Does a Non-Union Fracture Qualify for SSDI Benefits?

A non-union fracture — a broken bone that fails to heal properly — can be genuinely disabling. But whether it qualifies for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) depends on far more than the diagnosis itself. SSA evaluates how your condition limits your ability to work, not simply what your medical records say you have.

What Is a Non-Union Fracture?

A non-union fracture occurs when a broken bone stops progressing toward healing, typically after several months without union. The result is often chronic pain, instability, reduced range of motion, and sometimes nerve damage — depending on which bone is affected and what treatments have been attempted or have failed.

Common sites include the tibia, femur, humerus, scaphoid, and spine. Some non-unions are managed conservatively; others require surgical intervention like bone grafting or internal fixation. When those efforts succeed, function can be restored. When they don't, or when recovery is prolonged, the condition may rise to the level of disability.

How SSA Evaluates Musculoskeletal Conditions

SSA does not approve or deny claims based on diagnoses alone. The agency uses a five-step sequential evaluation to determine whether a claimant is disabled under its rules:

1. Are you engaging in Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA)? For 2024, SGA is $1,550/month for non-blind individuals (this threshold adjusts annually). If yes, the claim generally ends there.
2. Is your condition severe — meaning it meaningfully limits your ability to work?
3. Does your condition meet or equal a listed impairment in SSA's Blue Book?
4. Can you still perform your past relevant work given your current limitations?
5. Can you perform any other work available in the national economy?

A non-union fracture is most likely to be evaluated under Section 1.00 (Musculoskeletal Disorders) in SSA's Blue Book. SSA looks for documented findings: imaging that confirms non-union, clinical evidence of functional loss, records of treatment history, and objective measures of how the injury affects movement, strength, and endurance.

The Blue Book Listing — What It Takes to Meet It 🦴

SSA's musculoskeletal listings are specific. To meet a listing outright — which results in automatic approval at Step 3 — you generally need documented evidence of:

• Inability to ambulate effectively (for lower-extremity fractures), or
• Inability to perform fine and gross movements effectively (for upper-extremity fractures), lasting or expected to last at least 12 months

"Ineffective ambulation" under SSA's rules means being unable to walk without the assistance of a hand-held assistive device that limits the use of both hands — not simply walking with a limp or favoring one side.

Meeting the listing is not the only path to approval. Many approved claims succeed at Steps 4 and 5 through the Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) assessment.

RFC: The More Common Route to Approval

If your condition doesn't meet a Blue Book listing, SSA assesses your RFC — what you can still do despite your impairment. This is a detailed functional analysis covering:

• How long you can sit, stand, and walk in a workday
• How much you can lift and carry
• Whether you can stoop, crouch, climb, or reach
• Whether pain, medication side effects, or fatigue affect concentration or attendance

For a non-union fracture, the RFC determination will be heavily influenced by which bone is affected, whether surgery has been performed or recommended, how much chronic pain is documented, and how that pain is managed. A non-union in a weight-bearing bone with documented instability and pain carries a different RFC profile than one in a non-weight-bearing bone with limited functional impact.

SSA then asks whether someone with your RFC, age, education, and work history could perform either past work or any other work. Older claimants — particularly those over 50 — may benefit from the Medical-Vocational Grid Rules (the "Grids"), which can favor approval when physical limitations are significant and transferable skills are limited.

Variables That Shape Individual Outcomes

No two non-union fracture claims look the same. The factors that most influence outcomes include:

• Location and severity of the fracture — weight-bearing vs. non-weight-bearing bones
• Treatment history and response — failed surgeries, hardware complications, ongoing bone stimulator use
• Documented functional limitations — what your treating physicians say in their records
• Comorbid conditions — diabetes, osteoporosis, or vascular disease that complicates healing
• Age — younger claimants face a higher bar under the Grids
• Work history and past job demands — sedentary vs. physically demanding prior work
• Duration — SSA requires the condition to have lasted or be expected to last at least 12 months, or result in death

The Evidence Gap That Sinks Claims

One of the most common reasons musculoskeletal claims are denied isn't the condition itself — it's insufficient medical documentation. Gaps in treatment, records that describe a diagnosis without capturing functional limits, or treating physicians who haven't completed RFC assessments can all weaken a claim even when the underlying injury is genuine.

SSA's Disability Determination Services (DDS) reviewers work from what's in the file. If the file doesn't show how the fracture limits daily function and work capacity, the claim is evaluated on incomplete information.

Your medical record, your specific functional losses, your work history, and where you are in the application or appeal process are the pieces that determine what any of this means for you.