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


Will I be approved for disability on my appeal ?


How to prove you are disabled
and win disability benefits


 
A disability applicant’s chance of being approved for disability on their appeal is not guaranteed and will depend on the merits of the case as well as the level of the appeal. One fact, though, is very clear: the first appeal that a claimant who has been denied for disability can file has a low probability of success while the second appeal (the disability hearing) has dramatically higher chances of resulting in a social security disability or SSI award. To get to the second appeal, however, a claimant must go through the process of filing the first appeal.

The First Appeal

If you are filing a reconsideration appeal, it is unlikely you will win your appeal. It has been estimated that only 10 or 15 percent of initial claim denials are overturned at the reconsideration appeal level (recent reports indicate a 12-14 percent chance of approval at this level, depending on one’s state of residence).

Why is it that reconsideration appeals are so heavily denied? Reconsiderations are sent back to the same state disability agency (in most states, the agency is called DDS, Disability Determination Services) for a decision; therefore the same procedures and methods of evaluation are applied to reconsideration appeals that were applied to the initial disability claim. The only real difference between how an initial disability application and a reconsideration appeal are handled has to do with the fact that a different disability examiner decides the outcome of the reconsideration. As you might guess, if the reconsideration level examiner does not believe there were errors in the initial disability, or no new substantial medical records are presented, then it is likely that the reconsideration appeal decision will be the same.

The Second Appeal

An administrative law judge at a disability hearing, on the other hand, has more flexibility when making the decision for your disability claim. What do we mean by “more flexibility”? It can be summed up this way:
  1. The disability judge will not have his or her decision reviewed by a supervisor who is concerned with how many approvals have been made by his or her case processing unit.

  2. The judge will typically respect the opinion of the claimant’s treating physician; whereas the disability examiner’s agency (DDS) historically has a low rate of compliance with regard to giving the opinion of a claimant’s doctor the appropriate weight of consideration.

  3. The judge will, if they deem fit, bring in a vocational witness to further develop the claimant’s likelihood (or not) of being able to re-enter the workforce, based on their condition, education, and skills.

  4. The judge will hear arguments and a rationale for approval from either the claimant or their disability lawyer if they are represented (at a hearing, disability representation is strongly recommended).
For these reasons and more, statistically there are far more disability approvals at the hearing appeal level. For most disability applicants, their best chance for a disability approval will be at the administrative law judge hearing.

How many cases are approved at a disability hearing?

With regard to this question, statistics change year by year. They also vary by state. It is often quoted that the average disability hearing approval rate is about sixty-five percent; when you consider another ten percent of dismissed are dismissed for reasons other than a denial, this is an extremely high approval rate. A federal statistic in recent years indicated that approximately forty-percent of claims were approved at the hearing level if a claimant went to the hearing without the benefit of social security representation, while sixty-two percent of represented claimants were awarded benefits.

If you fall into the percentage of cases who are not approved at their disability hearing appeal, you are at a decision point. You can appeal your disability hearing decision by filing an Appeals Council Review appea,l or you can file a new claim for disability benefits. New Social Security rules prohibit filing a new disability claim while you wait on your on Appeal Council Review decision. If you have an attorney or non-attorney representative, they can advise you as to which path you should take.

If you do not have a disability representative, you have to make the choice. Very few Appeal Council Review appeals end in an outright approval for disability. Most appeals are denied with a few being remanded back--to the administrative law judge who made the original decision--for review. Even those disability cases that are remanded to the ALJ for review are often denied. You or your representative must decide whether this appeal is an unnecessary waste of time or it is worthwhile for you to wait the that time it takes to get their decision before filing a new disa















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Individual Questions and Answers


  • How long will it usually take to get a decision on a disability claim?

  • What Disabilities Qualify for SSI Disability Benefits?

  • Can Your Social Security Disability or SSI Benefits Be Reduced?

  • Should I be Represented by a Disability Lawyer or a Non-Specialized Disability Attorney?

  • If I Get Approved For Disability And Later Get Another condition, Can My Benefits Be Increased And Go Up?

  • Applying for disability benefits in Georgia

  • Winning Social Security Disability Benefits For Mental Disorders

  • Will I be approved for disability on my appeal ?

  • Should I get a representative for my disability claim ?

  • When Are You Allowed To Ask For A Social Security Disability Hearing?

  • The Levels Of The Social Security Disability and SSI Application and Appeal Process

  • The Cost and Expenses of a Disability Attorney or a Disability Representative

  • How do Social Security Disability and SSI appeals work ?

  • The SSD, Social Security Disability Date of Application

  • How does social security disability define work quarters ?

  • Social Security disability and assets

  • What happens if you are working when you file for disability or after you apply for disability?

  • If You File For Social Security Disability How Far Back Will They Look At Your Medical Records?

  • The Decision on the Social Security Disability Claim or SSI Claim

  • How long does it take to be approved for Social Security disability ?

  • Social Security Disability and SSI Denials

  • When do you receive a Hearing for Disability?

  • How Long Does Your Attorney Have To File Your Social Security Disability Appeal?

  • How do you appeal your denial for disability?

  • What happens if the Social Security disability examiner cannot find all the needed medical records?

  • Will you be notified if you receive an Approval for Social Security Disability or SSI

  • The Social Security Disability Medical Review

  • Waiting for a Hearing to be Scheduled before an ALJ, Administrative Law Judge

  • How many Social Security Disability appeals do you get ?

  • The Social Security Disability Decision and Your Ability to Work

  • Being Determined Medically Disabled for Social Security Disability

  • Disability Attorney - Does Social Security pay the fee?

  • Mental Disability Benefits and What Social Security will Consider

  • Does The Social Security Judge Use The Same Rules As The Disability Examiner?

  • Is Bipolar Disorder a disability according to Social Security?

  • Hiring a Qualified Disability Lawyer in New Jersey

  • How Do You Switch Your Disability Lawyer?

  • Glaucoma, Social Security Disability, and Applying for Benefits

  • How is Social Security Disability Awarded?

  • How Much Do You Get For Disability If You Are Awarded Benefits?

  • Social Security Disability Hearings - what to expect

  • Social Security Disability Medical Evaluation Form, Can A Doctor Be Forced to Complete One?

  • How Does Social Security Decide If You Are Disabled Or Not?

  • Does Level of Education or Age Matter for Social Security Disability or SSI?

  • You Cannot get a Social Security Disability or SSI Award if you don't Provide SSA what they need
























    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