Applying For Disability Benefits: The Facts
There are three methods to use when applying for disability benefits. There’s always the old way of filing a claim and probably many people will stick to the “tried and true”. Some people (especially elderly folks) are “set in their ways”—they feel as if they cannot get their point across unless they are sitting right in front of the Social Security worker. So in person is the first and oldest method used. The second method is to apply by telephone for your benefits. A representative will answer the phone and conduct an interview with you in which they will fill out the necessary forms. It saves traveling and also keeps you from sitting and twiddling your thumbs, while waiting in a long line of applicants. Nowadays, another choice has arisen. A claim can be filed electronically. You go on the website www.ssa.gov and click on to locate our online application for disability benefits, whether it be social security disability or SSI. After filling out the form for request of benefits, you can opt to call and make certain your application is correct—or the social security will call you if there is anything wrong. Bearing in mind that online transmission of data has not reached perfection yet, you may want to call anyway to assure they received your request electronically. The initial application filing process is the primary step in acquiring your disability benefits, but there are other steps you need to follow to complete the process. Know that it is not likely you will be awarded SSD or SSI when you first apply. Usually there comes the time to appeal your denied claim for compensation benefits is a long, drawn-out process. The first appeal involves asking for reconsideration of your application. You would be required to fill out two forms. The first is a Request for Reconsideration form. The other one is a Reconsideration Report. These must be filed within 60 days after the denial of the first claim. If you second appeal is late, you will be turned down on the basis of an untimely appeal unless there is good cause why you could not get the appeal in on time. If this is the case, you must start over and re-file your application which will be considered now as the initial claim. This second stage often results in the benefits being denied once again. In fact, 80-85% of reconsiderations are denied. Applying for disability benefits can become mighty frustrating. Try to be patient and move forward to the next stage. The last recourse you have if your appeal is denied is to hire an attorney and request a hearing in order to plead your case before an Administrator Law Judge. He will listen to all you have to say and receive and examine any other reports you want to submit. His secretary and possibly a vocational expert will be there at the hearing to try and determine your employment ability. In other words, the vocational expert is there to strike you down if he can—chalk one up for the Social Security Administration! Don’t let happen by attending the hearing unprepared. You will need a lawyer to even the odds that are stacked against you. Try to be patient enough to wait for the disability process to play out—you may with a know how just get your benefits.
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