Can people with diabetes qualify for disability retirement? When 60% or more of a worker’s earning capacity is lost during their period of insured employment and this is confirmed by a medical board report, the option of disability retirement (early retirement on grounds of incapacity) becomes available. This provision applies to many illnesses, but the requirements for people with diabetes are specific and differ in certain respects.
Conditions for Disability Retirement Due to Diabetes
As with any illness, there are specific criteria for obtaining disability retirement based on diabetes. With the rising number of people diagnosed with diabetes in recent years, insured workers affected by the disease often want to know whether and when they can qualify for retirement on health grounds.
For a working insured person to be granted disability retirement due to a condition that developed after they became insured, the illness must reduce their working capacity by at least 60% after the onset of the disease. Additionally, general insurance requirements apply: a minimum of 10 years of insurance coverage and at least 1,800 days of paid premiums. Therefore, for diabetes to qualify, it must be shown to reduce working capacity by at least 60%.
Under the Social Security Institution’s Regulation on Determination of Disability, diabetes-related conditions that may meet the criteria include “Diabetes Mellitus with chronic hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia leading to moderate-to-severe complications affecting at least three systems” (for example, vision loss, neuropathies, peripheral vascular disease, retinopathies, nephropathies, etc.). However, in addition to meeting these health criteria, diabetic patients must also demonstrate a loss of at least 60% of their working ability attributable to diabetes.
Requirement: 60% Loss of Working Capacity for People with Diabetes
According to the relevant legislation, if a person develops diabetes after starting insured employment and medical evaluation shows their working capacity has decreased by 60% or more due to the disease, they may be eligible for disability retirement. The central point for eligibility is that the disease must cause moderate to severe impairment of at least three organs or organ systems. If diabetes leads to such multi-organ impairment, the person may be considered for disability retirement.
This is because diabetes can progressively cause significant damage to the kidneys, cardiovascular system, nervous system, and eyes. Complications affecting these organs or other body parts as a result of diabetes are evaluated within the scope of disability retirement.
Important Considerations for People with Diabetes
Although regulations state that diabetes can qualify for disability retirement, an important detail is that impairment must involve three organ systems. However, severe single-organ damage—particularly advanced kidney disease requiring dialysis—can also be accepted as sufficient grounds for disability retirement even if involvement of three organs is not proven. In such cases, when kidney disease reaches a sufficiently advanced stage, the requirement that it be caused by diabetes may not be strictly applied; advanced kidney failure or the need for dialysis alone can qualify a person for disability retirement.
Generally, if a single organ is so severely impaired that it would independently constitute a disability, this can indicate a very advanced stage of diabetes. For diabetes-related disability determinations, moderate-to-severe impairment in three organ systems is typically sufficient. While proving each organ is independently disabled sets a high bar, combined moderate or severe deterioration across three systems is more likely to reduce a worker’s overall capacity. In these cases, the Social Security healthcare board may issue a report indicating a loss of working capacity above 60%, thereby satisfying the disability criteria.