 SSDRC What is the Application Process for Social Security Disability and SSI? How do you Win Benefits under Social Security Disability or SSI? If I am determined disabled, how far back will Social Security pay benefits? How do you prove your disability case if you have a mental condition? What Can I Do to Improve My Chances of Winning Disability Benefits Common Mistakes after Receiving a Denial of Social Security Disability or SSI Benefits How to File for Disability - Tips for Filing If You Get Approved For SSDI Will You Also Get Medicare? How much does a Social Security disability attorney get paid? Social Security Disability SSI Criteria and the Evaluation Process How long does it take to be approved for SSI or Social Security disability? What do you Need to Prove to Qualify for Disability Benefits? Social Security Disability SSI and Fibromyalgia Social Security Disability SSI and Degenerative Disc Disease Can I Qualify For Disability and Receive Benefits based on Depression? Answers to questions about SSD and SSI disability What Disabilities Qualify for SSI and Social Security Disability Benefits? Social Security Disability Status Social Security Disability Tips — how a claim gets worked on Social Security Disability, SSI Disability - Terms, Definitions, Concepts |
To Win Benefits, You may have to Appeal a Social Security Disability Denial or SSI denialHow to prove you are disabled and win disability benefits This title of this post would seem obvious. However, a significant percentage of applicants for social security disability and SSI benefits do not appeal their claim after they have have received a notice of denial. As a disability examiner working on SSD and SSI claims at disability determination services (the agency that makes disability claim decisions for the social security administration), I was able to see, firsthand, that an astonishing number of cases are turned down and are never appealed. What happens to those cases? They generally fall into one of the following categories. 1. The applicant is denied for disability benefits and then gives up entirely. 2. The applicant decides to do nothing after they receive their notice of denial, basically allowing their appeal period to expire (the appeal period is sixty days from the date of the denial). In some cases, those same individuals decide that this was a bad move on their part and later decide to revisit their case. However, at that point, they learn that their claim is effectively dead in the water and that they must start fresh with a brand new claim...which includes having to go through another disability application interview, filing out the forms for a new claim, possibly being sent to consultative medical exams once again, and having to wait weeks or months to receive another decision. 3. The applicant decides "to appeal" but somehow proceeds from the mistaken assumption that starting a new disability application is the same thing as filing an appeal. As a disability examiner, I saw this phenomenon occur thousands of times. Why does it happen? I frankly do not know. It may be that many individuals simply do not understand that they are allowed to appeal a denial of a claim. Others may not understand that appealing is far more beneficial than starting a new claim because it dramatically improves the chances of being approved for benefits. And others...may actually think that when they are initiating a new claim, they are doing the same thing as appealing. And this is absolutely not the case. Individuals who receive a notice of denial and then pass up the chance to file an appeal, instead choosing to start a new disability application will simply get denied again. On the other hand, individuals who decide to utilize the appeals process will eventually get their case heard by an administrative law judge (ALJ) at a hearing and will probably be approvedn -- even more likely if they are represented by someone who has done the proper preparation on their case and effectively presents their claim before the ALJ (administrative law judge). continued at: Receiving a notice of denial on a disability case 
Return to: SSDRC, or the Questions, Answers, Tips, and Advice page Topics and Questions SSD and SSI are Federal Programs The title II Social Security Disability and title 16 SSI Disability programs operate under federal guidelines and, therefore, the program requirements--medical and non-medical--apply to all states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming Recent approval and denial statistics for various states can be viewed here: Social Security Disability, SSI Approval and Denial Statistics by state Special Section: Disability Lawyers and unnecessary claim denials |