Posted on December 27, 2009 in Social Security Disability

In order to be adjudicated as disabled before a Social Security Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), an attorney or claimants representative must follow and complete what is called the five step Social Security disability evaluation process. The evaluation process asks the individual seeking disability benefits five separate questions: (1) Are you working and are you performing substantial gainful activity; (2) Is your condition severe; (3) Does your condition meet or exceed a listed impairment; (4) Can you do previous work; and (5) What work can you do. While each of the five steps must be proven to be adjudicated as disabled, proving the fourth step can often be tricky. The process of proving whether a claimant can do previous work is determined by an individual's Residual Functional Capacity (RFC). This blog post explains what RFC is and why it is important to every disability claim before an ALJ.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) evaluates what someone's RFC is by determining the most work that a claimant can do despite any of his or her limitations. SSA determines the most work that a claimant can do by dividing "work" into four different categories: heavy, medium, light, and sedentary work. It is worth noting that there is sometimes a fifth category that is recognized for very heavy work; however, very heavy work is scarcely used and will not be discussed in this blog post. Whether a claimant wins his or her disability claim is greatly affected by which category he or she is ultimately put into. The lower an individual's RFC level, the greater the chances of meeting the fourth requirement of the five step evaluation process.

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 Posted on December 23, 2009 in Social Security Disability

I want to thank everyone who emailed me and posted encouraging responses to my previous blog post, "Mike Phillips: One Thumb To Rule Them All." I also want to be clear that while I made the blog post, it was Mike who went through the time and effort to create the video. Mike's remarkable endeavors, including becoming a master video game player, while having spinal muscular atrophy, is truly an inspiration for everyone. Mike's story is a clear example of overcoming the odds against you to succeed in life.

With the holiday season in motion and after reading everyone's responses to my previous blog post, I just want to say that this truly is a season to be thankful. It is easy to get caught up in the pressures and complexities of every day life and to forget that just being alive is a blessing. Being able to spend the holidays with family and loved one's is something to cherish. Since my next blog post won't be until Sunday, I want to wish everyone happy holidays from us at Illinois Social Security Disability Blog!

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 Posted on December 20, 2009 in Social Security Disability

Mike Phillips is a video gamer and technology writer with spinal muscular atrophy. Spinal muscular atrophy is a neuromuscular disease that results in muscular atrophy, ranging from mild weakness to complete loss of mobility. In Mike's case, he has suffered near total loss of all mobility. Despite his limitations, with the combination of strong determination and the latest in computer motion technology he has been able to overcome all odds and inspire many individuals on his path to developing into a master video game player with the use of just one thumb.

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 Posted on December 16, 2009 in Social Security Disability

On September 23rd, 2009, I published a piece on the Article Alley article directory website entitled, Don't Forget Your Ticket to Work. "Don't Forget Your Ticket to Work" reviewed the government sponsored Ticket to Work program, which was originally set up to reduce many of the barriers that were originally created to stop people with disabilities from working. The goal of the program is to increase opportunities and choices for Social Security disability beneficiaries to obtain employment, vocational rehabilitation, and other support services from public and private providers, employers, and other organizations. Other then reviewing the different components of the government sponsored Ticket to Work program, the article also postulated that most Social Security disability lawyers, claimants representatives, and disabled individuals have never heard of the program. The problem with these individuals not being aware of the program is that it increases the likelihood of numerous people with disabilities missing out on many wonderful job opportunities that could otherwise be made available to them.

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 Posted on December 13, 2009 in Social Security Disability

Autism is a severe developmental disorder affecting both social interaction and communication and usually begins at birth or within the first two and a half years of life. In its early stages, autism shares many of the same behaviors as Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD) and Asperger's Syndrome and can be difficult to diagnose since the majority of children with autism appear to be physically normal. In fact, when the baby boomer generation were still teenagers, autism occurred in approximately five children per 10,000 live births. Today, numerous studies have reported that number closer to one in 150 children diagnosed with autism. With autism steadily on the rise, it is important to know how the Social Security Administration (SSA) determines whether your child is disabled by autism.

SSA has a Listing of Impairments that must be met for someone to be considered disabled. Although meeting a listing can improve your disability claim, its worth noting that failing to meet the criteria under the listing does not necessarily result in the denial of your autism disability claim. The Listing of Impairments contains different criteria for various diseases and disorders and can be very different depending on whether you are a child or adult.

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 Posted on December 09, 2009 in Social Security Disability

I wanted to make a post discussing autism, but instead I came across a really informative video piece by Comcast Newsmakers on the subject I wanted to share with you. The video is an interview with Jean Ruttenberg, the Executive Director of The Center for Autism and discusses what autism is, how to recognize whether your child has it, and what is being done in the field to help those diagnosed with it. Below is the video. If you can't access the video, feel free to click here. Stay tuned for next week's post on "How the SSA Determines Whether Someone With Autism is Disabled."

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 Posted on December 06, 2009 in Social Security Disability

In June, 2009, Touch Bionics, a Scottish technology company, first launched the i-Limb in India. The i-Limb uses innovative nerve sensory technology that allows the individual using the prosthetic limb to sense touch, pressure, and control every aspect of its use and motion. Once electrodes are placed over the individuals muscle tissue, the muscles give off myo-electric signals from the brain controlling the i-Limb. Since its debut, Touch Bionics has sold over 700 of the hands alone and is currently shipping to over 30 different countries. The exciting and revolutionary technology has only recently made a splash in the United States, but it has already greatly improved the quality of the lives of countless disabled Americans. While some critics question the price of each i-Limb, there is no doubt that Touch Bionics is positively influencing the disabled community. Below is a video demonstrating the use of this technology...

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 Posted on December 02, 2009 in Social Security Disability

I was reading the September issue of NOSSCR and came across an interesting article discussing possible bias in the courtroom during a Social Security disability case. The disability claim focused on whether the claimant would qualify as disabled under section 12.05C of the Listing of Impairments, Mental Retardation. 12.05C addresses whether an individual's verbal, performance, or full scale IQ is between 60-70 and if there is any other physical or other mental impairment imposing additional and significant work related limitation of function. Information on this listing can be found at SSA's Listing of Impairments.

During the claimant's trial, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) made the following statement:

"And I'll tell you my thinking about this just so we're on the same page. Mentally retarded people can hold jobs. They need a little more structure, they need somebody to remind them to get them up every morning and appropriately cleaned and dressed and to get them there, but once they're there, you know, if the environment is structured and they have a little lunch pail they should be able to get there and, you know, they can be taught to get to someplace, either they can be dropped off, I've seen them on the bus, you know." Listing 12.05C-Possible ALJ Bias. NOSSCR. Volume 31, Number 9, September 2009, Page 8.

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 Posted on November 29, 2009 in Social Security Disability

For the second Best Social Security Disability Blogs of the month, there was a lot of competition in the month of November to make it to the Top 6. My favorite November blogs were:

Protective Filing Dates -Jeffrey Delott on I want My Disability Blog

Social Security Disability, Reporting Earnings, and Subsidized Work -Tim Moore on My Disability Blog

Impact of High Administrative Law Judge Denial Rates on Disabled Delaware Residents -Delaware lawyer Steven Butler on Delaware Disability Blog

How Does the Social Security Administration Determine If Someone Is Blind? -Aaron Rifkind on Social Security Blog

When Does Social Security Review Cases For Premature Babies? -Colorado lawyer Tomasz Stasiuk on the Social Security Insider Blog

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 Posted on November 25, 2009 in Social Security Disability

Dr. Cory Hebert has been implementing a very new technology to help autistic children learn to speak and express themselves at the Hope Technology School in Palo Alto, California. The Augmentated Assistive Communication Devise, also called the Light Writer, helps children with autism communicate by using a touch pad computer and voice recognition software to allow them to hear their own voice in coherent sentences, often for the very first time. The devise has thus far greatly affected the autistic community in a very positive way. For more information visit Hope Technology School.

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