What is the Listing of Impairments (the Blue Book)?
The Listing of Impairments (20 CFR Part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 1), informally called the Blue Book, catalogs for each major body system the medical conditions and clinical criteria SSA considers severe enough to prevent any gainful activity.
The Listing of Impairments (20 CFR Part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 1), informally called the Blue Book, catalogs for each major body system the medical conditions and clinical criteria SSA considers severe enough to prevent any gainful activity. At step 3 of the sequential evaluation, a claimant whose impairment meets or medically equals all the criteria of a listing is found disabled without any consideration of age, education, or work experience; claimants who do not meet a listing can still be found disabled at steps 4-5. Individual listings are updated periodically through rulemaking (not on an annual schedule), so specific listing criteria can change.
What the government has said, on the record
"We find the claimant disabled if his or her impairment meets all of the criteria in one of the listings, or is medically equivalent in severity to a listing."
— Bea Disman, Acting Chief of Staff, Social Security Administration. Testimony before the House Committee on Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Social Security (hearing on SSA's Listing of Impairments), September 6, 2007.
- Bea Disman — Acting Chief of Staff, Social Security Administration
- ssa.gov
Editor's note: Career SSA executive; no Wikipedia article or standalone official bio located
Sourced from ssa.gov — see citations below.
The Listing of Impairments (20 CFR Part 404, Subpart P, Appendix 1), informally called the Blue Book, catalogs for each major body system the medical conditions and clinical criteria SSA considers severe enough to prevent any gainful activity.
What is the Listing of Impairments (the Blue Book)?
At step 3 of the sequential evaluation, a claimant whose impairment meets or medically equals all the criteria of a listing is found disabled without any consideration of age, education, or work experience; claimants who do not meet a listing can still be found disabled at steps 4-5. Individual listings are updated periodically through rulemaking (not on an annual schedule), so specific listing criteria can change.
Where to verify
See the official source cited in the quote block above, and SSA's own program pages at ssa.gov/disability. Program dollar amounts change annually with the cost-of-living adjustment.
Sources
Every figure and rule on this page is drawn from official SSA publications. Verify at the links below.