This information may help claimants with representation, as well as claimants who are not represented by an attorney or non attorney representative. Understanding how the Social Security Disability system works can make the difference between winning or not winning the continuing disability benefits and backpay to which a person is entitled. |
|
I was wondering if a person is applying for disability and has a mental illness--does his/her doctor need to fill out both the physical and mental RFC's or is it one or the other? Ideally, if there is a mental impairment, a treating psychiatrist should fill out the mental RFC form for you. Notice I didn't say psychologist. Psychologists are Ph.D.s and administrative law judges tend to consider as "valid" only those opinions that come from M.D.s, which psychiatrists are and psychologists are not. (The ironic thing about that is the fact that DDS consultants who review mental impairment cases, or the mental aspect of cases, are usually not psychiatrist/M.D.s, but rather psychologist/Ph.D.s). If you have a mental impairment but are only being seen by an internist/family doctor, have this individual fill out the mental RFC. But even though your internist is an M.D., it's preferable to have a psychiatrist complete the form. Regarding physical impairments, try never to have a mental health professional complete the physical RFC. (To learn more about RFC forms and how to obtain an RFC form that may assist you in winning your claim, visit this site's RFC (residual functional capacity form) page.) Disability Advocates Help with Claims Free Case Evaluation |
| Back to answering your disability questions, page 2 |
|
SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY ATTORNEY, REPRESENTATIVE LAWYER LIST ANSWERS TO YOUR SSD & SSI QUESTIONS PAGE 3 ANSWERS TO YOUR SSD & SSI QUESTIONS PAGE 4 |
|
If you suffer from a medical disability such as hip, neck, shoulder, ankle, wrist, back, or other joint problems, disc herniation, degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, carpal tunnel syndrome, rsi or repetetive stress injury, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, arthritis, dysthymia, depression or other mood disorders, congestive or chronic heart failure, type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, diabetic neuropathy, high blood pressure (hypertension), seizure disorder, stroke, copd, emphysema, hearing loss or poor hearing, statutory blindness, peripheral field problems or other vision loss, clinical obesity, attention deficit hyperactivity or, simply, adhd, bipolar disorder or manic depression, panic disorder, schizophrenia, autism, head trauma, memory loss, low iq, mental retardation, learning disability, epilepsy, cancer, chronic fatigue, multiple sclerosis, lupus, anxiety, inner ear problems, meniere's, vertigo or dizziness, kidney failure requiring dialysis or other renal problems, cirrhosis, hepatitis, or other liver disease, pancreatitis, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, asthma, bronchitis, cystic fibrosis, rsd or reflex sympathetic dystrophy, crohn's disease, sarcoidosis, peripheral vascular disease, lyme disease, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, hiv, aids, anemia, sickle cell, thyroid problems including hypothyroidism, esrd or end stage renal disease, reflux, gerd (gastroesophageal reflux disease), cfids, muscular dystrophy, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, or tachycardia, bradycardia or other arrhythmia and have initiated or been denied on a social security disability, or ssi, claim for benefits, this site may assist you with your case. Social Security Disability benefits are often difficult to win; however many claims for social security disability are lost simply because a claimant did not know enough about the disability process to their social security or ssi claim. For information re: representation on a social security disability or ssi claim (attorney or non attorney representative), see the "questions" & "how" pages. |
| Social Security Disability How does the decision get made for a social security disability claim ? |