SSA Listing 4.00

Cardiovascular System: Social Security Disability Listings

Can You Get Disability for Heart Disease?

Yes. A cardiovascular system disability claim is judged under SSA's 4.00 listings for heart failure, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias, congenital heart disease, heart transplants, aortic aneurysm and leg circulation problems. Revised cardiovascular listings take effect October 30, 2026, and SSA will apply them to new applications filed on or after that date and to claims still pending then. See who qualifies for Social Security disability.

Reviewed by Michael Rupe ·October 1, 2026

An older man in a white T-shirt sits on a sofa at home checking a wrist blood pressure monitor — Photo: SHVETS production / Pexels

How the Cardiovascular Listings Work

A cardiovascular system disability claim is judged against section 4.00 of SSA’s Listing of Impairments. It covers any disorder, present from birth or acquired later, that affects the heart or the circulatory system, meaning the arteries, veins, capillaries and lymph drainage.

SSA groups heart impairments by four results of heart disease:

Heart failure, when the heart can’t pump well enough.
Chest pain or discomfort from ischemia, reduced blood flow to the heart muscle.
Fainting or near fainting from too little blood reaching the brain.
Cyanosis, a bluish color from low blood oxygen.

Problems with leg veins and arteries are judged under 4.11 and 4.12.

Each listing judges your condition while you follow prescribed treatment. If your records match a listing and it meets the duration rule, SSA finds you disabled at step three.

Current Listings Versus the Revised Listings Due October 30, 2026

SSA published revised cardiovascular criteria in the Federal Register on July 2, 2026 (91 FR 40804, corrected September 16, 2026). The rule takes effect October 30, 2026. SSA says it will apply the new rules to new applications filed on or after that date and to claims pending on or after that date.

In practice, a claim decided on or after October 30, 2026 is judged under the revised listings, even if you applied earlier. Until then, SSA uses the current listings below. The ssa.gov 4.00 page checked October 2, 2026 still shows the current version.

Current listing (through October 29, 2026)	Revised listing (from October 30, 2026)
4.02 Chronic heart failure	4.02 Chronic heart failure
4.04 Ischemic heart disease	4.04 Ischemic heart disease
4.05 Recurrent arrhythmias	4.05 Recurrent arrhythmias
4.06 Symptomatic congenital heart disease	4.06 Congenital heart disease
No separate listing	4.07 Aortic valvular disease (new)
No separate listing	4.08 Cardiomyopathy (new)
4.09 Heart transplant	4.09 Heart transplantation
4.10 Aneurysm of aorta or major branches	4.10 Dissecting aneurysm of the aorta or major branches
4.11 Chronic venous insufficiency	4.11 Chronic venous insufficiency
4.12 Peripheral arterial disease	4.12 Peripheral artery disease
No separate listing	4.16 Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (new)

The body system is also renamed “Cardiovascular Disorders.” The criteria described below are the current ones. If your claim will be decided after October 29, 2026, ask SSA which version it is applying.

What SSA Looks for Under the Current Listings

SSA’s listing 4.02 looks for chronic heart failure in two parts. First, imaging must show weak pumping (systolic failure), such as an ejection fraction of 30 percent or less when you’re stable. Diastolic failure, a thick, stiff heart wall with an enlarged left atrium, also counts. Second, you need one of these:

Persistent symptoms that very seriously limit daily activities, when a stress test would be too risky.
Three or more episodes of acute heart failure in 12 months, each needing 12 hours or more of hospital or ER care.
Being unable to complete an exercise test at a workload of 5 METs or less.

Listing 4.04 covers coronary artery disease. You meet it with any one of these:

A stress test showing ischemia at 5 METs or less.
Three separate ischemic episodes in 12 months, each needing a stent or bypass or not treatable that way.
Major artery narrowing on angiography plus very serious limits in daily activities, when stress testing would be too risky.

Listing 4.05 covers arrhythmias. It looks for fainting or near fainting that keeps happening despite treatment, recorded on an ECG or Holter monitor at the time of the episode.

Other current listings:

4.09: disabled for 1 year after a heart transplant.
4.10: an aortic aneurysm with a dissection that treatment doesn’t control.
4.11: severe leg swelling or ulcers that don’t heal after 3 months of treatment.
4.12: blocked leg arteries with pain on walking and very low ankle or toe blood pressure readings.

The Evidence SSA Needs

SSA wants detailed records: your history, exams, lab and imaging results, and your prescribed treatment and how you respond. It usually needs at least 3 months of observation and treatment records to judge severity and duration.

Useful records include echocardiograms, stress tests, catheterization or angiography reports, ECG and Holter results, and hospital discharge summaries. SSA can buy an exercise test when needed. It won’t if your doctor says the test carries significant risk, and it generally gives that opinion great weight.

SSA's Cardiovascular System Listings (4.00)

Revised listings take effect October 30, 2026. SSA's revised cardiovascular listings (91 FR 40804 (published July 2, 2026; corrected by a document published Sept. 16, 2026)) apply to new and pending claims from that date. The current listings below apply until then.

SSA listings in section 4.00
Listing	Name
4.02	Chronic heart failure
4.04	Ischemic heart disease
4.05	Recurrent arrhythmias
4.06	Symptomatic congenital heart disease
4.09	Heart transplant
4.10	Aneurysm of aorta or major branches
4.11	Chronic venous insufficiency
4.12	Peripheral arterial disease

For children, SSA uses section 104.00 (Cardiovascular System), with 5 listings. See childhood conditions.

Revised Cardiovascular Listings From October 30, 2026

Revised cardiovascular listings
Listing	Name
4.02	Chronic heart failure
4.04	Ischemic heart disease
4.05	Recurrent arrhythmias
4.06	Congenital heart disease
4.07	Aortic valvular disease
4.08	Cardiomyopathy
4.09	Heart transplantation
4.10	Dissecting aneurysm of the aorta or major branches
4.11	Chronic venous insufficiency
4.12	Peripheral artery disease
4.16	Cardiac allograft vasculopathy

From SSA's Listing of Impairments (ssa.gov), checked October 2, 2026.

When Your Heart Condition Doesn’t Meet a Listing

SSA’s overview says not meeting a listing just moves your claim to the next step. SSA checks medical equivalence first, then assesses your residual functional capacity (RFC). The RFC is the most physical work you can sustain: how long you can stand and walk, how much you can lift, and whether you need to avoid heat, cold or stress.

With that RFC, SSA asks whether you can do your past work. If not, it asks whether you can adjust to other work given your age, education and experience. Notes about chest pain, shortness of breath and fatigue during everyday tasks help here. The five steps are explained on who qualifies for Social Security disability.

Compassionate Allowances for Heart Conditions

Several heart conditions appear on SSA’s Compassionate Allowances list, which speeds claims that by definition meet SSA’s standard. They include:

Adult Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1-4
Cardiac Amyloidosis- AL Type
Eisenmenger Syndrome
Fulminant Giant Cell Myocarditis
Heart Transplant Graft Failure
Transplant Coronary Artery Vasculopathy
Ventricular Assist Device Recipient - Left, Right, or Biventricular

The same CAL process applies to SSDI and SSI.

Children’s Heart Conditions: Listing 104.00

Children under 18 applying for SSI are judged first under section 104.00. It currently covers chronic heart failure, recurrent arrhythmias, congenital heart disease, heart transplant and rheumatic heart disease. The October 30, 2026 rule revises it too. It adds 104.16 Cardiac allograft vasculopathy, and rheumatic heart disease (104.13) falls into a reserved, unused range. Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome is on the CAL list. See SSI for children with disabilities.

Staying at Work With a Heart Condition

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) suggests these changes for heart conditions. For low stamina:

Working from home.
Flexible scheduling and leave.
Ergonomic changes.
Removing heavy physical exertion from the job.

For dizziness:

Chairs with armrests and locking casters.
Stools that let you alternate sitting and standing.
Extra rest breaks.

Workplace accommodations under the ADA explains how to request them.

Pulmonary hypertension is judged under respiratory disorders, and kidney damage from heart disease under genitourinary disorders. Check work credits and income with the disability eligibility screener, then use how to apply for disability. If you’re denied, you have 60 days to file an appeal; how to appeal a disability denial covers each level. See every body system on conditions SSA lists.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a Heart Attack Qualify Me for Disability?

A heart attack by itself doesn't meet a listing. SSA looks at what follows: ongoing ischemia on testing, repeated ischemic episodes, heart failure, or limits that keep you from working for at least 12 months.

Will SSA Make Me Take a Stress Test?

SSA may buy an exercise test when it needs one, but a medical consultant must review your file first, and SSA won't purchase one if there is significant risk or another medical reason not to test. SSA generally gives great weight to your own doctor's opinion about that risk.

Does High Blood Pressure Count?

High blood pressure has no listing of its own in 4.00. SSA evaluates its effects on the organs it damages, such as the heart, kidneys, brain or eyes, under the listings for those body systems.

Is a Pacemaker or Defibrillator Enough to Qualify?

Having a device doesn't meet a listing by itself. Listing 4.05 looks for fainting or near fainting from arrhythmias that keep happening despite prescribed treatment, recorded on an ECG or other testing at the time of the episode.

My Claim Was Filed Before October 30, 2026. Which Rules Apply?

SSA's final rule says it will apply the revised criteria to claims pending on or after the effective date, as well as to new applications. If your claim is still undecided on October 30, 2026, expect the revised listings to be used from then on.

Does a Left Ventricular Assist Device Speed Up My Claim?

SSA's Compassionate Allowances list includes Ventricular Assist Device Recipient - Left, Right, or Biventricular, so these claims are flagged for faster handling.

Other Body Systems in SSA's Listings

This page explains SSA's published rules. It isn't medical or legal advice; SSA decides each claim from your records.