Medical Vocational Grid Rules: An Overview From the Experts

To qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) you must have a physical and/or mental impairment keeping you from working for at least 12 consecutive months. You do not need to have been out of work for 12 months, yet. But if you have stopped working and your condition is expected to keep you out of work for 12 months or more, then you may qualify for SSDI. The disability can also be expected to result in death. The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses a standard grid to determine when you are eligible to receive benefits. Here we look at social security disability grid rules, so you understand how your claim is processed.

What Are Vocational Grid Rules?

Medical vocational guidelines, also known as grid rules, are used to evaluate SSDI claims. The disability grid rules follow a sequential process that assesses your residual functional capacity while also looking at other factors including age, work experience and education. These factors determine if you are able to perform a substantial gainful activity (SGA).

What is Residual Functional Capacity (RFC)?

Your impairments can cause symptoms and/or limitations to your functional capacity. This can be physical, mental or both. Your RFC refers to the maximum amount of function you can handle. The SSA looks at your medical condition and evidence to help determine your RFC. The functions include:

• Sitting
• Standing
• Walking
• Lifting
• Carrying
• Bending
• Reaching
• Handling

However, they also look at your mental or cognitive limitations including:

• Concentration
• Memory
• Comprehension
• Interaction
• Maintaining pace

Together these limitations help formulate your RFC to help determine the seriousness of your disability. However, there are other limitations you might submit such as:

• Sight
• Hearing
• Balance
• Environmental influences

Working with a disability advocate can help ensure all of your medical and mental conditions and symptoms are submitted to help improve your chances of being approved. The SSA uses your RFC results to categorize you into one of five categories.

The Five RFC Categories

The five possible categories you fall into include:

1. Sedentary: This means you can sit and walk or stand occasionally but can’t lift more than 10 pounds. You can also only lift or carry small items occasionally.
2. Light: In this category, you can sit, walk, stand, push and pull with your legs with a lifting limitation of no more than 20 pounds. You can also carry up to 10 pounds.
3. Medium: In this case, you have the same capabilities as light, but can lift up to 50 pounds and carry 25 pounds.
4. Heavy: This is the same as above, with the ability to lift 100 pounds and carry up to 50 pounds.
5. Very Heavy: In this category, you can do all of the above, but can lift over 100 pounds and carry over 50 pounds.

If you fall into the category of heavy or very heavy you will generally not qualify for SSDI. However, you might have other limitations that can contribute to your disability such as back conditions. This is why it is so important to work with a disability advocate. They can consider all of the other possible issues that can contribute to your disability helping your claim get approved.

Vocational Factors

The GRID rules also consider vocational factors including:

Age

The SSA’s thinking is that younger people can be retrained and more easily adjust to new types of work, while older people might have difficulty with these adjustments. Age is categorized as follows:

• Younger: 18 to 49
• Closely Approaching Advanced Age: 50 to 54
• Advanced Age: 55 to 59
• Closely Approaching Retirement: 60 and older

However, because your previous work experience and education also come into play, your age alone will not always mean you don’t qualify.

Previous Work Experience

SSA reviews your past 15 years of work and whether you had to learn how to do your work at an SGA level. Any other work experience is not considered relevant. Work has three categories:

1. Skilled: This work requires a higher level of training or elevated education and includes positions requiring licenses. In this capacity, workers might also have to use abstract thinking that is complex.
2. Semi-Skilled: These positions require a middling level of training where education levels are not required, but usually preferred. There is a need for attentiveness and awareness as opposed to abstract thinking.
3. Unskilled: These jobs require little to no training or education although educational background is preferred. Reasoning is rarely required in these positions.

SSA will look at past work to see if it can be applied to new positions. This increases your odds of being re-trained or seeking different types of work that you can manage despite your disability.

Education

Education is used to determine how transferable your skills might be. The categories include:

• Illiterate: Little to no formal education and unable to read or write.
• Marginal Education: Formal education up to grade six with basic skills to read, write and reason.
• Limited Education: Formal education up to grade 11 with higher writing, reading and reasoning abilities.
• High School Education and Above: Formal education up to grade 12, earned a GED or equivalent with highest ability to read, write and reason.

SSA recently removed one more level which was the Inability to Communicate in English. This is no longer considered for SSDI claims.

Step 5: Making a Decision

Once all of the above assessments are made, the grid is used to determine whether or not you can perform a less demanding job, or if you are unable to work. The grid is as follows:

Disabled:

201.01: Advanced age, limited or less education, unskilled or no work experience

201.02: Advanced age, limited or less education, skilled or semiskilled, but skills are not transferable

201.04: Advanced age, high school graduate or more, but does not provide for direct entry into skilled work, unskilled or no skills

201.06: Advanced age, high school graduate or more, but does not provide for direct entry into skilled or semi-skilled but the skills are not transferable

Not disabled:

201.03: Advanced age, limited or less education, skilled or semi-skilled but skills are not transferable

201.05: Advanced age, high school graduate or more, does not provide direct entry into skilled work, unskilled or no previous work

As you can see, it might seem the SSA grid rules are unfair. As a result, you should work with a disability advocate to help increase your chances of eligibility.

Schedule a free consultation today. We fight for your right to receive disability insurance. You’re twice as likely to win your claim with an advocate in your corner and receive the maximum disability benefit payout.