If you are applying for federal disability benefits and have a severe medical condition, you may qualify for a program that drastically reduces the waiting time.
This article will help you understand how the Compassionate Allowances Program affects Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, what qualifies you for disability, and the conditions on the Social Security Compassionate Allowances List (CAL).
What the Compassionate Allowances Program Does
What is the compassionate allowance program? It’s a Social Security Administration (SSA) program that flags and fast-tracks SSDI and SSI claims with certain conditions to speed a disability approval. The program is crucial because the typical waiting time for SSDI and SSI benefits is six months to two years. You may receive disability payments in a few weeks to a few months with this expedited process if your condition is an SSA Compassionate Allowance.
Conditions on the SSDI Compassionate Allowances list automatically meet disability requirements because they’ll prevent you from doing “substantial gainful activity” (SGA) for at least 12 months or will result in death. The SGA 2026 earning limits are $1,690 a month or $2,830 a month if you’re blind, gross income.
Eligibility for Compassionate Allowances
Your disability application process will be the same whether your condition is on the CAL or not. You must provide detailed medical records about your mental or physical condition (or contact information for those records) that prove you meet the SSA disability requirements described above.
To get SSDI, you must have also paid into Social Security and have enough recent work credits. Since SSI is a needs-based program, you may qualify for both programs or just SSI if you have limited income and resources but not enough work credits for SSDI.
How much is Compassionate Allowance disability? That depends on what you paid into Social Security before you became disabled. Your condition’s severity doesn’t affect benefits. In 2026, there are 300 CAL conditions. They include neurological diseases like Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's disease, adult brain disorders like early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, aggressive and fast-growing cancers, heart and lung conditions, immune system disorders, and autoimmune diseases. Rare disorders in children are also on the list.
Applying Whether Your Medical Condition is on the Compassionate Allowances List or Not
You’ll apply for disability benefits the same way, whether your condition is on the CAL or not. Filing through your online “my Social Security” account might be the easiest, yet you can also go to your local Social Security office or call 1-800-772-1213 to file.
Apply for Social Security Benefits
Regardless of how you apply, you’ll need your detailed personal information, work history, financial information, and medical history to apply for disability programs. Our step-by-step guide on how to apply for disability can help.
Call Your Local Social Security Office
Your local Social Security office staff doesn’t make the disability determination, but they can help you avoid mistakes, submit medical records correctly, and double-check your information. Inconsistencies, questions left blank, and missing medical evidence are all reasons your disability claim can be stalled or denied.
Consider Filing for Dire Need
Your local Social Security office can also flag your case as a “dire need” case to expedite it, even if your condition is not on the CAL. The SSA says dire need is when you don’t have the money to get the medical care, medicine, shelter, or food you need. You may also be considered in dire need if your benefits were interrupted, and now you can’t pay for your basic needs.
Work with an Advocate? (Are Advocate-Supported Cases More Likely to Succeed?)
Working with a disability lawyer or Advocate’s licensed, non-attorney representatives can greatly improve your chances of a disability approval at the initial stage or on appeal.
Plus, you’re three times as likely to get approved for disability benefits at an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) hearing, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office study.
The Value of Social Security Disability Benefits Help
With the chances of approval so much higher with help, you may want to ask a family member to assist, seek legal advice, or get a free consultation with an Advocate disability representative.
Duration and Process for SSDI with Compassionate Allowances
A shorter wait for disability payments is the biggest benefit of getting on the SSA Compassionate Allowances List. The initial application review takes about six months, and only about 30 to 40% of claims are approved at this stage. The appeals process can take years. Plus, there’s a five-month waiting period after approval before benefits start.
Automatic Qualification for Disability
While the SSDI Compassionate Allowances conditions can fast-track claims, there’s no automatic qualification for disability. However, a case flagged for SSDI compassionate allowances will get a decision much faster. Unfortunately, even if your case is approved quickly, you’ll still have a five-month waiting period before receiving disability payments unless you have ALS. ALS is the only condition in which the waiting period is waived.
Specific Cancers Qualifying for Disability Benefits
Some disability cases are approved once a medical condition or its severity is confirmed. Examples include when cancer has spread to other organs, is inoperable, requires immediate intensive treatment, has returned after treatment, or keeps you from eating.
Other Things to Know About Compassionate Allowances
The SSA uses medical and scientific information, research, and expert opinions from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to identify conditions that meet disability requirements and update the CAL annually.
Additionally, you can request that a condition or disease be added to the Compassionate Allowances list with the SSA. The SSA will evaluate your information, gather medical information, and let you know if your recommendation is added to the program.
Get Help with Your Disability Application
If you have a Compassionate Allowance condition, you can get disability benefits much faster, but you still need to get approved.
The application process can be confusing and overwhelming. Advocate is like the Rosetta Stone for federal benefits. We can help you decode the complex SSA process.
Complete 2026 Compassionate Allowance List:
The complete 2026 Social Security Compassionate Allowance List is as follows:
Cancers
- Acute Leukemia
- Adrenal Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- Adult Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
- Alveolar Soft Part Sarcoma
- Anaplastic Adrenal Cancer - Adult with distant metastases or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- Anaplastic Ependymoma
- Angiosarcoma
- Astrocytoma - Grade III and IV
- Atypical Teratoid/Rhabdoid Tumor
- Bilateral Retinoblastoma
- Bladder Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable or unresectable
- Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm
- Breast Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable or unresectable
- Carcinoma of Unknown Primary Site
- Child Lymphoblastic Lymphoma
- Child Lymphoma
- Child Neuroblastoma - with distant metastases or recurrent
- Cholangiocarcinoma
- Chondrosarcoma - with multimodal therapy
- Choroid Plexus Carcinoma
- Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CML) - Blast Phase
- CIC-rearranged Sarcoma
- Desmoplastic Mesothelioma
- Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumors
- Endometrial Stromal Sarcoma
- Ependymoblastoma (Child Brain Cancer)
- Esophageal Cancer
- Esthesioneuroblastoma
- Ewing Sarcoma
- Fibrolamellar Cancer
- Follicular Dendritic Cell Sarcoma - metastatic or recurrent
- Gallbladder Cancer
- Glioblastoma Multiforme (Brain Cancer)
- Glioma - Grade III and IV
- Head and Neck Cancers - with distant metastasis or inoperable or unresectable
- Hepatoblastoma
- Hepatocellular Carcinoma
- Histiocytic Malignancies
- Inflammatory Breast Cancer (IBC)
- Intracranial Hemangiopericytoma
- Kidney Cancer - inoperable or unresectable
- Large Intestine Cancer - with distant metastasis or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- Leiomyosarcoma
- Leptomeningeal Carcinomatosis
- Liposarcoma - metastatic or recurrent
- Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis - Grade III
- Malignant Brain Stem Gliomas – Childhood
- Malignant Ectomesenchymoma
- Malignant Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor
- Malignant Germ Cell Tumor
- Malignant Renal Rhabdoid Tumor
- Mantle Cell Lymphoma (MCL)
- Medulloblastoma
- Merkel Cell Carcinoma - with metastases
- Metastatic Endometrial Adenocarcinoma
- Mucosal Malignant Melanoma
- Multicentric Castleman Disease
- Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer
- NUT Carcinoma
- Oligodendroglioma Brain Cancer - Grade III
- Osteosarcoma - with distant metastases or inoperable or unresectable
- Ovarian Cancer – with distant metastases or inoperable or unresectable
- Pancreatic Cancer
- Pericardial Mesothelioma
- Peripheral Nerve Cancer - metastatic or recurrent
- Peritoneal Mesothelioma
- Peritoneal Mucinous Carcinomatosis
- Pineoblastoma - Childhood
- Plasmablastic Lymphoma
- Pleural Mesothelioma
- Primary Central Nervous System Lymphoma
- Primary Effusion Lymphoma
- Primary Omental Cancer
- Primary Peritoneal Cancer
- Prostate Cancer - Hormone Refractory Disease or with visceral metastases
- Refractory Hodgkin Lymphoma
- Renal Medullary Carcinoma
- Rhabdomyosarcoma
- Richter Syndrome
- Salivary Cancers
- Sarcomatoid Carcinoma of the Lung - Stages II - IV
- Sarcomatoid Mesothelioma
- Secondary Adenocarcinoma of the Brain
- Sinonasal Cancer
- Skin Malignant Melanoma with Metastases
- Small Cell Cancer Large Intestine
- Small Cell Cancer of the Female Genital Tract
- Small Cell Lung Cancer
- Small Intestine Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- Soft Tissue Sarcoma - with distant metastases or recurrent
- Spinal Nerve Root Cancer - metastatic or recurrent
- Stomach Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- Thyroid Cancer
- Thymic Carcinoma (New)
- Ureter Cancer - with distant metastases or inoperable, unresectable or recurrent
- WHO Grade III Meningiomas (New)
Neurological Disorders
- Adult Onset Huntington Disease
- Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome
- Alexander Disease (ALX) - Neonatal and Infantile
- ALS/Parkinsonism Dementia Complex
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
- Ataxia Telangiectasia
- Canavan Disease (CD)
- Cerebrotendinous Xanthomatosis
- Charlevoix-Saguenay Spastic Ataxia
- Corticobasal Degeneration
- Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) – Adult
- Dravet Syndrome
- Fatal Familial Insomnia
- Friedreich's Ataxia (FRDA)
- Gerstmann-Straussler-Scheinker Disease
- Giant Axonal Neuropathy
- Infantile Neuroaxonal Dystrophy (INAD)
- Juvenile Onset Huntington Disease
- Krabbe Disease (KD) – Infantile
- Leigh's Disease
- Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD) - Late Infantile
- Multiple System Atrophy
- Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation - Types 1 and 2
- Ohtahara Syndrome
- Orthochromatic Leukodystrophy with Pigmented Glia
- Paraneoplastic Cerebellar Degeneration
- Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease - Classic Form
- Pelizaeus-Merzbacher Disease - Connatal Form
- Perry Syndrome
- Pontocerebellar Hypoplasia
- Progressive Bulbar Palsy
- Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy
- Progressive Muscular Atrophy (New)
- Progressive Supranuclear Palsy
- Rasmussen Encephalitis (New)
- SCN8A Related Epilepsy with Encephalopathy
- Spinocerebellar Ataxia
- Stiff Person Syndrome
- Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis
- Superficial Siderosis of the Central Nervous System
- Tabes Dorsalis
Dementia & Cognitive Disorders
- Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease
- Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD), Pick's Disease -Type A – Adult
- Lewy Body Dementia
- Mixed Dementias
- Posterior Cortical Atrophy
- Primary Progressive Aphasia
Muscular & Neuromuscular Disorders
- Congenital Myotonic Dystrophy
- Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy- Adult
- Fukuyama Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
- LMNA-related Congenital Muscular Dystrophy (New)
- Merosin Deficient Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
- Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) - Types 0 and 1
- Ullrich Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
- X-Linked Myotubular Myopathy
Heart & Cardiovascular Conditions
- Adult Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1-4
- Aortic Atresia
- Cardiac Amyloidosis- AL Type
- Child Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1A/1B
- Eisenmenger Syndrome
- Endomyocardial Fibrosis
- Fulminant Giant Cell Myocarditis
- Heart Transplant Graft Failure
- Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
- Mitral Valve Atresia
- Pulmonary Atresia
- Single Ventricle
- Transplant Coronary Artery Vasculopathy
- Tricuspid Atresia
- Ventricular Assist Device Recipient - Left, Right, or Biventricular
Lung & Respiratory Conditions
- Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
- Obliterative Bronchiolitis
- Pulmonary Amyloidosis - AL Type (New)
- Pulmonary Kaposi Sarcoma
Liver, Kidney & Gastrointestinal Conditions
- Calciphylaxis
- Chronic Idiopathic Intestinal Pseudo Obstruction
- Hepatopulmonary Syndrome
- Hepatorenal Syndrome
- Microvillus Inclusion Disease – Child
- Megacystis Microcolon Intestinal Hypoperistalsis Syndrome
- Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis
- Renal Amyloidosis - AL Type
Blood Disorders
- Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia
- Aplastic Anemia
- Beta Thalassemia Major
- Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (New)
- Myelodysplastic Syndrome with Excess Blasts
Immune System Disorders
- Degos Disease - Systemic
- Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) - Familial Type
- Histiocytosis Syndromes
- Hypocomplementemic Urticarial Vasculitis Syndrome
- Mastocytosis - Type IV
- Paraneoplastic Pemphigus
- Severe Combined Immunodeficiency - Childhood
- X-Linked Lymphoproliferative Disease
Genetic & Chromosomal Syndromes
- 1p36 Deletion Syndrome
- Allan-Herndon-Dudley Syndrome
- Alobar Holoprosencephaly
- Alstrom Syndrome
- Angelman Syndrome
- Au-Kline Syndrome (New)
- Bainbridge-Ropers Syndrome
- Bilateral Anophthalmia (New)
- Carey-Fineman-Ziter Syndrome (New)
- Caudal Regression Syndrome - Types III and IV
- CDKL5 Deficiency Disorder
- Cerebro Oculo Facio Skeletal (COFS) Syndrome
- Coffin-Lowry Syndrome
- Congenital Lymphedema
- Congenital Zika Syndrome
- Cornelia de Lange Syndrome - Classic Form
- Costello Syndrome
- Cri du Chat Syndrome
- DeSanctis Cacchione Syndrome
- Edwards Syndrome (Trisomy 18)
- Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva
- FOXG1 Syndrome
- Fryns Syndrome
- Harlequin Ichthyosis - Child (New)
- Hoyeraal-Hreidarsson Syndrome
- Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome
- Hydranencephaly
- Jervell and Lange-Nielsen Syndrome
- Joubert Syndrome
- Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa - Lethal Type
- Kleefstra Syndrome
- Leber Congenital Amaurosis
- Lesch-Nyhan Syndrome (LNS)
- Lissencephaly
- Lowe Syndrome
- Marshall-Smith Syndrome
- MECP2 Duplication Syndrome
- Megalencephaly Capillary Malformation Syndrome
- Menkes Disease - Classic or Infantile Onset Form
- Mowat-Wilson Syndrome
- Neonatal Marfan Syndrome
- Nicolaides-Baraister Syndrome
- Osteogenesis Imperfecta (OI) - Type II
- PACS1 Syndrome
- Pallister-Killian Syndrome
- Patau Syndrome (Trisomy 13)
- Pfeiffer Syndrome - Types II and III
- Phelan-McDermid Syndrome
- Pitt Hopkins Syndrome
- Renpenning Syndrome
- Retinopathy of Prematurity - Stage V, Bilateral
- Rett (RTT) Syndrome
- Revesz Syndrome
- Rhizomelic Chondrodysplasia Punctata
- Roberts Syndrome
- Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome
- Seckel Syndrome
- Sjogren-Larsson Syndrome
- Smith Lemli Opitz Syndrome
- Snijders Blok-Campeau Syndrome
- SYNGAP1-related NSID
- Taybi-Linder Syndrome
- Tetrasomy 18p
- Thanatophoric Dysplasia - Type 1
- Trisomy 9
- Turnpenny-Fry Syndrome (New)
- Usher Syndrome - Type I
- Walker Warburg Syndrome
- Wolf-Hirschhorn Syndrome
- Xeroderma Pigmentosum
- Zellweger Syndrome
- Zhu-Tokita-Takenouchi-Kim Syndrome (New)
Metabolic & Storage Disorders
- Alpers Disease
- Alpha Mannosidosis - Type II and III
- Batten Disease
- CACH--Vanishing White Matter Disease-Infantile and Childhood Onset Forms
- Erdheim Chester Disease
- Farber's Disease (FD) – Infantile
- Fucosidosis - Type 1
- Galactosialidosis - Early and Late Infantile Types
- Gaucher Disease (GD) - Type 2
- Glutaric Acidemia - Type II
- GM1 Gangliosidosis - Infantile and Juvenile Forms
- Hypophosphatasia Perinatal (Lethal) and Infantile Onset Types
- I Cell Disease
- Infantile Free Sialic Acid Storage Disease
- Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses
- Kufs Disease - Type A and B
- Late Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses
- Maple Syrup Urine Disease
- MPS I (Hurler Syndrome)
- MPS II (Hunter Syndrome)
- MPS III (Sanfilippo Syndrome)
- Myoclonic Epilepsy with Ragged Red Fibers Syndrome
- Neonatal Adrenoleukodystrophy
- NFU-1 Mitochondrial Disease
- Niemann-Pick Disease (NPD) - Type A
- Niemann-Pick Disease-Type C
- Nonketotic Hyperglycinemia
- Ornithine Transcarbamylase (OTC) Deficiency
- Pearson Syndrome
- Pompe Disease – Infantile
- Sandhoff Disease
- Schindler Disease - Type 1
- Tay Sachs Disease - Infantile Type
- Wolman Disease
Other Conditions
- Angioimmunoblastic T-Cell Lymphoma
- Bilateral Optic Atrophy- Infantile
- Malignant Multiple Sclerosis
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