SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY INSURANCE

Most Americans who have worked for any significant time are covered by federal disability insurance.  We don't usually think of Social Security as an insurance benefit but that's exactly what it is.  It is SSDI or Social Security Disability Insurance. Persons who are current insured have "insured status."  It is paid for by FICA taxes deducted from wages and matched by the employer.  FICA stands for Federal Insurance Contribution Act.

Are You Eligible for Benefits?

You may qualify for benefits if you have a severe medically determinable impairment that has lasted, for is expected to last, at least 12 consecutive months or end in death.  The impairment must be so severe that it prevents the ability to perform full-time work.

Burden of Proof

The burden of proving disability under the Act rests with the claimant. 

Today approximately 75 percent of persons who are approved for federal disability benefits must appeal a denial and appear at a hearing.  

What is the Application Process?

Individuals may apply online at www.socialsecurity.gov or by going to a local Social Security office.  If you choose to be represented, your representative can help you complete the application for benefits.  The process will include a basic application, a Work History Report, Function Report, Form SSA-827 and probably several questionnaires. It is now taking about 120 days to get an initial decision.  If you are denied, the appeal process will probably take at least 14 months.  There is usually nothing quick about Social Security disability benefits.

"It is important to understand that a denial of your application is not the end of your journey--it is the beginning." 

                                                                                   --Charles W. Forsythe

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GETTING MONEY FROM SSDI

SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance .  When you first began working, the Government deducted a percentage of your wages, called a FICA tax.  This continued as long as you worked, in most cases.  This money was matched by your employer and set aside in a government trust fund to help you if you later became disabled and could not work. SSDI is a type of government sponsored insurance program, usually called "Social Security disability insurance."  To get benefits out of SSDI, you must prove  that you have a medical disability so severe that you cannot work any full-time job; that this disability has lasted, or is expected to last, for at least 12 consecutive months. That sounds simple but Social Security has made it rather difficult to prove that you are disabled.  One reason is that their definition of 'disability' is so strict.  You usually must prove that you cannot perform even simple, unskilled work at the sedentary (sitting) leve
Read more

POST HEARING EVIDENCE

Many people assume that a Social Security disability case is over when the hearing has been held.  This isn't always the case.  Often there is post hearing work that should be done to achieve the best chance of a favorable decision. Everyone at a disability hearing works under pressure.  This includes the claimant, the representative, the vocational expert and even the administrative law judge.  Hearings are generally limited to less than one hour.  The judge will ask questions that place the claimant under stress to answer correctly.  The representative or attorney will be asked to respond to procedural issues or points of law that place him or her under pressure.  The judge must constantly conduct the hearing so that it follows Social Security laws, rules and regulations.  Further, the judge must form accurate hypothetical questions for the vocational expert based on the medical and vocational evidence in the file and upon the claimant's testimony.  The vocational expert th
Read more

PARTIALLY FAVORABLE DECISIONS ON DISABILITY

You attended a hearing on your Social Security disability claim.  A few weeks later, you receive a Notice of Decision in the mail that says you have received a Partially Favorable decision.  Does this mean that you are only partially disabled, not fully disabled? ANSWER:  No.  Social Security does not make awards for partial disability.  You are either disabled or not disabled.  There is no such category as "partially disabled" within Social Security law. A "partially favorable" decision means that the administrative law judge has found you to be disabled.  However, he or she has changed some material fact in your application.  Most often, this change involves the established onset date--the date you were found to have become disabled.  For example, in your application you may have alleged that you became disabled on June 1, 2012.  After reviewing the facts of the case, the judge may have decided that you did not become disabled until September 1, 2012.  Theref
Read more