HUNTSVILLE, A HUB OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACTIVITY

Huntsville, AL is a busy hub of activity involving Social Security disability claims.


As a disability advocate in Huntsville, I represent claimants in hearings that take me to Florence, Gadsden, Jasper or Birmingham.  Quite often I travel up to Franklin or Nashville, TN to represent a claimant.  Many of these claimants live in or around Huntsville.


Social Security attempts to keep hearings within a 75 mile radius of the claimant's home.  But because some hearing offices are more backlogged than others, cases that would normally be heard in North Alabama may be transferred to a hearing office Franklin.


Most claimants don't object if it means getting a hearing sooner and possibly getting paid quicker.


As I have reported elsewhere, the waiting time required for a disability hearing seems to be shrinking - a little.  The national average wait to get before a Social Security judge is still around 14 months.  Most of the hearing offices in North Alabama and Middle Tennessee have processing times slightly below the national average.


I think it is very important to file a disability claim as soon as it becomes likely that you will be out of work for 12 months or more due to a physical or mental condition.  About 30 percent of those claimants will get approved within 120 days.  The remaining 70 percent must go on to the appeal/hearing process that can take 12 to 18 months to complete. An earlier filing date can also protect more of the retroactive benefits--or back pay--that you may be eligible to receive.

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