 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 |
Can I get my Social Security Disability Hearing Request Expedited, Speeded up?How to prove you are disabled and win disability benefits In some situations, this may be possible. Keep in mind, however, that each hearing office will typically only expedite a claim if a claimant can demonstrate a level of dire need. Also keep in mind that since the length of time it takes to get to a disability hearing for SSD or SSI benefits has become much much longer in recent years, disability hearing offices now routinely receive many more requests for expedites based on dire than they previously did. This, of course, makes it much more difficult to grant anyone an expedite except in fairly extreme circumstances. How long does a hearing request take? In 2000, many hearing office jurisdictions might have been able to get a hearing scheduled within five months of receiving hearing request from the claimant or their social security lawyer. That wait is now over a year at nearly every hearing office in the country. If you choose to try to get your hearing request speeded up, however, you will need to demonstrate that one of the following situations applies to your particular case: that your physical condition has worsened to the point that you are now terminally ill; that your mental condition has deteriorated to the point where you are now having suicidal ideations (meaning you are now sucidal); that you are about to lose possession of your residence, either through foreclosure or eviction notices; that you are about to lose your ability to obtain prescribed medication that is essential to maintaining your physical or mental condition. Why would a hearing office consider any one of these reasons for potentially getting a social security hearing scheduled quicker? In the case of terminal illness, SSA (the social security administration) generally attempts to place a higher standard on getting the case processed more quickly. In fact, when cases are at the application level and can be identified as involving a person with a terminal illness, or as one involving a non-life threatening but particularly severe condition, the case may be marked as a "TERI" case or a "compassionate allowance" case. In either situation, applying one of these labels to the claim would result in much quicker processing. In the case of an individual losing their place of residence or their access to needed medicines, this is simply a subjective value judgement that the social security administration has made; in other words, the position of the agency is that individuals with such severe need should not have to endure the full length of what is ordinarily the waiting period for a hearing if enduring that wait will have an injurious effect on their condition or living circumstances. Demonstrating Dire Need Continued at: Speeding up the Request for a Social Security Hearing - Documentation that is needed 
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 |