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Many initial Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability claims are denied. In fact, over sixty percent of all initial Social Security disability claims are denied at the initial level (nationally, the denial rate is actually closer to 70 percent). So what do you do if your disability claim has been denied? Social Security has an appeal process that allows you to appeal your initial disability denial, and the first level of this disability appeal process is known as a request for reconsideration. What happens when you file your request for reconsideration with Social Security? A claims representative forwards your request for reconsideration to the state disability agency responsible for making disability determinations for Social Security. Yes, this is the same place your initial disability claim was sent to and denied. However, a different disability examiner reviews your case. As you might guess, very few disability determinations are reversed at this level; in fact only about ten to fifteen percent of all initial disability denials are reversed to approvals at this level. Of course, there is a logical explanation for this, and that is that all disability examiners are bound by the rules and guidelines set forth in the Social Security disability handbook, and the second disability examiner has no more flexibility than the first disability examiner. However, the second disability examiner can reverse the initial denial if they determine there was an error in the initial disability determination. Social Security has considered doing away with the reconsideration level of the appeal process for many years, but has yet to come up with a better process. Consequently, for most individuals the request for reconsideration appeal level is merely a stepping-stone to a hearing with an administrative law judge. 
Social Security Disability and SSI Disability Information
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