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Social Security Disability Tips — how a claim gets worked onMost social security disability (SSD) or SSI claims are either approved or denied within three to four months (although some may take six months to a year). If you are a claimant if an SSD case, you may be wondering what is taking so long, and picturing your application collecting dust on some bureaucrat’s desk while you anxiously await the decision. However, the social security disability applications process is actually fairly straightforward, and knowing how your claim gets worked on may help you understand the part you play in receiving a speedy decision. After you file a claim for disability with social security, it is assigned to a disability examiner at the agency in your state responsible for evaluating your case. The disability examiner reviews the case based on medical records you have provided, and then writes a report giving his or her opinion of the claim, based on what those records say about your condition. The examiner’s report is then reviewed by the agency’s appointed physician (M.D.) or psychologist, depending on if the nature of your disability is physical or mental. There are some instances in which you will be asked for additional information, so it is important for you to make sure you have provided all of your medical and work history up front to avoid unnecessary delays in your decision. For instance, if you have not provided correct names, addresses, and phone numbers for your treating physicians, you will get a call from the examiner asking for this information. In deciding your case, the examiner will need to contact your past medical caregivers to request records, clarify test results, etc. The burden is on you to supply them with accurate contact information. Do not unnecessarily delay a decision in your case by failing to provide it. Your disability examiner will base his or her decision in large part on your ability to work and to perform other daily tasks. Providing a detailed work history, again with appropriate contact information, dates of employment, as well as a comprehensive list of duties associated in past jobs, will help the examiner determine if you are capable of performing your current job or finding gainful employment in a different position. In many disability cases the medical condition does not exactly match the medical requirements of a listing (approval criteria in the disability impairment manual, or “blue book”), and exactly how your condition inhibits you from working must be explored. Your disability examiner may contact you, a relative, or other person who has an opportunity to observe you performing daily activities—shopping, cleaning house, mowing the lawn, etc.—and ask to what extent you are able to perform them. This is to get an idea of how debilitating your condition really is with respect to your activities of daily living (ADLs). Information provided to the examiner about ADL is often used to deny social security disability claims—if you have retained a disability lawyer at this early stage, it’s probably a good idea to refer the examiner to your attorney, and let him or her answer ADL inquiries in writing. It is important to add that your examiner may require you to participate in a consultative exam, or CE. This is often the case when the claimant has never been evaluated or treated by a medical professional for their condition in the past. In cases in which depression is the debilitating factor, a psychological examination may be required. If you are scheduled for a CE, do not miss the appointment, because that in itself can be grounds for denial of your claim. Look on the CE as an opportunity to provide more medical evidence, or at least current medical evidence, for your case. If you don’t like what the doctor has to say as a result of the consultative exam, you can always refute the findings with the opinion of a physician of your own choosing at a later date. For more information on: Social Security Disability and SSI Disability.
A few words about Elder Law 
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