Our claimant was a 50-year-old LPN diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis, chronic pain syndrome, cervical radiculopathy, spinal stenosis, irritable bowel syndrome and migraines. Her conditions made her stop working as an LPN in 2019 and she filed for Disability Insurance Benefits.
While waiting for her case to get scheduled for a hearing in front of an Administrative Law Judge, she passed away in March 2023. Her hearing was scheduled for September 2023. We proceeded with her hearing with her husband as the testifying witness. He testified as to her chronic conditions and how her health deteriorated and how she experienced a significant weight loss and had a feeding tube placed.
Our lawyer was able to successfully argue that the claimant would have been unable to return to her past relevant work as an LPN and unable to sustain any other work in the national economy due to her disabilities. If a claimant has a pending Disability Insurance Benefits (Title 2) claim and passes away before benefits are awarded, we can still proceed with a hearing with the appropriate substitute party of the claimant. In most cases, that person is the spouse or children of the claimant. And if benefits are awarded, it will be from the Alleged Onset Date until the day of death. In this case, our lawyer never gave up, despite adverse circumstances, and made sure justice was served for her client and her family.
