2 SURE WAYS TO GET DISABILITY BENEFITS

 Disabled Americans may qualify for up to $3,148 per month from the US Social Security Administration.  

And these benefits can continue until full retirement age, at which time they automatically convert to retirement benefits.

Under current law, there are 2 ways to qualify for benefits with Social Security:

I.      MEET OR EQUAL A LISTING IN THEIR BLUE BOOK.

The "Blue Book" is Appendix A of 20 CFR 404, Subpart P.  These listings are very specific, very demanding and difficult to meet.  Fortunately, there is another way to be approved.

II.      PROVE THAT YOU ARE NOT ABLE TO WORK

This is the method most claimants use to be approved for disability.  They use medical documentation to prove that their impairment(s) make them unable to perform the functions of full-time employment.

Technically, we want to prove that your "Residual Functional Capacity" is too restricted to allow any full-time employment.  This is just a fancy way to say, "You are not able to meet the demands of full-time employment."

Unfortunately, it usually requires legal help to prove that you cannot work.  An attorney/advocate who understands the process and the regulations governing SSDI benefits can be of great assistance.

DISABLED? WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH JUST A PHONE CALL

Needing to get started on a new disability claim?  Need to appeal a recent denial (within 60 days)?  You may be amazed by how we help you with just a phone call.

1.  Ask us a free question about eligibility or benefits

2.  Get a free evaluation of your case

3.  Make an appointment to file a new application (No cost).

4.  Get us to file an appeal for you or attend a hearing

5.  Find out how to get more specific information on Social Security disability. 

We are the Forsythe Firm, located at 2027 Old Madison Pike NW in Huntsville.  Phone (256) 799-0297.

We will never charge you for any work we do until

*  You win your case and get paid, and

*  You recover lump sum back pay. 

Serving Huntsville and north Alabama for 19 years.  High success rate!

CAN YOU WORK WHILE ON SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY?

First, you must understand Social Security's thinking about working and getting disability benefits.  They believe that you are either able to work, or unable to work.  If you are able to work you are not disabled.  If you are disabled then you are not able to work.  So trying to work while getting a disability benefit is a paradox.

 Social Security will allow a little work, but not too much.  If you go over their limit, then they stop your disability benefit.

Here's the limit:  If you earn at least $1,310 per month in gross wages, salary, commission or self-employment, you cease to be disabled under their rules.  Your check is terminated.  

 Often, Social Security doesn't catch the fact that you are working right away.  They may let you receive checks you are no longer entitled to before they learn that you're working.  This accumulates a debt to Social Security that must be repaid.  For example, you receive 10 disability checks of $2,000 each while you are working at "substantial gainful activity."  Social Security will eventually notify you that have been overpaid by $20,000 and demand their money back.

 So, if you work while getting SDDI benefits, you must keep your wages below $1,310 per month.  The closer you get to that earnings level, the more likely Social Security is to put you under a "Continuing Disability Review" (CDR) to determine whether you are still disabled.  In other words, working makes Social Security suspicious.  Earnings of $350 per month may not trigger concern, but earning $1250 a month may.  

The beneficiary of benefits has an obligation to report all work and earnings to the Social Security Administration.  Of course, they automatically receive reports of your earnings because your employer must file monthly or quarterly reports and pay Social Security taxes (FICA) on all earnings.

If you want to transition from SSDI or SSI back to working, call the local Social Security office and ask them about "Ticket to Work."  This is a special program that, under certain circumstances, allows the beneficiary to work while keeping benefits and Medicare for a certain period of time.  The goal with Ticket to Work is to get you off Social Security or SSI benefits and get you back to work.

  

GETTING DISABILITY $$$ FOR ANXIETY & DEPRESSION

 Mental disorders, including chronic severe anxiety and depression, can be considered disabling by Social Security.  The key words are chronic and disabling.

A "chronic" condition under Social Security rules is one which has lasted at least 12 straight months, is expected to last at least 12 straight months, or to end in death.

A "disabling condition" is one which is so severe that it makes the claimant unable to perform any sort of full-time work.  In other words, it is debilitating.

An individual who is able to go about most of his or her normal daily activities, will not likely be considered disabled by Social Security.  A disabling mental impairment is one that prevents most normal daily activities, such as shopping, using the internet, performing household chores, preparing meals or bathing and dressing independently.

I have noticed that most of my approved claims for mental impairments have included recent periods of inpatient confinement.  Inpatient treatment certainly demonstrates that the impairment prevents uninterrupted daily activities.

It is very critical that claimants are getting current treatment from a mental health specialist--a psychiatrist or licensed clinical psychologist.  They should be seeing the doctor regularly and following prescribed treatment, including medications.  I would define "current treatment" as seeing the doctor at least every 3 months.  I sometimes encounter claimants who were diagnosed with a mental disorder a year or two ago, but who have not followed up with their doctor since.  They are poor candidates for Social Security disability.

Our firm offers a free case evaluation at no cost or obligation.  We can't predict who will get disability benefits because every case is different in a hundred ways.  However, we can offer some insight into how difficult (or easy) your case may be to prove. We know what Social Security requires to approve a claim.  Sometimes we can offer suggestions that will improve a case and increase chances of success.  

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Call (256) 799-0297 for an appointment.  It's free.

GETTING A DISABILITY CLAIM APPROVED

 

Social Security is tight with their money.  They have a very strict, particular definition of 'disability' and benefits are hard to get.  As someone who has worked more than two decades as a Social Security disability advocate, I've learned a few things about how to get a disability claim approved.

1.  You need current and strong medical evidence.  It's important to see your doctor(s) regularly.

2.  You need a good understanding of how Social Security works:  who it covers, what it covers, it's regulations, procedures and requirements.  It's taboos and pitfalls.

3.  You must be prepared for a fight.  Almost no one wins their claims in the early stages.  Usually, it requires at least 2 appeals and a hearing before a judge.  Persistence is what pays off.

4.  You probably need an attorney or professional advocate.  The system is too complex and complicated to navigate it on your own, especially in appeals.

 

WHAT IS A JUDGE'S ROLE IN SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY?

 What are the odds that your disability case will wind up before a judge?  What is the judge's role in this process?

Most Social Security disability claims go before a judge for a hearing.  Only about 25 percent of claims are paid simply by filing an application (the most obvious cases).  The first appeal, called "Reconsideration," pays only about 10 percent of claims.  So, that means approximately 65 percent of claims will go before an administrative law judge for a hearing.

 What is the Judge's Role in the Process?

The judge is there to give you a brand new review of your claim and a new decision.  He or she is a fact finder.  The judge will listen to your testimony, hear arguments by your attorney, review all the medical evidence (including new evidence), and render a new decision.  The judge is not bound by an previous decisions that Social Security has made.  He or she can certainly overrule a denial if the evidence warrants.

The judge presides over the hearing, decides the order in which things are done, swears in everyone who will be providing testimony, rules on objections and asks probing questions of the claimant and attorney.   He/she will issue a new decision within 60 to 90 days after the hearing.

One other important thing the Judge does is to decide the "onset date" of the claimant's disability?  Exactly when did the claimant meet the rules for the beginning of disability?  This date may decide the amount of retroactive benefit or back pay due the claimant.   It's an important fact that the judge will settle in the decision.

Should You Attend a Hearing Unrepresented?

Never, ever.  From the moment you take a seat in the witness chair, you won't understand what happens in the hearing.  The terms and language will be new to you.  If you haven't prepared, many of the questions will be unanswerable.  You may very well say something unintentionally that will get you denied. You may lose thousands of dollars in past due benefits. Usually, the vocational witness called by the government will testify that there are still some jobs that you can perform.  Left unchallenged, this loses the case!  According to government data, you are at least twice as likely to be approved when you use a qualified advocate/attorney. 

What if You Use an Advocate and Still Lose?

If you are represented and still lose your case, or if you win but don't receive any back pay, the attorney/advocate cannot charge you a legal fee, no matter how much work he or she has done for you.  No win, no fees?

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The Forsythe Firm

Huntsville, AL 35806

Phone (256) 799-0297

SERVING ALABAMA and TENNESSEE

THE BEST SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY ADVOCATES IN TENNESSEE

 Get a top Social Security disability advocate in Tennessee or Alabama!  And get the following services:

• Assistance with filing a complete accurate application for benefits.
• Obtaining all your medical records for consideration.
• Problem solving to keep your claim on track.
• Correspondence with Social Security as needed.
• Filing of all required appeals and forms.
• Presenting a strong legal argument of your case.
• Representation before judges and hearings (court)
• Never an up-front fee or cost to you.

It doesn't cost any more to hire the best Social Security disability advocate you can find!  The fee is based on the amount of your back pay or retroactive benefit.

 An advocate or attorney with a LOCAL office is convenient and he/she knows the local judges who decide disability cases.  The advantage here is that your advocate knows the particular ways that these judges approach a case, what each one needs to see for evidence, and how to prepare your case for the best chance of approval.

 Plus, you get a chance to develop a working relationship with your local advocate, as opposed to meeting him or her for the first time on the day of the hearing.

 The Forsythe Firm has been representing deserving claimants for more than two decades.  The firm has a high success rate and will work hard to get your benefits for you.  Of course, no advocate can guarantee the result of a claim or appeal but a knowledgeable advocate can increase your chance to win.

Call the Forsythe Firm at (256) 799-0297.  The call is free.