NO SHORT TERM DISABILITY BENEFIT

Social Security does not provide for short term disability benefits.  There are two important regulations which prevent collecting disability benefits for short term impairments.

First, there is the duration requirement.  This regulation requires that an impairment must last or be reasonably expected to last for a continuous period of 12 months or to end in death. CFR 404.1505 and CFR 404.1509.  Further:

 Severe impairments lasting less than 12 months cannot be combined with successive, unrelated impairments to meet the duration requirement. For example, if an individual had two unrelated incapacitating impairments, one lasting for only 9 months and the other developing 6 months after onset of the first and lasting for only 7 months, the duration requirement is not met since neither impairment lasted at least 12 months even though the individual's inability to work lasted for a total of more than 12 months. Where only the second impairment is of requisite severity and duration, onset of disability would be the first day that the second impairment became disabling. Onset cannot be extended back to the date of the first impairment if that impairment itself was disabling for less than 12 months.  20 CFR 404.1522(a)(b).

Second, there is the 5 month waiting period.  From the date the claimant is judged to have become disabled (called the onset date), the first 5 months of benefits are excluded.  Thus, if an individual is found to have become disabled on October 14th, he is not eligible to be paid benefits until April of the following year, since 5 full months must be set aside for the waiting period.

Please note that a claimant is NOT required to wait 12 months to file a disability claim.  However, if the claimant has a condition that is expected to improve so that no disability exists for 12 continuous months, benefits would not be payable.

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