Posted on October 18, 2009 in Social Security Disability

In my last blog post, "What is the Five Step Social Security Disability Evaluation Process?," I had mentioned that the SSA tries to determine whether an individual can do his previous work in step four of the evaluation process. In order to determine if you can do your previous work, the SSA evaluates what your Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) is. RFC is the most work that you can do despite any of your limitations.

A few minutes after I had made the post, Ryan from Boston, Massachusetts asked me whether the SSA distinguishes the type of work that can be done. Ryan asks a very good question and there are actually four different categories of work that SSA recognizes: heavy work, medium work, light work, and sedentary work. It is worth noting that there is sometimes a fifth category that is recognized for very heavy work, however, this category is scarcely used and is not something I will be going over.

If you can work at a job where the work is classified as heavy, it will be extremely difficult for you to be adjudicated as disabled. Heavy work is defined as lifting "no more than 100 pounds with frequent lifting or carrying of weights up to 50 pounds." Heavy work involves lots of movement, heavy lifting, and very little sitting.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 17, 2009 in Social Security Disability

What is the five step, sequential Social Security disability evaluation process? The five step Social Security disability evaluation process is what your attorney or claimants representative needs to argue in order to win your disability benefits claim. The five step, sequential process is argued the same for every disability claim and is as follows:

Step One: Are you working? Are you performing SGA?

If your earnings average more than $1,350 per month gross in 2022, or $2,260 per month if you are blind, then the Social Security Administration will consider you as working at a Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level and will not find you to be disabled. Even if you have a disabling condition, if you are working at a SGA level, you will not be considered to be disabled by the SSA. It is important to note that the income that is counted for this step is from your actual wages.

Step Two: Is your condition "severe"?

The SSA will consider your impairment or combination of impairments severe if it interferes with basic work related activity. Your impairment or combination of impairments must be severe enough to last for at least a twelve month period.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 10, 2009 in Social Security Disability

A gentleman by the name of Ryan asked me the following question yesterday over the phone:

I need to hire a representative for my SSI case and do not want to get ripped off. I know that there is no way I could complete the application by myself and would like someone there guiding me along the way. How do I know who to hire and if that person will give me a good deal and win my case?

Unlike other fields of law, the pay structure in disability law is completely government regulated. While attorneys who represent clients in contracts and corporate cases for example can charge any reasonable legal fees, disability cases do not give representatives the freedom to set their own cost structure. In disability law, the Social Security Administration set forth rules requiring anyone who represents you to take the same percentage if they win your case. Currently, SSA requires representatives to take no more than 25% of a claimant's backpay as legal fees. So, if you win a $4000 reward for your disability claim, your representative would be entitled to $1000 for legal services. Regardless of which claimants representative or attorney you hire to work on your case, you will never pay more than 25% for representation and payment will only be made upon successful completion of your claim.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 10, 2009 in Social Security Disability

Although video games have received stark criticism for their increasingly violent and gory content, they do however have the ability to help improve the quality of life of numerous people with disabilities. Below is a very informative piece published several months ago by MSNBC describing the many benefits that online videos games have had on individuals that are handicapped.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 04, 2009 in Social Security Disability

As you may have read in some of my other posts, it is clear that the Social Security Administration has its hands full when it comes to disability claims. The backlog in some states have reached well over several years for a claimant to actually go in and have their day in court. To combat the overflow of claimants applying for SSDI and SSI, SSA established the List of Compassionate Allowance Conditions. The basic premise behind the List of Compassionate Allowance Conditions is that people have some medical conditions that qualify for disability benefits on minimal objective medical information. The SSA website states, "Compassionate allowances allow Social Security to quickly target the most obviously disabled individuals for allowances based on objective medical information that we can obtain quickly." The list consists of 50 conditions with the idea that it will expand over time. If you have one of the conditions on the list, it may be possible for your claim to be somewhat expedited. To see the complete List of Compassionate Allowance Conditions, click here

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 03, 2009 in Social Security Disability

Laura from Phoenix, Arizona recently commented on my "Don't Forget Your Ticket to Work" article and talked about the drawbacks that came with her attempt to participate in the Ticket to Work program:

I feel as though vocational rehabilitation is not an option for me. After I attempted to venture out of my house and to the employment office, I ended up leaving feeling completely worthless and like garbage. The people working there looked down on me and made me feel like there was a reason I couldn't find a job and wouldn't be able to get one. I never want to go through that again. I have a degree and great skills that can be used in plenty of work settings, and yet here I was feeling like I didn't belong. I have a spine so twisted I can't do any physical labor and when I tried to explain how I wouldn't want to be set up with jobs that did that, they wouldn't even look at my x-rays, they almost made me feel like I had to justify my condition to them. I didn't deserve the horrible treatment I got there. Is there a good private agency I can go to because Ticket to Work is not for me.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on October 03, 2009 in Social Security Disability

This is definitely one of the coolest and most remarkable videos I have seen recently. The video was made by a kid named Aaron who was handicapped at a very young age. Despite any disadvantages he may have endured growing up, he goes on to show us that anything is possible, including doing a backflip in a wheelchair.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on September 30, 2009 in Social Security Disability

I was informed yesterday that my Don't Forget Your Ticket to Work article was published in several different places on the internet. If you recall from my earlier post, Ticket to Work is the government sponsored program aimed at increasing the opportunities and choices for Social Security disability beneficiaries to obtain employment, vocational rehabilitation, and other support services. I implore anyone who views this blog and knows someone who has been adjudicated as disabled to read the article, which can be found here:

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on September 27, 2009 in Already Applied for Disability Benefits

In the previous post, I discussed two ways that an individual can insure that they are doing all that they can to make sure that the Social Security application process is going as quick and smoothly as possible. The first way is to go out and hire a claimants representative or an attorney. This will give you the best possibility of obtaining a disability award. The second way is to make sure that SSA has a signed copy for the SSA Form 827-Authorization to Disclose Medical Information. I noted that it is very rare that SSA will actually speed up a case and will only happen in very limited circumstances. This is why it is of the utmost importance that you do all that you can to help ease the process for SSA. Two other ways that you can insure that your application process is not being slowed down is by fully completing the Adult Disability and Work History Report and by not ignoring letters from SSA.

When filling out the Adult Disability and Work History Report, list all relevant doctors that you have seen for any of your conditions. The local DDS will make a decision regarding your disability. Their decision is based upon the medical information that you provide and they collect. The important point to note is that DDS does not determine which records they should review. Therefore, you are your own advocate and must point SSA in the direction that you believe will highlight the areas of your case and give them the best opportunity to discover why you truly feel that you are disabled. For example, if you have mobility problems with your back, then the SSA does not need to review your past eye exams from your eye doctor. Although this might seem obvious, extra records can confuse DDS and slow your application process down.

Continue Reading ››

 Posted on September 24, 2009 in Already Applied for Disability Benefits

One of the most frequently asked questions my clients come to me with is how they can speed up their application process for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). And, I always answer the question with a very long drawn out sigh. If you recall in my post, "The Terrifying Backlog at ODAR," most SSDI claims last a very long time and sometimes from start to finish the case can last for over a year and a half. Due to the combination of a very long backlog at ODAR and the complexity of the SSA disability process, it is very difficult to speed up an SSDI application and can be done only in limited circumstances. Those limited circumstances where SSA will specifically speed up applications are for only very rare and serious fatal forms of cancer and a few other terminal/fatal illnesses.

If it is really rare that SSA will speed up an application, it is important that you do your part to not slow the application process down. One way you can prevent this from happening is by hiring a claimants representative or attorney who specializes in Social Security disability cases to assist you in your case. Only hire someone who will actually help you make application. Most claimants representatives and attorneys will not help you make application because it takes so much time and effort. Often times claimants go online and fill out an application and think they have completed the Social Security application process. Unfortunately, this is often not the case. The proper and complete application consists of three items: the application, Adult Disability and Work History Report, and a properly executed and delivered copy of the Authorization to Disclose (SSA Form 827). Without all three items completed and received by the SSA, they will not even begin to evaluate the claim. By hiring an experienced claimants representative or Social Security disability lawyer to work on your claim, your application will be initially started with the very best possibility to win your claim.

Continue Reading ››