What Heart Conditions Qualify for Disability?

Heart conditions are some of the most common impairments listed in applications for Social Security disability benefits (SSDI or SSI). Because the heart is such an important muscle, when it's not working properly, you can experience symptoms in every part of the body. Some of these symptoms are relatively mild and can be effectively treated with diet and exercise. But others are more serious and require lengthy or intensive medical intervention.

Social Security can award disability benefits to people whose heart conditions keep them from working full-time for at least twelve months. Major heart problems may qualify automatically under the agency's Blue Book of cardiovascular disorders, while other less severe (but still limiting) conditions can qualify if they prevent you from doing any job on a regular basis. Before you apply, it's important to know what medical evidence you'll need to show Social Security that your heart condition is disabling.

How Hard is it to Get Disability for Heart Problems?

It depends on what your medical records show about your heart condition and how your cardiovascular symptoms limit your activities of daily living. Somebody who has high blood pressure that's well controlled by medications is going to have a harder time getting disability than somebody who's been hospitalized for heart failure and needs an oxygen tank to get around.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) doesn't award benefits based solely on having a diagnosed heart problem. Instead, you'll need medical documentation of a heart disorder that either meets the requirements of a Blue Book listed impairment or causes functional limitations that rule out all full-time work. Documents that the SSA looks for include:

• poor exercise tolerance tests showing that you can't do much physical exertion without fatigue or angina (chest pain)
• imaging results or other test results showing abnormalities of the heart muscle or the vessels leading to heart, or
• several hospitalizations in the past year.

Evidence of these factors likely means that you have restrictions on the types of physical activities you can safely perform, which can limit the type of jobs you can do (and make it more likely that Social Security will considered you disabled).

What Heart Problems Qualify for Disability?

Below is a list of the most common heart conditions found in applications for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI, available to people who've earned enough work credits over the years) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI, a needs-based benefit for people with limited resources). According to the most recent Social Security data, about 6.6% of SSDI recipients and 3.2% of SSI recipients have been diagnosed with a circulatory system disorder, which ranks about in the middle in terms of most and least commonly awarded conditions. (Sources: Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, 2024 and SSI Annual Statistical Report, 2024.)

Coronary Artery Disease

Coronary artery disease occurs when the arteries become clogged and narrowed and eventually restrict blood flow to the heart—a condition known as atherosclerosis. Without adequate blood, the heart becomes starved of oxygen, and this oxygen deprivation causes a cramping of the heart muscle known as ischemia.

Coronary artery disease is diagnosed by electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), exercise stress tests, and cardiac catheterization (generally referred to as a "cath," which will reveal the level of blockage in a main artery).

If you have coronary heart disease, you'll need to show Social Security that you suffer from angina and that you've had abnormal exercise stress tests or imaging results, or that you've had several angioplasties or bypass surgeries. For the details, see our article on getting disability benefits for coronary artery disease.

Congestive Heart Failure

Congestive heart failure is an aspect of heart disease where blood returning to the heart through the veins backs up, causing congestion in the tissues. This happens because the heart can't pump enough blood to the body's other organs. Swelling (edema) often results, as this condition affects the kidneys' ability to dispose of sodium and water. Sometimes fluid collects in the lungs and interferes with breathing, causing shortness of breath, especially when lying down.

Congestive heart failure is often diagnosed during a physical examination, at which time a doctor can listen to your chest with a stethoscope for the crackling sounds of fluid in the lungs, heart murmur, or the presence of a very quick heartbeat. A doctor may tap on the chest to find out if fluid has built up. Chest X-rays can reveal an enlarged heart or the presence of fluid around the lungs. Electrocardiography (ECG or EKG) is used to check for an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia), stress on the heart, or past heart attack. Echocardiography is used to determine valve function, heart wall motion, and overall size of the heart.

To get disability benefits for CHF, you'll have to show Social Security that you have a poor ejection fraction or abnormal imaging results. You'll also need to have poor exercise stress test results or several episodes of heart failure that required hospitalization in the past year.

Arteriosclerosis

Arteriosclerosis, commonly called "hardening of the arteries," is an aspect of heart disease that occurs when fatty or calcium deposits in the artery walls cause them to thicken. This condition is often an inevitable result of aging; the walls of blood vessels become stiffer as time passes, as does all connective tissue of the body. Arteriosclerosis is a term that actually comprises a group of coronary diseases, many of which occur in people who have had diabetes for a long time.

The most well-known result of this condition is a heart attack, also called a myocardial infarction. In most heart attacks, both atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis are present. Atherosclerosis causes plaque build-up in the arteries, and arteriosclerosis stiffens the arteries so that they cannot expand to compensate for the blockage caused by plaque formation. Blood flow through the heart is restricted by the obstruction caused by the plaque.

Social Security evaluates whether arteriosclerosis or atherosclerosis qualifies for disability benefits under its ischemic heart disease listing.

Aneurysm

An aneurysm is a bulge in part of an artery that stems from weakness in the wall of the blood vessel. If an aneurysm ruptures, it can cause fatal bleeding. Aneurysms can occur in the aorta, the brain, or other arteries.

To get disability benefits for an aneurysm, you'll have to show that it's too risky for you to exert yourself because imaging tests show that you have an aneurysm that is separating from the artery wall, meaning that it's at risk of rupturing. For the details, see our article on disability benefits for aneurysms.

How to Get Disability for Heart Problems That Don't Automatically Qualify

Few disability claimants with a diagnosed heart condition will have the medical evidence necessary to meet a listing. The more common method of qualifying for benefitsI is through a medical-vocational allowance, which means that the SSA doesn't think that you can perform either your past work or any other jobs in the national economy.

In order to decide whether you can work, Social Security reviews your medical records for evidence of any physical or mental limitations you have as a result of your heart problem. The agency then translates these limitations into a set of work-related restrictions called your residual functional capacity (RFC).

Your RFC represents the agency's assessment of what you can and can't do in a job setting. For example, if you get winded after walking two blocks, your RFC might limit you to sit-down (sedentary) jobs. Social Security compares your current RFC with the demands of your past work to see whether you could still do those jobs today, so if you used to work in heavy construction, having an RFC for sedentary work would keep you from returning to that job.

Depending on your age, education, and skill set, being unable to perform your past work might be enough for Social Security to find you disabled under the "grid rules." For most claimants younger than 50, however, you'll need to show that you have an RFC that prevents you from working even the simplest sedentary jobs.

How to Apply for Disability Benefits

You can start your claim for SSDI or SSI benefits in one of the following ways:

• Use Social Security's online application tool.
• Call 800-722-1213 between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. If you're deaf or hard of hearing, you can call the TTY number at 800-325-0778.
• Go in person to your local Social Security field office (you may need to make an appointment).

For additional information about the application process, see our article on applying for SSDI or SSI.

How Much Disability Will I Get If I Win?

Social Security doesn't award benefits based on the type of medical condition you have, so it doesn't matter what your diagnosis is as long as you're disabled according to the agency's definition. Instead, the amount you'll receive if you're approved depends on whether you're eligible for SSDI, SSI, or both. You can find out more (including links to an estimated benefits calculator) in our article on SSDI and SSI monthly check amounts.

What If My Claim for a Heart Condition is Denied?

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.

When you're preparing your appeal, you might want to consider getting help from an experienced disability attorney. Your lawyer can help you gather your medical evidence, correspond with the SSA on your behalf, and represent you at a hearing. Disability attorneys don't get paid unless you win and many offer free consultations, so there's little risk in asking around to find a lawyer who's a good fit for you.