how will my attorney handle ssa medical decision

Your attorney or nonattorney advocate (or a staff member) will request the medical records needed to win your claim and submit them to the Social Security Administration (SSA) at the appropriate time.

Full Answer

When do you need a Social Security disability lawyer?

Feb 09, 2022 · The SSA allows you to bring a witness to testify about your disability, but because witnesses can be harmful or helpful, your attorney will decide if witness testimony is necessary to win your case. Your lawyer may be interested in asking your caregivers or former employers to write letters in support of your disability .

How do I appeal a Social Security disability decision?

Your attorney will review the medical records to see what is relevant to your case and submit only that information to Social Security. Because of their heavy caseloads, administrative law judges (ALJ) do not have the time to sift through hundreds of pages of documents to determine what is relevant and what isn't.

How can a disability lawyer Help you Win Your Case?

Jan 07, 2005 · Your lawyer can also explain why you may have been denied SSA benefits and can discuss how to fix your claim. Additionally, your lawyer will be able to provide representation in court and can present a solid argument as to why you are entitled to receive SSA benefits. Jaclyn Wishnia. LegalMatch Legal Writer.

How do I find a disability attorney in my area?

Your lawyer will gather all your medical records from all your providers and help compile your file in a maneuverable manner so Disability Determination Services can see that you are unable to work. Your lawyer will also go over your medical files and make sure that your records show that you technically meet the listing criteria.

What does it mean when Social Security says a medical decision has been made?

Essentially, this status message means that the SSA has made a medical decision about whether or not you are disabled, but they're not going to tell you what that decision is yet.Dec 31, 2020

Who makes the final decision on Social Security disability?

The Administrative Law Judge will evaluate all the evidence on record, including any additional evidence submitted up to 5 business days prior to the hearing, and will issue a decision as to whether you suffer from a disability.

What are the stages of disability determination?

4 Steps to the Social Security Disability Determination ProcessStep 1: Initial Application. To be awarded disability benefits, you first have to assert your right to them. ... Step 2: Reconsideration. ... Step #3: Hearing. ... Step #4: Appeals Council and Beyond.

What does it mean when it says a medical decision has been made?

“A medical decision has been made” means that the medical decision under appeal has been completed once again. “we are working to process your decision” is actually good news. If the medical appeal decision was unfavorable, then no additional work would be needed on your case.

How long does it take Social Security to make a medical decision?

about 3 to 5 monthsGenerally, it takes about 3 to 5 months to get a decision. However, the exact time depends on how long it takes to get your medical records and any other evidence needed to make a decision. * How does Social Security make the decision? We send your application to a state agency that makes disability decisions.

How long after I receive my award letter will I get my money?

You can usually expect your back pay and first monthly check to start 30-90 days after the award letter. As far as insurance is concerned, if you were approved for SSI, you will receive If approved for SSI, will receive Medicaid benefits automatically depending on the state you live in.Feb 1, 2022

How does SSA determine disability?

We consider your medical conditions, age, education, past work experience, and any transferable skills you may have. If you can't do other work, we'll decide you qualify for disability benefits. If you can do other work, we'll decide that you don't have a qualifying disability and your claim will be denied.

What conditions automatically qualify you for disability?

What Conditions Automatically Qualify You for Disability?Musculoskeletal disorders (e.g., bone, joint injuries, skeletal spine injuries)Special senses and speech (e.g., visual disorders, blindness)Respiratory disorders (e.g., chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma)More items...

How do I pass a continuing disability review?

If you want to keep yours, here are some tips on how to pass a continuing disability review:Follow Your Treatment Protocol. ... Learn More About Your Condition. ... Answer the Short Form Honestly. ... Keep Copies of Your Medical Records. ... Inform the SSA of Any Change in Address.Apr 22, 2020

What are the three components of medical decision making?

MDM has three components. the number of diagnoses or management options. the amount of data reviewed. the risk of complications and/or morbidity or mortality from the presenting problem, diagnostic tests ordered or treatment options.Aug 18, 2021

What are the four types of medical decision making?

The levels of E/M services recognize four types of medical decision making (straight-forward, low complexity, moderate complexity, and high complexity).

What are the 3 key elements of medical decision making?

We can call these three elements diagnoses and management options, data and risk. The guidelines follow CPT in recognizing four levels of each of these elements, and four corresponding levels of medical decision making overall (see “The elements of medical decision making”).

What Happens When I First Call A Disability Attorney?

When you first contact an attorney for representation, either the attorney or a firm staff member will conduct an initial interview with you to gat...

How Will My Attorney Develop My Medical Evidence?

Your attorney, or a staff member in the law firm, will request the medical records needed to win your claim and submit them to the Social Security...

How Will My Attorney Help Me Get Ready For My Hearing?

It is not unusual for attorneys to wait until a month or two before a disability hearing to first speak to a client. Up to that point, your only co...

Will My Attorney Arrange Witnesses For Me?

The SSA allows you to bring a witness to testify about your disability, but because witnesses can be harmful or helpful, your attorney will decide...

How Will My Attorney Argue My Case?

Your disability lawyer will determine the best way to win your case. First, your lawyer will review your denial letter from Social Security to get...

Your attorney will ask your doctors for supportive statements, submit only the relevant medical records to the judge, and know how to handle bad evidence

Your attorney will ask your doctors for supportive statements, submit only the relevant medical records to the judge, and know how to handle bad evidence.

What Medical Evidence Is Most Important to Win My Case?

The most important evidence you need to substantiate your claim for disability benefits is the opinion prepared by your treating doctor (s).

Will My Attorney Use the Opinions of Every Doctor I've Seen?

Your lawyer will want to make sure that Social Security gives the opinions of your doctors as much weight as possible. To do this, your lawyer will want to:

Does My Attorney Have to Submit All of My Medical Records?

The short answer to this is no. When preparing for a disability hearing, an attorney will frequently receive hundreds of pages of medical records, many of which have nothing to do with your impairment. Your attorney will review the medical records to see what is relevant to your case and submit only that information to Social Security.

What Will My Attorney Do With Bad Evidence?

It is not uncommon for medical records to contain information that is not only unhelpful but may be harmful to a disability applicant's case. Social Security regulations and ethics rules require a disability attorney to submit all relevant evidence to Social Security.

What Evidence Does My Attorney Need to Prove I Can't Do Sedentary Work?

If Social Security agrees that your medical condition doesn't allow you to do heavy or medium work, but thinks you can do sedentary work, you'll need to provide you can't even do sedentary work (in other words, a sit down job).

What Else Do Disability Lawyers Do?

A good disability lawyer will develop the best theory of disability for winning your case, prepare you for your hearing, and arrange for witnesses. Hearing approval rates are about twice as high for applicants who bring lawyers.

What is the SSA?

The Social Security Administration (“SSA”) is an agency of the federal government that provides financial protection for millions of people throughout the country. This includes those who have been diagnosed with chronic illnesses or disabilities, veterans, retirees, children whose parents are deceased, and survivor spouses.

How to appeal a Social Security denied claim?

There are four main steps that a person can take if they believe they have been wrongly denied SSA benefits. The process for obtaining relief or appealing decision under the rules of the SSA is as follows: 1 First, they may re-submit their application for reconsideration. They can do this by filing their original application with their local social security office where their claim will be reviewed and they may submit any new evidence. 2 Next, if the local social security office denies their re-submitted application, they may request an administrative law hearing where an independent administrative judge will be assigned to review the claim. 3 If the administrative judge also denies the claim, then the individual may appeal by requesting that the Social Security Appeals Council review the claim and issue a final ruling. Here, the Council may outright deny the claim based on the record and the decision issued by the administrative law judge, may ignore the request, can remand it to the administrative law judge for further review, or will review the claim themselves. 4 Lastly, while the Council’s decision may be final, an individual may challenge the outcome by filing a lawsuit against the SSA in their local federal district court. The federal district court will then review the case and make a final determination on the claim. This is the very last step that a person can take to have their decision appealed or reversed.

Why do people get denied Social Security benefits?

In many cases, the most common reasons that a person is denied SSA benefits is because they did not meet the requirements for a particular benefit, failed to pay sufficient social security taxes, or did not satisfy the age threshold or medical criteria.

What are the different types of Social Security benefits?

In general, there are five main types of Social Security benefits under SSA laws. These include: Retirement benefits: Retirement benefits are a type of replacement income that gets paid to retirees who qualify for such benefits.

What age does Medicare cover?

Medicare: Medicare is a health insurance program that primarily provides benefits to individuals who are 65 years of age or older.

Can I get SSI if I am over 65?

Some people who are over 65 years of age and not disabled may also qualify for SSI benefits if they meet the proper financial threshold. The federal income payments that an eligible recipient can receive is intended to pay for items that are considered basic needs, such as housing, groceries, and clothing.

What happens if you get denied Social Security?

When your initial claim for Social Security disability is denied you will have to go through an appeal process. People who have legal representation at this stage are often more successful in being approved for benefits than those who decide to go on and represent themselves.

What happens if a claim is denied?

After the claim is denied, you will file a request for reconsideration. Upon the reconsideration review, very few claims are approved. After the second denial, you can request a hearing before an administrative law judge.

What to do if you are unable to work?

If you are unable to work and are seeking disability benefits, there are many ways that a lawyer can help your claim. First off, the key to a successful case is hard medical evidence and other supporting documentation that proves your condition is so limiting you are unable to work.

How long does a disability last?

To receive disability, the condition must be expected to last a year or longer or it must be expected to culminate in your death. Disability claims can be complicated, and the odds of having a claim approved aren’t always in the favor of the disabled worker. Those who have a disability advocate or a Social Security Disability attorney representing ...

Can an attorney represent you at a hearing?

An attorney can represent you at this hearing and will be able to help you prepare for questioning at the hearing. An attorney will be able to determine what kinds of questions you will be asked and will be able to help you determine the best way to proceed with your claim.

How long does it take to get backpay?

You cannot receive backpay for more than 12 months before your application date minus the five-month waiting period. However, it can often take several months to have a disability claim approved and those months are added into the count for backpay.

Do disability attorneys get paid?

Disability attorneys and advocates take cases on the contingency basis. This means that your advocate or lawyer isn ’t paid until your claim is approved and you get disability benefits.

What is an appeal under review?

For hearings: “Appeal Under Review: A medical decision has been made and we are working to process your decision. A Social Security Representative may contact you or your appointed representative directly if we need any additional documents or information.”.

What is a quality review?

Quality Review. Before they tell you the decision, they may send your file to an office called quality review where they will double check our decision. Most of the time, nothing happens at quality review. However, if quality review disagrees with the decision, there is a small chance they may send it back for more consideration.

What is the extra step in a hearing?

For hearings, there is one extra step. After the judge, makes a decision, the judge will send the decision to some people called decision writers. The decision writers will write a long letter explaining the judge’s decision. Then they will send it back to the judge to sign.

What is a DDS?

The DDSs, which are fully funded by the Federal Government, are State agencies responsible for developing medical evidence and making the initial determination on whether or not a claimant is disabled or blind under the law. Usually, the DDS tries to obtain evidence from the claimant's own medical sources first.

Where are disability claims processed?

Most Social Security disability claims are initially processed through a network of local Social Security Administration (SSA) field offices and State agencies (usually called Disability Determination Services or DDSs). Subsequent appeals of unfavorable determinations may be decided in a DDS or by an administrative law judge in SSA's Office ...

What is a field office?

The field office is responsible for verifying non-medical eligibility requirements, which may include age, employment, marital status, or Social Security coverage information. The field office then sends the case to a DDS for evaluation of disability. The DDSs, which are fully funded by the Federal Government, are State agencies responsible ...

Michael T Warshaw

You are now in a wait and see posture. Nothing further can be done. Perhaps they are reviewing your work history to see when and if your eligibility starts and ends; perhaps they are trying to determine the onset date; there are any number of reasons for this. Just be patient...

Douglas M Greene

I've seen both approvals and denials come out of Quality Review. Occasionally, an approval will show up in a claimant's MySSA account on SSA.gov before they get the approval notice in the mail. However, if your claim is SSI only, it will not appear there. Good luck to you!

Lloyd A. Pont

At this point there is nothing further you can do be wait. It sounds promising but you just can't be certain until you receive the written decision.

What does a durable power of attorney do?

If a loved one becomes incapacitated and unable to make decisions for themselves, a durable power of attorney can authorize someone else to immediately take over financial decisions and retain control for the remainder of their life. You can decide on the parameters of the power of attorney and pre-determine the scope of its authority.

How to help an aging loved one?

Whether it is a gradual decline or sudden impairment due to an illness or injury, acknowledging one’s loss of control over financial and medical decisions can be challenging. Love and support from family and trusted friends can help an aging loved one deal with changes, but if there is a concern that they will be too impaired to make decisions for themselves, you may all want to consider legal ways to give someone the authority to act on your behalf. will provide optimal sound while eliminating background noise and feedback.

What is a VA fiduciary?

The United States Veterans Affairs Fiduciary Program was designed to help protect veterans who are unable to manage their own financial affairs. A fiduciary, chosen by the beneficiary, is appointed to oversee the financial management of VA benefit payments.

What is a living will?

A living will is a written, legal document that outlines what medical treatments you want or do not want in terms of procedures, pain management, organ donation, and more. Discuss your concerns, questions, and wishes with your physician, family members, and trusted advisers. You will address end-of-life care, including: