Sleep deprivation, excessive daytime sleepiness, and low oxygen levels are all significant impacts of sleep apnea that can impact your daily life — including your job. People with sleep apnea are at a higher risk of having accidents on the job. They’re also two to three times more likely to get into car accidents because of daytime sleepiness.

Considering that sleep apnea symptoms can impact your safety at work, you may wonder if the condition qualifies as a disability. Having a disability can give you access to Social Security disability benefits, Veterans Affairs (VA) disability compensation, or workplace accommodations that make it easier for you to perform your job’s requirements.

Is sleep apnea a disability? The answer isn’t a simple yes or no. Here are six facts you should know about sleep apnea and disability benefits.

1. Social Security Claims for Sleep Apnea Aren’t Straightforward

Medical conditions that automatically count as disabilities are listed in something called the Social Security Blue Book. The Blue Book contains a list of broad disability categories, like musculoskeletal disorders and cardiovascular conditions, that can affect adults’ ability to work.

Sleep apnea isn’t listed in the Blue Book, so there’s no specific criteria that tells you whether or not your sleep disorder should be considered for disability benefits. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t qualify for disability benefits at all — it just makes the process a little more complicated.

To qualify, you must make a case for your condition that demonstrates how much sleep apnea and its associated conditions impact your ability to work. For conditions like sleep apnea, the Social Security Administration evaluates your residual functional capacity (RFC), which tells you how much you can safely work considering your medical limitations. Having sleep apnea with a safety-sensitive job, such as operating heavy machinery, airplanes, or trucks, can also play a role in the disability decision.

2. RFC for Sleep Apnea Is Both Mental and Physical

Social Security judges your mental and physical RFC while determining your level of disability. Because sleep apnea can have mental and physical symptoms and complications, it’s important to describe both while filling out a residual functional capacity form.

Physical RFC

Physical RFC includes your exertional level, which describes how much physical work you can do with your limitations. It takes account of your ability to stand, walk, and lift heavy objects.

There are five RFC exertional levels, which play a large part in determining if you’re eligible for disability benefits:

• Sedentary work — You can stand or walk for no more than two hours of the working day. You can lift no more than 10 pounds occasionally or 5 pounds frequently.
• Light work — You can stand or walk for up to six hours of the workday and can lift 10 pounds frequently or 20 pounds occasionally.
• Medium work — You can stand or walk for up to six hours and can lift 25 pounds frequently or 50 pounds occasionally.
• Heavy work — You meet the same criteria as medium work, but with heavier lifting. You can lift up to 100 pounds occasionally and 50 pounds frequently.
• Very heavy work — You can stand and walk for the full eight-hour workday and can lift more than 100 pounds occasionally and 50 pounds frequently.

Physical RFC also takes account of nonexertional limitations, which are restrictions that don’t involve strength. Some examples are your ability to reach, hearing ability, and ability to be exposed to extreme temperatures.

Mental RFC

You’ll also need to show your mental RFC. This involves describing cognitive and emotional limitations that might impact your ability to work. You’ll be asked questions about specific abilities such as your:

• Capacity for focus and concentration
• Stress tolerance
• Decision- and judgment-making abilities
• Adaptability to change
• Ability to understand, remember, and follow instructions
• Capability for following a routine
• Social skills

The Social Security Administration considers the combined effect of your physical and mental RFC when determining your eligibility for disability benefits and work accommodations.

3. Sleep Apnea Can Trigger Other Disabilities

Although sleep apnea itself isn’t described in the Social Security Blue Book, many of its related conditions are. Some common health issues associated with sleep apnea can be directly evaluated as disabilities according to their listing in the Social Security Blue Book.

For example, chronic pulmonary hypertension is a possible sleep apnea complication. Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is high blood pressure in your lungs that puts strain on your heart and can eventually cause heart failure. If you have PH as a complication of your sleep apnea, it can be evaluated as a respiratory disability. Cardiovascular disorders resulting from sleep apnea, like heart disease and heart failure, may also count.

Talk to your doctor to see if any of your existing sleep apnea complications fit into the Social Security Blue Book categories.

4. The Details of Your Case Matter

Sleep apnea complications and RFC aren’t the only details taken into account when you apply for disability benefits or accommodations. The Social Security Administration uses a grid system that takes many details into account. In other words, they make their determination on a case-by-case basis.

In addition to your functional capacity and diagnosed complications, they consider:

• How old you are
• Your education level
• Skills from past employment
• Whether your skills are transferable to other jobs that align with your current abilities and limitations

Some law offices and organizations can answer your questions or help you put together a strong Social Security disability claim.

5. Your Doctor Can Help You

If your sleep apnea affects your ability to work in any way, your doctor can help you determine if you should apply for disability benefits. They can help you complete your physical or mental RFC form and submit it to the Social Security Administration.

Your doctor or employer might use the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) definition of disability while evaluating you, which doesn’t include a list of specific disorders like the Blue Book. Instead, its criteria are:

• Having a mental or physical impairment that limits at least one major life activity (such as your job)
• Having a record of this impairment (like the results of a polysomnogram)
• Being regarded as having this impairment (others, such as your employer, see or treat you as having an impairment)

After diagnosing you with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) or central sleep apnea (CSA), they can recommend treatment options based on your diagnosis — OSA treatment often includes continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, oral appliance therapy, or sleep position changes. In many cases, the right treatment can reduce the sleep apnea symptoms that affect your ability to work.

You might need temporary disability accommodations as you adjust to a new treatment. Even with effective treatment, you may qualify for longer-term disability benefits from the VA or SSA because of serious or life-threatening sleep apnea complications.

6. You Might Need Documentation

Applying for Social Security disability benefits because of sleep apnea or its complications isn’t simple, and you might need to submit a lot of documents with your claim to make your case. Beyond basic information like your name, social security number, and birthday, you might be advised to submit:

• Birth certificate
• Tax forms
• Medical records and test results
• An Adult Disability Report, which gives details about your medical and work histories

Talk to your healthcare provider about tests you may need to show how sleep apnea and its complications impact your health.

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