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


What tools are used by a Social Security Disability Examiner to Make a Claim Decision?


How to prove you are disabled
and win disability benefits

 
Continued from: Who will decide my Social Security disability claim ?

What tools are used by an examiner to make a decision on a claim? The examiner will rely on the following:

1. The information contained in the medical records. The medical records will be used to interpret what the claimant's RFC, or residual functional capacity is. This is a measurement of what a person can still do despite their condition. If a person is rated with an RFC that is less than what their past jobs required of them, they may be considered disabled if it is also true that they do not have the ability to switch to some form of other work.

2. The information contained in any statements obtained from the claimant's doctors. Statements from a doctor can help support a claimant's disability case if they go so far as to point out how limited the claimant is, i.e. how their condition restricts them. The statement should cite objective findings and should also give some indication as to the claimant's prognosis.

So, obviously, a statement from a doctor that simply says that their patient cannot work will not be enough. The statement must describe how the claimant is limited. For example, does the individual have difficulty sitting or standing, or lifting more than a certain amount of weight, or difficulty with grip strength, or even trouble seeing and hearing. Any physical shortcoming should be noted.

In addition to physical limitations, a claimant's medical treatment specialist (e.g. psychiatrist) may be able to indicate any mental difficulties the claimant has, such as a reduced ability to comprehend, sustain attention and concentration, recall information, or learn tasks.

3. Information regarding the claimant's work history. The disability examiner will not only review the medical records but will look at the various jobs the individual has worked prior to becoming disabled. This will be done so that the examiner can compare the claimant's current range of physical and mental abilities (and limitations) to the demands of their past jobs.

In many cases, the conclusion will be that the claimant is so limited that they are unable to go back to one of their former jobs. However, the process does not end there. The examiner also looks at past jobs to determine if the individual has the necessary skills (in combination with their age and education) to perform some type of other work. Very often, individuals who are found to be unable to return to their past work are still denied for disability because it is decided that they can do "other work".

Denials based on the ability to do other work happen frequently at the first two levels of the system and there is really nothing a claimant can do regarding this. However, at the disability hearing level, a claimant who is represented may be much more likely to prove to the administrative law judge that they can neither return to past work or do other work.

In some cases, this will be because the claimant's past jobs were previously improperly classified. In other cases, it will be because the judge has brought in a vocational expert to give testimony and the claimant's social security disability attorney will be successful in challenging the statements made by the expert.

More at: Who makes the decision at the disability hearing level?














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Topics and Questions


  • How long can you receive SSI or Social Security disability benefits ?

  • What Happens If You Miss Your Social Security Disability Application Appointment?

  • Who will decide my Social Security disability claim?

  • Applying for Disability - what are the rules?

  • Applying for disability benefits in Michigan

  • Qualifying for Disability - What is Social Security Looking for?

  • Is there a trick to qualifying for disability benefits with social security?

  • Appearing at the ALJ Hearing for Social Security Disability and SSI Benefits

  • Is an individual who receives VA benefits allowed to receive Social Security benefits at the same time ?

  • What medical conditions can you apply for disability for ?

  • What is usually the status of your social security disability or SSI case?

  • Social Security Disability SSI Terms and Definitions

  • How important is reporting income for those who currently receive disability benefits ?

  • How do I file for Social Security disability ?

  • Social Security Disability, SSI, and Residual Functional Capacity, RFC

  • Who is the DDS Doctor, i.e. the Social Security Doctor?

  • Social Security Disability and SSI Eligibility

  • How does work qualify you for social security disability ?

  • Can I get SSI for RA, Rheumatoid Arthritis?

  • What is the best way to check the status of a Social Security Disability Claim or SSI claim?

  • When Social Security Disability Sends You To A Doctor, What Kind Is It?

  • Will a Disability attorney try to Help You get Your Medical Records?

  • Application Requirements For Disability - What Do I Need To Start The Claim?

  • How to Apply for Disability - Where do I go to apply for disability ?

  • When I Apply For Disability Should I List My Old Meds From Years Ago?

  • Social Security Disability SSI and ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

  • Do you get disability back payments from social security?

  • Can I get my Social Security Disability Hearing Request Expedited, Speeded up?

  • Social Security Disability — when to file

  • How does Social Security determine if I am disabled or not

  • What Happens After You File For Social Security Disability Benefits or SSI?

  • When I Apply for Disability - Should I apply for social Security disability or SSI?

  • How long does it take receive disability benefits after you are approved?

  • Will The Condition You have Determine How Much You Get For Disability?

  • Submitting a Social Security Disability Appeal is usually Good Advice

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

  • How Long Are You Given To Appeal Your Social Security Disability Denial?

  • Do Most People Have To Go To A Disability Hearing order to Get Approved For Disability?

  • Are Social Security Disability Claims Based On Back Pain Usually Turned Down?

  • What Determines Social Security Disability Income?

  • Disability Hearings and the Social Security Appeals Process

  • When You Apply For Disability Do You Need To write Down Everything That Is Wrong With You?

  • How Long Will It Take To Get Approved for Disability?

  • Can You qualify for Social Security disability or SSI on the basis of anxiety or panic attacks ?

  • What Percentage Of Social Security Disability Cases Does A Judge Deny?

  • Is There Social Security Disability For Children?

  • How many Social Security Disability appeals do you get ?

  • If you appeal a Social Security disability denial, how long does it take to receive a decision ?

  • After I File For Disability Will Social Security Pay For Me To See A Doctor?

  • What should you get from your doctor to file for disability benefits?

  • Is There Social Security Disability For Children?

  • Hiring a Qualified Disability Lawyer in South Carolina

  • What Do I Do to File a Social Security Disability Appeal

  • Applying for disability benefits in Idaho

  • What kind of Final Decision can I receive on my Disability Application?
























    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