Private Disability Insurance Claims

Disability Insurance Claims for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Wrongfully Denied Rheumatoid Arthritis Disability Claims Attorney, Los Angeles County

At Donahue & Horrow, we understand that our clients, whether professionals, blue-collar workers or any other workers, depend on disability insurance coverage to pay their bills. If your rheumatoid arthritis disability insurance claim has been wrongfully denied, delayed, or underpaid, we will work hard to obtain the relief that you need. To learn more about your rights, the value of your case, and how our our law firm can help you, contact our lawyers today to schedule a free initial consultation. We offer state-wide legal representation.

Why Rheumatoid Arthritis Can be a Disabling Condition

People who do not suffer from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) rarely understand how disabling the condition truly is, and disability insurance companies frequently deny claims simply because they do not consider rheumatoid arthritis a disability. But to those who suffer with RA the pain that is associated with the condition is very real. Chronic pain itself can lead to other health concerns as well as depression but rheumatoid arthritis can make it virtually impossible to work due to profound fatigue, intense pain, and structural changes in joints as they become twisted and damaged. Given the serious nature of RA, it is not surprising that this autoimmune disease can be a genuinely disabling condition.

Rheumatoid arthritis affects people differently. Some people have mild or moderate forms of the disease, with periods of worsening symptoms, called flares, and periods in which they feel better, called remissions. Others have a severe form of the disease that is active most of the time, lasts for many years or a lifetime, and leads to serious joint damage and disability.

Although rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that primarily causes destruction to joints, its effects are not just physical. Many people with rheumatoid arthritis also experience issues related to:

  • depression, anxiety
  • feelings of helplessness
  • low self-esteem.

Rheumatoid arthritis can affect virtually every area of a person’s life from work life to family life. It can also interfere with the joys and responsibilities of family life and may affect the decision to have children.

Treatment for Rheumatoid Arthritis Often Involves Chemotherapy

While you may think of chemotherapy as a treatment for cancer, it is also a first-line approach in treating moderate to severe arthritis. Drugs like methotrexate, and biologic drugs are often prescribed either orally, as intramuscular injections, or even via IV infusion. All these powerful drugs that work to help alleviate the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis can have serious side effects that in themselves can be debilitation. Sometimes, people being treated can have adverse reactions to these medications including liver toxicity and even permanent damage.

Rheumatoid arthritis is not an ‘old people’ disease and can affect young adults. Early diagnosis is often hard because symptoms can be mistaken as a normal process of aging, but an early diagnosis can improve the long-term outcome for those who suffer from RA. The sooner it is diagnosed and treated, the better the long-term prognosis for many patients.

Changes in lifestyle, medications, surgery, and joint replacement are used to treat and manage rheumatoid arthritis, but for some, regardless of treatment, rheumatoid arthritis will remain a life-long disabling condition.

Help for All Disability Insurance Policy Holders

Do you have disabling rheumatoid arthritis in your hands, shoulders, hips, knees or any other joint?

At Donahue & Horrow, L.L.P., our lawyers can help you use your disability insurance policy. Whether you need assistance making a disability insurance claim or you have already had your claim denied, delayed or underpaid by your insurance company, our lawyers can help. We are available to help rheumatoid arthritis sufferers in the Los Angeles area and throughout California make their insurance companies work for them.

Our lawyers assist with rheumatoid arthritis cases involving all types of Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and non-ERISA disability insurance, including:

You want a lawyer who understands how insurance companies work. At our law firm, you will find former insurance defense lawyers, meaning we have a firsthand understanding of “the other side.” Their methods are nothing new to us. We know the loopholes they will look for to get out of paying your rheumatoid arthritis claim. We know the strategies to employ to overcome their methods and close the loopholes. As litigators, we are willing to fight to help you take advantage of the policy you paid for.

Disability Insurance Claim Appeals for Rheumatoid Arthritis Sufferers

Contact Our Los Angeles Area Attorneys for a Free Initial Consultation

We will review your rheumatoid arthritis claim free of charge. If your claim has been denied, your case will be handled on a contingency basis, which means you pay nothing and we receive nothing unless you win your case by way of settlement or verdict. Call us toll free at 877-664-5407 or e-mail us to schedule a consultation with our California rheumatoid arthritis insurance claims attorneys.