Applying for disability in Norlina, North Carolina

by Tim Moore. Free Case Evaluation here.

If you live in Norlina, you can start your disability application at any Social Security office. The one closet to you and which actually has jurisdication for Norlina will be the Henderson office.

Social Security Administration
858 S Beckford Dr, Henderson, NC 27536
(877) 628-6584

How do I start my disability application?

Note: if you need assistance with your disability claim, contact us at: 919-890-8519.

There are three ways to do this. The first is by filing online. We do not recommend this since the online process can be confusing and can cause problems if you do not submit the claim properly. You can visit the Henderson Social Security office when it is open to the public but this can mean long waits. The best option is call the Henderson office and request a telephone appointment for a disability application interview.

If we represent your claim, our policy is to call the Henderson office for you and get the appointment scheduled. It may take several days to two weeks for the appointment to be scheduled. The phone interview this allows you to answer Social Security’s questions in the privacy and comfort of your home. We advise our clients to make the process even more comfortable by writing down the information that Social Security will ask you about. This helps ensure that nothing important is missed.

The individual who will be working on your disability application will be an individual known as a disability examiner, at DDS (disability determination services) in Raleigh. This person will obtain all your medical records and will review them along with your work history to dertermine if you will be approved or denied for disability.

How long will it take?

Your application will typically take 3-4 months to process. If you are denied, of course, we will appeal your case with a request for reconsideration. The reconsideration appeal usually takes about 1-2 months to process. If this is also denied, we can request a hearing before a Social Security Administrative Law Judge in Raleigh, where you will have your best chance of approval, mainly because we will work to establish a rationale for the approval of your claim based on Social Security regulations and law.

How do I prepare for my disability application interview?

Before your interview, which can be done over the phone or in-person (assuming offices are open), take time to write down the following: all your jobs for the last 15 years, your treatment with all your doctors, and a list of your current medications.

For your work history, be sure to include dates of employment, job titles, and describe the duties for your jobs as you did them.

Tip: though the person interviewing you will not ask how your condition affected your ability to work, write it down anyway. If the disability examiner working on your claim contacts you, they will probably ask you for this information.

Your Doctors

For your medical treatment sources, include hospitals and clinics, the names of your doctors, and when you were first AND last seen. It is important to include the “first” and “last” dates for two reasons. The first is to establish when you became disabled which can determine how much Social Security owes you in back pay. The last date is to help prove that are disabled NOW. To win disability benefits, it must be shown that you are currently disabled and this can only be proven with current medical records.

For your list of medications, include only your current medications with the dosages, how often they are taken, the conditions they are taken for, and the doctors that prescribed them.

Preparing for a disability hearing

On the day of the hearing, you (and us if we represent you) will appear at the scheduled time. The judge may ask you questions, allow your representative to ask questions, and may also have a vocational expert present to testify about your ability to return to work.

Obviously, preparation for the hearing is very important and goes beyond simply getting medical records. How you respond to questions from the judge can impact the quality of your testimony. Your goal is to be completely truthful in your answers, but also to provide the information in your answers that the judge actually needs from you. And this can be difficult for someone who is not accustomed to being questioned in a hearing setting, which is why representation can be very important.