerebral Palsy

Childhood cerebral palsy is evaluated under listing111.07. For the SSA to find that your child meets the requirements of this listing, the record needs to show that they have so much difficulty using their arms or legs ("disorganization of motor function in two extremities") that they need help with very basic movements like getting up from a chair, holding a fork, or walking without falling. For more information, see our article on SSI benefits for children with cerebral palsy.

Can I Qualify for Disability If I Don't Meet the Cerebral Palsy Listing?

Because cerebral palsy isn't a degenerative disorder—meaning symptoms don't worsen over time—you might have a milder form of the disease that isn't disabling under listing 11.07. But people with cerebral palsy often have other conditions that can limit their activities. For adults, the SSA is required to consider the combined effects of these conditions on your ability to work.

Social Security will review your function report and doctor's notes to make a determination about your residual functional capacity (RFC). Your RFC is the agency's estimate of the most you're capable of doing, physically and mentally, in a work environment. A typical RFC for an adult with cerebral palsy includes restrictions on:

• how long you can stand and walk
• how much weight you can lift and carry
• whether you need an assistive device like a cane, walker, or crutch
• how long you can use your hands and fingers to move objects
• whether you can work around hazardous machines, loud noises, or low lights, and
• whether you can follow complex or simple instructions.

Social Security uses your RFC to determine whether you can perform any jobs that you've done in the past. Depending on your age and past work, the agency will then look to see whether any other jobs exist that you could do within your current RFC. If no jobs exist that you can currently do despite your restrictions, you'll be found disabled. For adults younger than 50, this generally means needing to show that you can't do even simple sedentary work, while those 50 years of age and older may have an easier time qualifying under the medical-vocational grid rules.

Medical Evidence You'll Need to Get Disability for Cerebral Palsy

In order to find that you meet the listing for cerebral palsy or that your RFC rules out all work (and therefore award you disability benefits), you'll need to submit extensive medical evidence showing the extent of your symptoms. Social Security will be looking for the following in your medical records:

• clinical notes from your doctors showing how you're feeling and acting during visits
• physical examinations showing any reduced range of motion or tenderness to touch
• mental examinations demonstrating any abnormalities in memory or abstract thinking
• objective medical imaging (such as X-rays, MRIs, EEGs, or CT scans)
• results of any lab tests, and
• a list of medications you're taking and how you're responding to them.

Having a medical source statement from your treating doctors can also provide a huge boost to your claim. Social Security values medical opinions from physicians, psychologists, and psychiatrists who can offer insight into the nature of your condition and how your symptoms affect your ability to work.

How to Apply for Disability for Cerebral Palsy

Filing for disability benefits is a relatively straightforward process. Adults who want to start an application for disability benefits have several options:

• Apply online at Social Security's website. This method has many benefits, such as giving you a dated receipt of your application and letting you start and finish at your own pace.
• Call 800-722-1213 between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, to speak with a representative. If you're deaf or hard of hearing, you can call the TTY number at 800-325-0778.
• Go in person to your nearest Social Security field office. Some locations require that you make an appointment first, so call ahead before you visit.

Submitting a disability application for a child is a bit more challenging. You can provide Social Security some basic information online here and the agency will contact you to schedule an in-person appointment to finish the application. You can also complete theChild Disability Report online, but you (or your child) will still need to attend the appointment.

In some circumstances, people with very serious cerebral palsy symptoms who apply for SSI can begin receiving benefits immediately under "presumptive disability." Presumptive disability is a way for Social Security to provide temporary, short-term SSI payments to applicants that the agency thinks are highly likely to be found disabled. Presumptive disability benefits are available for the first six months while your application is processed, and you don't have to repay the presumptive benefits if Social Security later denies your application.

How Much Can I Get in Disability Benefits for Cerebral Palsy?

Social Security doesn't make payments based on the kind of disability you have. Instead, how much you'll receive depends on which type of benefit program you're eligible for—Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Each program has certain preliminary non-medical criteria you'll need to meet before you can receive payments. To receive SSDI, you need to have insured status based on your work history, and to receive SSI you need to have less than a certain amount of assets.

In 2026, the maximum SSDI payment is $4,152 per month, although the average payment is much smaller, at $1,630. SSI payments are capped at $994 per month, which can be reduced by the amount of any countable income you have in that month. You can learn more—and calculate your estimated benefit— in our article on SSDI and SSI monthly check amounts.

Adults with cerebral palsy can get SSDI, SSI, or both. Depending on which program you qualify for, you might also be eligible for additional benefits like Medicare, Medicaid, and dependents' benefits for your family. Children who meet the medical listing for cerebral palsy will receive SSI benefits until they turn 18, after which they will be re-evaluated under the adult listing. At that time, they might qualify for SSDI as disabled adult children.

What If I Don't Qualify for Disability Benefits?

Only about one-third of disability claimants are approved on their first try. If, after reading over the denial letter, you disagree with the SSA's decision, you have 60 days to submit an appeal. Social Security's appeals process typically involves getting another denial before you can request a hearing with an administrative law judge, where you have your best shot at getting benefits.

While you aren't required to have an attorney to apply for benefits or appeal a denial, it's usually a good idea. An experienced disability lawyer or advocate can help you gather the proper medical paperwork, make sure you don't miss important appeal deadlines, and represent you at a disability hearing. And because disability lawyers aren't allowed to charge you if you don't win—and they're limited to a small percentage of your disability backpay if you do win—there's little risk in finding a lawyer near you to help with your claim.