What is considered legally blind for disability?
If your vision is 20/200, or legally blind, you may qualify for disability benefits. The Social Security Administration (SSA) considers “legal” or “statutory” blindness as a qualified disability.
What is the federal definition of blindness?
Meaning of blindness as defined in the law. Statutory blindness is defined in the law as central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with the use of correcting lens.
How does the government define legally blind?
Legal blindness occurs when a person has central visual acuity (vision that allows a person to see straight ahead of them) of 20/200 or less in his or her better eye with correction. A visual field of 20 degrees or less is considered to be legally blind.
Is blindness a disability or an impairment?
Total blindness (the absence of light perception in both eyes) qualifies automatically for disability benefits. Note that if you have one eye with vision worse than 20/200 and one eye with better vision than 20/200 (with glasses or contacts), you won’t qualify under this listing (more on this below).
What are categories of blindness?
Table 1
| Category of visual impairment | Visual acuity with best possible correction | Classified as |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 6/60 1/10 (0.1) 20/200 | Low vision |
| 3 | 3/60 1/20 (0.05) 20/400 | Blindness |
| 4 | 1/60 (finger counting at 1 metre) 1/50 (0.02) 5/300 | Blindness |
| 5 | No light perception | Blindness |
What qualifies as blind?
Normal vision is 20/20. That means you can clearly see an object 20 feet away. If you’re legally blind, your vision is 20/200 or less in your better eye or your field of vision is less than 20 degrees.
What qualifies as visually impaired?
A person is considered to be visually impaired if their best corrected vision is 20/40 or worse. This is a decreased ability to see despite wearing correct glasses or contact lenses.
What is the difference between being blind and legally blind?
Low vision refers to a severe visual impairment in which visual acuity is 20/70 or poorer in the better-seeing eye and cannot improve with glasses or contacts. Legally blind means a person has a corrected vision of 20/200 in their best-seeing eye. Totally blind refers to a complete loss of sight.
What is the special SSI rule on blindness?
There is a special rule to help people who work and receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) based on blindness. This rule allows a blind person to exclude from earned income all expenses that enable the person to work. The expense does not need to be related to the blindness.
Does Social Security still consider you disabled?
Social Security defines disability as the inability to work, so if you earn too much while collecting SSDI, you’ll be considered no longer disabled. Once your benefits switch to full retirement benefits, your disability becomes irrelevant.
Is Social Security and disability the same thing?
SSDI and SSI are both federal benefits that are available to people who are disabled and cannot work, and both rely on the same federal standard of disability. SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance, and it functions like an insurance plan for workers. It falls under Title II of the Social Security Act.
What does social security consider to be a disability?
Social Security’s definition of disability is any physical or mental medical condition that keeps you from working for at least one year. Any condition that is likely to be terminal is also considered a disability. This means that you may be able to collect benefits for either a physical injury or disorder, or a mental condition.