Social Security disability refers to the term of the welfare program run by the federal government in the United States of America. It is a beneficial program for the eligible disabled worker. In case a worker is unable to continue his service, he or his dependents gets monetary benefits from Social security administration. In that case, their job should be covered by the social security administration.
So the main criteria is going to be the eligibility of disability to work. The disability to work may last for 1 year or rest to the death.
In the United States of America, there are some law income people who may apply for the social security disability benefit. They have to provide some related information about their jobs. Additionally, their job should be covered by social security.
What is Disability?
There is a specific definition of disability because there are a lot of definition of disability in different aspect of life. The main definition of disability under social security administration as follows-
You are not able to do the work that you were able to do before and it has been impossible to be adjusted with the work due continuous physical and mental incapacity. This condition of disability has lasted for at least one year or to result in death.
Social Security Disability Requirements
There are various types of eligibility requirements to avail of social security disability benefits. The social security disability law deals with different criteria according to different states also. However, the main requirement should be a person will have a condition of the physical or mental incapacity that prohibits from the normal work. This condition must last for one year or result in death. The most important fact to prove a person as disabled will be merged with social security disability law.
SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
Social Security Disability Insurance commonly pays benefits on the basis of medical conditions. This benefit is attainable if the person is going to be under 65 years old.
There is still a misconception between SSI and SSDI. SSI Supplemental Security Income are highly available for the seniors who are over 65 years old with low income. It is a type of income that is a government-sponsored income that assists extremely low-income people.
Requirements of SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance)
The most important fact to the Social Security Disability Insurance is it can be available for the people who have gathered a lot of work credits to qualify the benefit. However, there is no requirement of representing work credit for the Supplemental Security Income. It highly depends on the financial situation.
Surely you have to face social security disability requiems set by social security administration.
Social security disability benefits are easy to gain, but there is the earnings requirement for disability benefit. If you want to get this benefit, you must fulfill two different earning test-
- According to your age, the latest work test at the time of becoming disabled
- Length of work test to prove that you have long worked under social security
The blind workers may not fulfill two requirements. They just have to meet the length of the work test. You can find some rules from the calendar quarter.
- First quarter is from January 1 to 31 march
- Second quarter is from April 1 to June 30
- Third Quarter is from July 1 to September 30
- Fourth Quarter is from October 1 to December 31
When you become disabled in or before the quarter you have been at the age of 24, 6 credits or 1.5 years of work over the 3-year period before the disability started.
There is a variation of credits according to the variation of age. In the quarter after you have been at the age of 24 age but the quarter you have been at the age of 31, Credits for half of the years between your 21st birthday and the quarter you became disabled. When you became disabled at the age of 29, you would require for four years of work or 16 credits.
In the quarter you turn 31 through 42, the credit is going to be 20.
When you have been at the age of 42 through 62, then credit that may equal your age which will be subtracted by 12, when you become disabled at age 50, you need 28 credits40 credits are attainable when you have crossed through 62 years old.
Credits are important to gain to qualify social security disability insurance. For this, you have to cross a minimum level of work that can certify getting your benefit.
How To Apply
You have two ways to apply for disability benefits. There is a website of social security like www.socialsecurity.gov and there are lots of information on this site on how to apply step by step.
You have also another way to apply for social security benefits. At your locality, you can contact the local security office where you can get much information on social security benefits very easily. However, processing an application might take 3-5 months. You also need to attach some documents to make this process complete fast and easily.
- Social Security Number
- Birth or Baptismal Certificate
- Full Name, Addresses, Required phone numbers of the doctors, hospitals, clinics that check your medical condition and recorded your every visit
- List of prescriptions or medicines that you have to consume till now
- Different types of medical check, test reports from doctors, hospitals, clinics where your treatment is going on till now.
- All kinds of related laboratory and test results
- Your work place’s brief description and the nature of the work you had to perform
- Lastly, you have to collect a copy of wage and tax return.
Additionally, there are more forms that you have to fill up. A form is for collecting your medical condition and another form is used to collect information from doctors, hospitals and health professionals who provided treatment.
The social security administration is the sole body to send your social security disability application to the authority of the disability determination services (DDS). DDS will check the application and conduct an assessment procedure to make sure you are fit to get or not. They will approve your application or deny your claim.
Social Security Disability Benefits Amount
You will be informed that your application has been approved and the social security disability benefits amount, monthly benefit, and effective date will also be notified through a letter. The social security disability benefits amount will be based on your lifetime average income. The amount of benefit is going to be paid for the sixth full month when the disability starts. There are monthly disability benefits which are equal to your lifetime average earnings. These earnings should be covered by social security.
For example, when the state agency thinks that your disability started from January 15, your first disability benefit is going to be paid for the month of July. Normally, social security benefits are paid in the month following the month for which they are due. It is possible to get July benefit in August.
Social Security Disability Attorney & Advocacy Services Procedure
People always claim that they don’t get the benefit in spite of fulfilling all requirements set by the social security administration. They also explain that most of the application is denied for the first time. On the other hand, social security will examine the application process very carefully. If there is any false or discrepancy, they may deny this claim.
When you are going to consider to hire a social security attorney, you have to pay an amount. But a lawyer charges a fee when your application is approved. The main process is to prepare an application. A lawyer is an expert in this process as he deals with social security disability attorney and advocacy services procedures.
Deciding Social Security Disability Lawyer or Going Alone?
According to statistics, the social security disability benefits application is denied from the first hand because there is an issue of reconsideration or initial level. In most cases, it is so found that filling the application is one of the most important tasks for the applicants. Lack of work knowledge can lead to a lot of errors. Errors in the application form can disqualify the benefits process of the social security disability process.
More importantly, the percentage of approving social security disability benefits is much more for those who hired a social security attorney or social security disability lawyer. But those who filled the application process with own hand has a lower rate of getting this benefit.
Most of the SSDI and SSI claims are held to the hearing before an administrative law judge, where a social security disability attorney or lawyer helps to win the benefit. There are a number of steps to conduct social security attorney & advocacy services procedures. On the other hand, there are some law firms that can also manage your social security claim. However, both of them work to be prepared for a disability hearing and get a social security claim with a lot of steps.
Calling an Attorney For Your Claim at First
You are thinking that hiring an attorney can be the right thing to do for getting a social security claim. However, they will conduct an interview process. This can be done through phone or one-to-one discussion. After getting the related information from you, the attorney will make a decision whether you can be represented or not. Where there is no chance to win the appeal, the decision may be you are not going to be represented. The attorney will do everything he can to make sure ensuring social security disability benefit.
Collecting Medical Evidences
Medical Evidence are the most important documents for social security appeal. Your attorney or advocate will work to collect these documents from different sources where your treatment was going on. These documents will be submitted to the social security administration in a timely manner before your hearing.
The cost of collecting these documents will be incurred because the attorney’s fee is the percentage after winning the case. There are a number of tasks about medical records where an attorney may go for additional medical tests which can support the hearing. An attorney may also meet your doctor for onward steps to prove that you are truly disabled. They also decide which medical records are helpful in this case.
Getting Fit For The Hearing
Making you fit for the hearing may take a long time like 1 or 2 months. There are different works to make your documents on hand and they have a long list of question. An attorney will prepare a full report about the eligibility of getting ready for hearing from the answer to the questions. These questions cover from health to your personal information. You have to answer those questions honestly because true information takes less time to process a social security disability claim.
Development of Argument About Your Case
When you have got a denial letter for the first time, the attorney will check it and prepare a full theory. They make an argument paper with the help of social security administration law. So there are some theories that attorney develop. These are
Disability Listing
There is a full list of illness described by the social security administration. The attorney will check the list if your illness fulfills the criteria to get social security disability benefits. The main work is what your physical condition and how your illness can merge with requirements of illness defined by this administration.
The Grid
The social security administration may not accept your application challenging that you are able to work as before. The attorney will try to prove that you can no longer continue your past work. When you are truly not able to continue this type of work, you have the chance to get social security disability benefit.
Non-Exertion Limitations
There may be issues like you are forced to keep you from any type of work. This type of issue does not support the benefit. The attorney will work to prove that you are a non-exertion limitation that has been prevented from working
Less Than Sedentary
The physical condition may vary from severe to light. Light means less than sedentary, which explains that you are not even able to work by sitting down. The attorney will prove that your physical condition is not fit to work by sitting down.
Final Outline
An attorney hired by you has some important responsibilities to make sure you are going to get your fair social security disability benefit. In case you are denied for the first time, hiring an attorney can be the right decision who will work to prove that you deserve the benefit. To do that, there are related works that you don’t know. These works are done successfully so that you have no hassle to get that benefit.