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1. Regardless of what anyone tells you, it's good advice, if you are disabled and unable to work, to pursue a claim for Social Security disability, or ssi based on disability, and get it filed immediately. Reason: disability claims can take a very long time to process. This isn't true in all cases, but it is in most. Unfortunately, many claimants for disability benefits have experienced severe problems and hardship simply because they had no idea how long the process would be, and only realized when it was too late that they should have filed an application much much sooner.
2. If you are denied on your Initial Claim, it's good advice to get an attorney or non attorney Representative to provide representation and help you with your claim for continuing and past due benefits (back pay). Reason: the way the disability system works, a claimant will, typically, either be approved on an initial application...or will be forced to follow the appeal route, at least to the point where their case is brought before an Administrative Law Judge at a social security disability hearing. This is not always the case, but it is generally a predictable rule of thumb (*reconsiderations usually have a much higher rate of denial than initial claims--and initial claims are denied 60 to 70 percent of the time, depending on the state in which you filed. For this reason, most claimants will have to go to a hearing if they hope to be approved--and going to a hearing unrepresented is foolish).
3. If you think you may have problems doing the paperwork for your social security disability Claim, take some advice and find qualified assistance immmediately. An extraordinary number of persons who apply for benefits, or file an appeal following a denial, fail to properly complete their paperwork, or fail to submit their forms in a timely manner (*all appeals for disability must be filed within 60 days of the date of the last denial).
4. Advice: Since your Social Security Disability or ssi claim will be evaluated completely on the basis of your medical records, the best advice is to get regular, ongoing medical treatment. Reason no. 1: even if your past medical records indicate that you are disabled, an examiner or judge will not be able to approve your claim for continuing benefits if current medical records are not available to substantiate your claim. Reason no. 2: if you attempt to get a supporting statement from your doctor (an RFC is much better--see the definitions page), you may have difficulty getting your physician to cooperate if he/she has not seen you recently. If you lose your medical coverage before your claim for benefits is approved, as is usually the case, try to be seen at a free clinic, county health department, or emergency room. While these treatment sources are not the best, they are, simply put, better than nothing. Another avenue to pursue may be with your state's Vocational Rehab department. Very often, VR can assist claimants in getting certain testing and examinations paid for. Though this is always for the purpose of developing a VR claim, vr counselors are usually willing to supply these records to a claimant's representative as well. Just remember this advice: as a general rule you cannot be approved for social security disability or ssi based on disability if you are not seen by a medical provider at least once every two months.
Claimants with representation
have a better chance of approval.
To contact a disability attorney
and get a free evaluation, click here
DISABILITY ADVICE PAGE 2
DISABILITY ADVICE PAGE 3
Winning Disability (this article addresses winning disability and doing it faster)
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