DISABILITY BENEFIT RECOVERY

You Must File a Timely Application.  You must apply for Social Security disability benefits within 5 years after you stop working.  Your insured status will expire, making a new claim impossible for an impairment that began later.  If there are gaps in your work history, you may have even less time to file a new claim.  Don't wait too long to file after you stop working. You Must Have Enough Quarters of Work.  You become an insured person under the Social Security Act by working and paying FICA taxes.  Most adults need 20 quarters of work to be covered.  These 20 quarters generally must have been accumulated within the most recent 10 year period prior to filing a claim.  Very young individuals might need less than 20 quarters of work. Your Disabling Condition Must Last At Least 12 Months.  Short term disability lasting less than 12 consecutive months is not covered by Social Security.  You must have an impairment that h...

My firm wins cases frequently based on mental or psychological impairments, ranging from depression to PTSD to schizophrenia.  But mental impairments may be difficult to prove.  Here are a few things that can help the case: 1)  Visit the doctor regularly and follow appropriate treatment, which may include counseling or medications. 2)  See a specialist, such as a psychiatrist or licensed psychologist, if possible.  They carry more evidentiary weight than general practitioners. 3)  Try to get a professional opinion in writing from your doctor about how your mental impairment restricts your ability to perform work-related activities.   The more specific the opinion, the more helpful to your case.  There are forms that may be used for this purpose and they cover all the bases. If you have no income and simply cannot go to a doctor or mental health clinic, then ask Social Security to send you for a consultative examination.  This isn't ...

Social Security nearly always calls a vocational expert to testify at hearings.  The purpose is to help the judge understand what type of jobs and how many of them are available in the economy--based on certain assumptions or hypothetical facts.  The practical result may be a denial of benefits. The vocational expert will usually testify that there are jobs that a claimant in a similar set of circumstances could still perform, thus potentially disqualifying him for benefits at Step 4 or 5 of the sequential evaluation process.   Here are some things to know about vocational testimony: A certain number of jobs will be provided under DOT codes (Dictionary of Occupational Titles). However, these job numbers do NOT reflect how many jobs are available per DOT code, as you might believe.  The number of jobs reflect the number of jobs available in a larger grouping of SOC coded job categories which contain multiple DOT codes. Also, if presented with the proper que...

In about 20 percent of Social Security disability cases, the agency will send claimants to one of their contracted doctors for a consultative examination (CE).  This usually occurs when there is limited evidence from the claimant's own treating doctors. Social Security contracts with doctors in private practice to perform these exams.  Here is generally what to expect at a consultative exam (CE): It will be brief.  The doctor may spend as little as 15 minutes with you.  Usually there are no labs/ tests. The doctor has been provided with a checklist of things to look for.  He/She will focus only on what is on the list. This doctor will not provide any treatment or prescribe any medications for you. CEs are often not helpful for the claimant. Here are a few tips that may help the examination go smoothly: If you cannot attend the examination, call the Disability Determination Service (DDS) which scheduled the exam as early as possible.  Th...

In my opinion, 99 percent of Social Security disability claims are lost by failing to prove a restricted Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) , either in the application, or at the hearing.  There are a few clai ms lost to procedural problems that have nothing to do with RFC, but very few. The Residual Functional Capacity (RFC), simply put, is the most you are able to do, in spite of your impairments. Social Security will usually take the position that, yes, you do have some impairments.  However, the impairments are not so severe that you can't perform certain types of jobs.  Therefore, you are not disabled. The solution to this (and saving your case) is to prove to Social Security that you have a very restricted RFC.  In fact, you want to prove -- using medical evidence -- that you cannot perform the exertional, postural and/or mental requirements of even unskilled sedentary work. Many individuals try to prove their inability to work by simply explainin...