Social Security Disability Gets Easier When You’re Over 50

Social Security Disability Gets Easier When You’re Over 50

By Peter Gorton Turning 50 is a major milestone. It’s a moment to celebrate. And let’s face it, it’s a moment a lot of people dread, too.

But at least it has this benefit: If you’re no longer able to work because of a physical or mental impairment, being over 50 increases your chances of winning the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits you need.

Most anyone of working age who has a disability can qualify for benefits, but for workers starting at age 50 — special rules make life easier.

Why does my 50th birthday matter?

When medical problems are hindering your ability to work — and you need disability benefits to protect your financial stability — the Social Security Administration looks at several factors to decide whether you could function in any type of job.

Those factors include:    

Your age Your physical & mental ability to perform work functions Your education Your work experience

Here’s why your age is so important, in the words of the SSA itself: “We consider advancing age to be an increasingly limiting factor in your ability to make an adjustment to other work.”

So one of the biggest questions in your disability claim is: Could you adjust to a different kind of work than what you did before?

An example of someone who faces different rules at different times could be a worker whose prior job required standing for significant periods. Now their medical condition no longer allows that.

While several factors come into play, it’s much more likely that Social Security will not allow benefits if the person is under 50.

Once they turn 50, it’s significantly more likely they’ll get a favorable decision.

Social Security recognizes that older workers have more difficulty adjusting to new kinds of work.

Age 50 is when that extra consideration starts to help you.

What's my disability age group?

Social Security has age categories to help with the disability decision process, including: 

Younger Person –– This category essentially includes anyone under age 50. For someone this age, it’s almost never enough to show you can no longer function in your old job.

A younger person needs proof that the regional and national economies lack a significant number of jobs for them. At our New York law firm, we prevail in many, many cases for younger individuals. But it is more difficult.

Closely Approaching Advanced Age –– (Those are Social Security’s words, not mine!) This is the group from 50-54. Being in this group, the SSA says, significantly affects your ability to adjust to other work.

And it does become easier to prove disability starting at age 50. In some cases, the exact same medical condition that would not allow benefits for a younger person does allow benefits for someone over 50.

Once again, many factors come into play. If someone age 45-49 cannot read or write the English language, for example, that could make a difference in the outcome of their case.



Advanced Age –– (Again, this is their term!) This covers ages 55 and older. This is where you’ll find the rules for approving disability benefits the most lenient — in terms of whether you could adjust to other work.

How does the SSA judge the physical exertion I can handle?

Another place where your age makes a difference is in the physical intensity of the work you can do.

The SSA fits you into a “grid,” including job types that range from light to heavy physical requirements.

The job types focus on the amount you can lift in a job: 

Sedentary –– does not involve lifting more than 10 pounds



Light — involves frequent lifting of 10 pounds or less and occasional lifting up to 20 pounds



Medium –– involves frequent lifting of 25 pounds and occasional lifting of 50 pounds



Heavy — involves frequent lifting of more than 50 pounds

Many factors are involved, but in general more senior workers also get special consideration in this grid.

So even if you’re physically able to perform on one of these levels, the SSA might still award you benefits — instead of saying you can adjust to other work.

For example, workers ages 50-54 might be able to perform sedentary labor and still qualify for benefits.

Workers ages 55-59 might be able to do light work and still win disability benefits.

Workers ages 60-64 might be able to perform medium work and still be awarded disability benefits.

The SSA’s grid also factors in several other aspects of your background, like your education and work experience.

How you present your case is critical While being 50 or older makes it easier to win SSDI benefits if you can’t work, it doesn’t make the process all-out easy.

The primary factor in a successful application for disability benefits is carefully prepared evidence that demonstrates the specific challenges of your impairment.

It can make a real difference to get a professional to help build your case — someone who understands how your age could influence your results — like attorneys who focus on Social Security Disability cases.

Social Security Disability has its own legal system, even including its own judges, so it’s important to work with someone experienced in this system.

Lawyers who work these cases frequently know the system and how it works, helping you avoid mistakes and qualify for the maximum benefits possible — at any age.

The Law Firm of Lachman & Gorton in Endicott, NY, specializes in Social Security Disability cases and has been doing so for more than 25 years. Our firm has helped thousands of New Yorkers win disability benefits. We’re one of the very few firms that will take a proper case to the federal courts when Administrative Law Judges and Social Security make errors in their decisions. We’ve taken cases as far as federal circuit courts, just one step below the United States Supreme Court.