SSA Listings 100.00 to 114.00

Childhood Conditions in SSA's Listings

How Does SSA Decide Disability for a Child?

A childhood conditions disability claim is usually an SSI claim, and SSA asks whether the child has a physical or mental condition that causes marked and severe functional limitations lasting at least 12 months or expected to result in death. SSA checks the childhood listings (100.00 to 114.00) first, then the adult listings, then whether the child's limits functionally equal a listing. Family income and resources also count. See SSI for children with disabilities.

Reviewed by Michael Rupe ·October 1, 2026

A father leans on the kitchen table and smiles at his daughter as she does homework with a textbook and notebook — Photo: Annushka Ahuja / Pexels

How SSA Defines Disability for a Child

A childhood conditions disability claim works differently from an adult claim. A child under 18 doesn’t have to show they can’t work. Instead, SSA asks whether the child has a medically determinable physical or mental condition that causes marked and severe functional limitations. The condition must have lasted or be expected to last at least 12 months, or be expected to result in death.

For a blind child, the adult definition of blindness applies, and SSI blindness benefits have no duration requirement.

“Marked and severe functional limitations” means the condition seriously limits what the child can do compared with other children the same age without impairments. SSA looks at home, school, childcare and community activities.

Most childhood claims are for SSI, which is based on need. When a child turns 18, SSA re-evaluates the claim under the adult definition of disability.

How the Childhood Listings Are Used

The childhood listings are Part B of SSA’s Listing of Impairments, sections 100.00 through 114.00. They apply only to children under 18. Most mirror an adult body system, such as 103.00 for respiratory disorders or 112.00 for mental disorders, with criteria adjusted for growth and development.

SSA works through the questions in this order:

Does the child’s condition meet a Part B childhood listing?
If no Part B listing applies, does it meet the adult criteria in Part A?
Does it medically equal a listing, meaning findings at least as severe?
If not, do the child’s limits functionally equal the listings?

Some childhood listings have no adult version. Section 100.00 covers low birth weight and failure to thrive, and 110.00 covers non-mosaic Down syndrome and catastrophic congenital disorders. Under 110.06, a child with documented non-mosaic Down syndrome is considered disabled from birth.

Functional Equivalence: The Six Domains

A child can be found disabled without meeting a specific listing, through functional equivalence. SSA rates the child’s limits in six domains. The child’s condition functionally equals the listings if it causes a “marked” limitation in two domains or an “extreme” limitation in one.

Domain	What it covers
Acquiring and using information	Learning, understanding and using what the child learns
Attending and completing tasks	Focusing, keeping pace and finishing activities
Interacting and relating with others	Getting along, communicating and following social rules
Moving about and manipulating objects	Gross and fine motor skills, such as walking and using hands
Caring for yourself	Age-appropriate self-care and coping
Health and physical well-being	Effects of illness and treatment on the body

SSA looks at how much extra help the child needs, how the child does in school, and the effects of medications and treatment. It asks medical sources, parents and teachers, and sometimes others who see the child often. It may also schedule an exam at its own expense. School records such as an IEP or a 504 plan often describe exactly these limits.

The Childhood Listings, by Body System

Childhood listing sections
Section	Body system	Listings
100.00	Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive	2
101.00	Musculoskeletal Disorders	10
102.00	Special Senses and Speech	5
103.00	Respiratory Disorders	6
104.00	Cardiovascular System	5
105.00	Digestive Disorders	9
106.00	Genitourinary Disorders	7
107.00	Hematological Disorders	4
108.00	Skin Disorders	3
109.00	Endocrine Disorders	1
110.00	Congenital Disorders that Affect Multiple Body Systems	2
111.00	Neurological Disorders	14
112.00	Mental Disorders	12
113.00	Cancer (Malignant Neoplastic Diseases)	8
114.00	Immune System Disorders	9

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

Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive: Listing 100.00

Section 100.00 covers babies and toddlers. SSA’s listing 100.04 applies to infants from birth to age 1. It is met by a birth weight under 1200 grams, or by a low weight for the baby’s gestational age:

Gestational age at birth	Birth weight that meets 100.04B
37 to 40 weeks	2000 grams or less
36 weeks	1875 grams or less
35 weeks	1700 grams or less
34 weeks	1500 grams or less
33 weeks	1325 grams or less
32 weeks	1250 grams or less

Birth weight means the first weight recorded after birth. It’s documented by the birth certificate or a medical record signed by a physician.

Listing 100.05 covers failure to thrive from birth to age 3. It needs both of these:

Growth failure: three measurements within 12 months, at least 60 days apart, below the third percentile on SSA’s growth tables (weight-for-length before age 2, BMI-for-age from 2 to 3).
Developmental delay: a standardized assessment showing development at no more than two-thirds of the expected level, or two narrative reports from the child’s doctors at least 120 days apart showing the same.

The child doesn’t need a digestive disorder to use the growth tables. After age 3, growth problems are judged under the affected body system.

A baby born between 1200 and 2000 grams who doesn’t meet 100.04 can still qualify through other conditions of prematurity. Examples include retinopathy of prematurity, chronic lung disease of infancy, and bleeding in the brain. SSA may use a premature baby’s corrected age: actual age minus the weeks born early.

SSI for Children: Income and Resources Count Too

A child must also meet SSI’s financial rules. If a child under 18 lives with parents who don’t get SSI, SSA counts part of the parents’ income and resources as available to the child. This is called deeming. SSA subtracts allowances for the parents and for other children in the home first.

As one example, SSA’s 2026 deeming chart shows a single parent with only earned income and no other children could earn under $4,101 a month gross, and two parents under $5,095. The chart is only a guide and doesn’t apply in every state or situation. The maximum federal SSI payment is $994 a month in 2026, and some states add a supplement.

Other points to know:

In most states, a child who gets SSI can also get Medicaid.
Large back payments covering more than six months must go into a dedicated account used mainly for disability or education costs.
Deeming stops at age 18.

The SSI payment estimator helps with the math. The full rules are on SSI for children with disabilities and SSI: Supplemental Security Income.

Compassionate Allowances for Children

SSA says Compassionate Allowances mainly cover certain cancers, adult brain disorders and a number of rare disorders that affect children. Childhood conditions on the list include:

Child Heart Transplant Wait List – Status Levels 1A/1B
Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) - Types 0 and 1
Severe Combined Immunodeficiency - Childhood
Edwards Syndrome (Trisomy 18) and Patau Syndrome (Trisomy 13)
Child Neuroblastoma - with Distant Metastases or Recurrent

These claims are flagged for faster decisions.

Applying and What Comes Next

Gather the child’s medical records, therapy and early intervention reports, and school records before you apply. Follow the steps in how to apply for disability. If SSA denies the claim, you have 60 days to appeal; how to appeal a disability denial explains each level.

The adult body system pages explain conditions that also appear in the childhood listings. Start with respiratory disorders, cardiovascular disorders and mental disorders, or see every system on conditions SSA lists. For general adult eligibility rules, see who qualifies for Social Security disability.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is There a Minimum Age for a Child to Get SSI?

No. SSA says a child may be eligible for SSI disability benefits as early as the date of birth. Low birth weight in infants is evaluated under listing 100.04 from birth to age 1.

Who Counts as a Child for SSI?

Someone who isn't married or the head of a household and is under 18, or under 22 and regularly attending school, college or job training, as SSA determines. The childhood disability standard applies until age 18.

Does My Child Get Medicaid With SSI?

In most states, a child who gets SSI can get Medicaid. A child who doesn't qualify for SSI may still qualify for Medicaid under other state rules, so check with your state Medicaid agency.

Will SSA Talk to My Child's Teachers?

It may. SSA's rules say it will ask medical sources about the child's limitations and will also ask for information from parents and teachers, and sometimes others who see the child often at home, in childcare, at school or in the community.

Is Down Syndrome Automatically Approved?

Under childhood listing 110.06, a child with documented non-mosaic Down syndrome is considered disabled from birth. Family income and resources still have to fit SSI's limits.

What Happens When My Child Turns 18?

SSA evaluates the claim again under the adult definition of disability, which asks whether the young adult can work. Parental deeming also stops at 18.

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.