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. |
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I was just turned down 1/27/05. It was my first time applying. Reconsideration is next . Being unaware of what I should do (Prior to reading your website), I talked to an attorney yesterday who declined my case because I was not being treated for my disability problems, although they are well-documented. My intention is to find another Doctor and Attorney because I realize that this is a long process. Should I keep the RFC form and hold it until I have a hearing before an ALJ ? (then all info will be current along with additional updates from new Doctor). Regarding how well documented your disability case is....remember this: even if you have an extensive history of treatment, you'll, nonetheless, need documentation of recent medical treatment. Unfortunately, since your case may be ongoing for quite some (in your case, at least through the reconsideration phase and, possibly, through the ALJ hearing phase), this will mean, in a practical sense, that you will need to keep going to a doctor, if possible. For a disability examiner or administrative law judge to approve you, they'll need to see, at the time they attempt to make a decision, records generally not older than 60 days. Typically, an adjudicator will prefer to see medical evidence even more recent than that: that is, not older than 30 days. Of course, this is a problem for many claimants whose health coverage has run out. In those cases, a person just has to do what they can, which is to be seen by an ER, free clinic, health department, or wherever they can be seen. If your case proceeds to the disability hearing stage, you'll definitely want representation there, whether via an attorney or a non-attorney (many of whom are former claims reps and DDS examiners). Now, regarding the RFC form. It isn't necessarily a bad idea for you to submit this to your DDS (if you go to the articles page on this site, you'll see a link that leads to listings of state DDS offices with their phone numbers) while your reconsideration is being processed. In fact, it happens to be one of the great failings of the disability system that DDS examiners do not send RFC forms to a claimant's doctors (they only obtain rfc forms from their unit physicians, who lean very heavily toward denials). Unfortunately, dds examiners routinely ignore statements provided by treating physicians, therefore, this may be a judgement call on your part. You could ask your doctor to complete an RFC and submit it during the recon. Just keep in mind that they may or may not give it full consideration. And if you get denied on your recon, you will definitely want to have your doctor submit an RFC for the judge (ALJ). However, will your doctor be willing to complete one RFC form for the dds examiner and then, months later, complete another RFC form for the judge? You'd be surprised how many doctors will balk at doing this. So...as I indicated, this may be a judgement call on your part. Bottom line: it won't hurt to submit an RFC form for your reconsideration. But----you'll get more bang for the buck by submitting it to an ALJ at a disability hearing. However, if you think you can do both, certainly do both. Good luck on your case. (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 |
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If you suffer from a medical condition 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. |
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