What you have to prove
Medical documentation of significant cognitive decline from a prior level of functioning in one or more cognitive areas (complex attention, executive function, learning/memory, language, perceptual-motor, social cognition), AND extreme limitation of one, OR marked limitation of two, of the four Paragraph B areas (understand/apply info, interact, concentrate/persist, adapt).
Medical evidence SSA expects
Neuropsychological testing, neurology records, imaging (MRI, PET), collateral history from family, and medication trials.
Common misconceptions
Early-onset Alzheimer's and frontotemporal dementia are Compassionate Allowance conditions. Mild cognitive impairment without functional decline usually doesn't qualify.
Didn't meet the listing? You can still qualify via a Medical-Vocational
Allowance — SSA's determination that your residual functional capacity, combined with
your age, education, and work history, leaves no jobs you can do. See our
appeals guide for what to do after an initial denial.