Things You Should Know About Social Security Disability

Posted on June 11, 2010 by Greenberg & Bederman

Things You Should Know About Social Security Disability Insurance

As personal injury lawyers, we can tell you from firsthand experience that bad things can happen to perfectly innocent people. We help people who have been severely injured due to no fault of their own on a daily basis. We help them deal with insurance companies. We help them deal with bill collectors. We help them deal with the legal process. And we do this simply because if we don’t, their chances of receiving fair treatment are very much diminished.

Our government came to a similar realization. There are simply too many variables in human life for all of our citizens to go without some sort of basic protection in the event that things go wrong. People get sick or injured on a daily basis, and they get sick or injured in such a way that keeps them from working or otherwise supporting themselves. To keep these injury victims from falling through the cracks, our government established the Social Security Administration.

Most people know that Social Security is a government backed program that provides supplemental income to all Americans once they get to retirement age. They are less aware that Social Security provides coverage to people of all ages who suffer disabling injuries and are as such are unable to provide for themselves. Many people are also unaware that these benefits can also extend to their immediate families.

If you find yourself unable to work for a year or more due to a medical disability, you may be eligible to receive Social Security Disability payments. These benefits are paid up until the point where you are able to work again (if that is possible.) You can apply for SSDI benefits is if your injury is permanent and has lasted for at least one year.

In order to qualify, you  have to meet the Social Security Administration’s definition of “disabled.” In broad terms, what this means is the following:

  • You have an injury or illness that prevents you from doing the work that you used to do. In other words, if you used to have a job that required heavy physical labor and you severely injure yourself in a car accident, it is unlikely that you will be able to continue to work at your same job.
  •  You can’t do other work because of your condition. Making a career change happens to many people at some point in their lives, but with severe injuries or debilitating illnesses a career switch simply isn’t an option. If you have an injury where simply sitting upright causes you pain, there aren’t many employment positions available.
  •  Your disability is expected to last at least a year or to result in your death. It is important to realize that SSDI is generally for people who have been severely injured or are severely ill. Injuries that result in permanent impairment or injuries that will take extensive and lengthy recovery periods are generally the types that are considered for SSDI benefits.

If your condition meets these general criteria, then it falls to the Social Security Administration to determine whether or not you are actually disabled. They do this by asking five questions.

1.       Are you currently working? The idea here is that you can’t really be considered disabled if you are holding down a job and earning more than $1000 a month.  If you are currently working and making more than that, then as far as the SSA is concerned, you aren’t disabled.

2.       Is your condition Severe? In other words, does your condition directly affect your ability to work? Can you not work specifically because of your injury or illness?

3.       Is your condition on the list of disabling conditions? The Social Security Administration has a list of conditions which will automatically qualify you for SSDI. You can find that list here. If your condition is not on the automatically disabling list, that doesn’t mean you should give up. It just means that they take a longer time considering whether or not you will qualify.

4.       Can you go back to your old job or go back to similar work? If you get into a car accident, but are still able to do the job that you had before you were injured, then you will not qualify for SSDI. This has become more and more common in recent years, as a great deal of the work is more automated and less based on manual labor.

5.       Can you do any other type of work? The key here is that they want disabled to mean “severely disabled.” If your injury has you completely bed-ridden or has left you with brain injuries, then there is a high amount of probability that you would not be able to transfer your skills over to any other job, or really do any other job for that matter.

These are the basic qualifications for Social Security Disability benefits, but what has not been mentioned so far is that the process for applying for these benefits can be very long and quite complicated. There are rejections and appeals, many of which are decided by a presiding administrative law judge. This is not like waiting in line at the DMV to get a driver’s license. It’s more complicated than that.

This is why having experienced legal representation to assist you with your application is so important. It could be the difference between being provided with crucially needed income for you and your family and being left with nothing at all. With serious injuries, or a questionable disability problem, such as mental illness, the stakes are too high to attempt to do without legal counsel.

Greenberg and Bederman is a D.C. based law firm that helpsinjury victims get through the injury process, and that includes helping them with the applications forSocial Security Disability benefits. We serve clients in Silver Spring, Maryland and Baltimore, and have helped hundreds of people all over Maryland, Virginia and Washington, DC. If you or a loved one needs assistance in getting through the SSDI process, contact our social security lawyer Audrey Faust, for a free social security legal consultation.
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Personal Injury Law

Posted on May 12, 2010 by Greenberg & Bederman

The premise behind personal injury law is a fairly simple one. If a person is badly injured due to no fault of his or her own, then that person should be compensated for any costs or losses. That includes initial medical costs, the costs of any rehabilitative therapy, the costs of any lost or damaged property, lost wages from an inability to work, and compensation for any pain and suffering that the victim went through.

This is not unreasonable. Would you like to live in the sort of country where someone who is badly injured due to no fault of their own is greeted with indifference? Could you imagine getting severely injured in a car accident that wasn’t your fault at all and having the whole thing ruin you financially? Imagine losing your job because you are too injured to work. Imagine losing your house because you are unable to make the mortgage payments. Imagine having your whole life drastically and irrevocably altered because somebody else wasn’t paying attention behind the wheel, and then imagine being told “Tough luck.”

Injury law exists in America because Americans are mindful of the fact that truly dreadful things can and do happen to innocent people. Someone could get hit by a drunk or distracted driver. A doctor can make a preventable mistake. A pharmaceutical company could market a drug with deadly side effects. Since all of these scenarios fall under the category of “preventable errors,” you can’t write them off as “acts of God,” or “just something that happened.”

As personal injury attorneys who serve the injured in the Washington, D.C. area, we can tell you from experience that accidents rarely “just happen.” In fact, we have found that most accidents are caused. And when people get severely hurt as the result of these caused accidents, the last thing anyone should be able to do is write them off as “just one of those things.”

Yet this is exactly the scenario that injury victims often face when they attempt to seek fair compensation for their injuries. They often have to deal with insurance companies who have no interest in treating injury victims fairly, but are instead concerned with paying out as little as possible. Car insurance companies often offer injury victims settlements that are far less than what would be needed to cover the medical costs and any lingering effects, and most of the time they don’t offer anything for pain and suffering. Medical malpractice insurance companies are notorious for not wanting to settle, but rather take the issue to court. And, quite often when they do settle, it is a paltry settlement offer.  Pharmaceutical companies have no qualms about not offering any compensation for injuries at all unless they are forced to by a court.

An injury victim who tries to deal directly with the insurance company is risking not having their individual situation monitored and protected by an injury lawyer. The insurance company has lawyers to protect their interests, so should an injury victim. Facing an insurance company on your own means you have to know all the legal angles, understand a myriad of laws that if you don’t understand could harm your injury case, leaving you potentially being treated un-fairly. Despite all of the advertising about being a good neighbor, the truth of the matter is that insurance companies are not in the business of sending out checks for the maximum value. They make money holding down costs and adding new members.

The law firm of Greenberg and Bederman has been protecting the rights of injury victims in the Washington, D.C. area since 1985, and all of our injury attorneys are dedicated to helping our clients get fair and realistic compensation for their injuries. We make it a point to address all of our clients injury needs when we deal with the insurance companies.

Our attorneys are currently offering legal counsel for the following areas:

Car Accidents:Our attorneys have decades of combined legal experience in helping victims of all types of car accidents, including accidents caused by drunk drivers, accidents due to reckless driving, rollover accidents, pedestrians who have been hit by cars, collisions, and accidents due to automotive malfunctions, and passengers in a car accident. 

Medical Malpractice:John Sellinger is known and respected throughout the country as a medical malpractice attorney who puts his clients’ interests first. In his thirty five years of legal experience, this former President of the Maryland Trial Lawyers Association has helped hundreds of victims of medical malpractice, including victims of wrong diagnosis, surgical errors, wrongful death, delay of treatment and birth trauma.

Pharmaceutical Liability: For all the good things that modern pharmaceuticals have done for humanity, it cannot be denied that there is a dark side to the pharmaceutical industry. There have been several instances over the past few years where heavily marketed and prescribed pills have resulted in serious injuries among patients who used them in good faith. The most recent example is Yaz, which is a line of birth control pills that has caused strokes, heart attacks and gall bladder disease among women who use it. Our attorneys are currently representing women who were injured and hospitalized due to the use of these birth control pills.

Social Security Disability Denial: It is not uncommon to be denied for Social Security Disability Benefits.  If you are disabled by either disease or injury, and your disability is expected to last at least a year, you may be entitled to Social Security Disability Disability or SSI. To learn more about Social Security Disability law, please read our Social Security Disability FAQ page.

Greenberg and Bederman is located one half block from the downtown metro in Silver Spring, Maryland, one mile from the Washington, DC line. We are perfectly situated to help injury victims all over the Washington/Baltimore metropolitan area. If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, contact Greenberg and Bederman for a free legal consultation today.
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DC Social Security Hearing Office Shut Down

Posted on April 24, 2009 by Dory Sutker

DC Social Security Hearing Office Computer System Shut Down

The DC Social Security hearing office came to a grinding halt on Wednesday and, sad to say, it is still not up and running. Yes, it’s true. The computer system at the DC hearing office (ODAR) is down and almost nothing is getting done. Without the computer they cannot check the status of cases, they can’t look at the electronic files, they simply can’t do anything that requires using the computer system. On a practical basis this means that the hearing office is almost completely shut down.

This is really unacceptable. And it’s yet another roadblock in the path of clearing out the backlog of cases. This makes me long for the days of doing everything by hand.
 

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Social Security Disability For Children

Posted on January 15, 2009 by Suja Varghese

Social Security Children’s Benefits

Some of our clients call us because they need some help with their children who are disabled. I noticed a pattern in the questions, and decided to post a small blog of frequently asked questions as they relate to children’s social security disability benefits.

What type of benefits are available for disabled children?

                Some children who are either born with or develop medical conditions may be eligible for Social Security Disability benefits.

We already know that people who have worked can usually be eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), or if not, possibly Supplemental Security Income (SSI). So, what type of benefits could a disabled child be eligible for?

 

Disabled children may apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. It is the same program used for adults who either never have worked, or have not worked in a long time. A child under 18 can qualify for SSI if he/she meets Social Security’s definition of disability for children, AND, if his/her income and resources fall within the eligibility limits. The federally permitted SSI amount paid monthly is $674.00 for 2009, but it may vary depending on where you live. The amount of the SSI payment is different from one state to another because some states add to the SSI payment. Your local Social Security Office can tell you more about your state’s total SSI payment. Click here to see the local office SSI calculation.

 

 

 

 

To learn more about our social security lawyers please read about Dory Sutker, or Suja Varghese.

 

 

When is the earliest date that SSI can be paid?

 

The earliest date that SSI can be paid is the date that the application was filed, however, if the child’s impairment or combination of impairments didn’t reach the severity level as determined by Social Security Administration (SSA) regulations, the claim may be granted well after the date of the application.

What happens if the SSI claim is paid from a date other than the application date?

 

If the SSI claim is paid from a date other than the application date, you may appeal the time period that hasn’t been awarded, but if you do so, the review will be “de novo”, which means that the entire claim can be reversed and you will be forced to pay SSA back for the money they have already paid, if any.

If your child is receiving medical treatment for a condition that is not expected to resolve in twelve (12) months, we encourage you to apply for benefits immediately.

For example, a woman contacted us about her eight year old child, who had been receiving treatment for a combination of physical and mental conditions. The mother described the problems she had had with her son's behavior, both in school and at home, and it sounded rather severe. These problems had persisted despite appropriate medical treatment. So after a few years of dealing with her son's impairments, she finally decided to file for benefits.

Wouldn't you know it, the medical records describing her son's symptoms showed that although he had experienced problems that SSA would find disabling and grant benefits for, the medical records of the current time period --- from the date of the application --- showed that his symptoms had become more manageable, for whatever reason.

Ultimately, his claim was denied.

If you have a child who has been diagnosed with medical condition(s) that limit or prevent them from behaving either physically or mentally like other children of their age, you may want to consider discussing with their treating physician whether these symptoms will last for the next twelve months. If the physician says yes, then you should file a claim for SSI on your child's behalf. If your child's symptoms getting better while the claim is pending, then you can decide to withdraw the application.

As always, we atGreenberg & Bederman are available to answer an questions you may have regarding this or any other Social Security or personal injury question, including medical malpractice issues involving nursing home abuse or neglect, and accident injury cases.  If you want to learn more about social security law, please read our social security disability FAQ page.  If you want to learn more about our social security disability lawyers, please read about Suja Varghese, or Dory Sutker.
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Social Security Estimator

Posted on August 11, 2008 by Dory Sutker

Ever wonder how much you’ll receive in retirement benefits from Social Security? Now you can find out the answer. Recently, the Social Security Administration (SSA) added the retirement estimator to its website. The estimator is a planning tool that permits you to get a personalized estimate of your potential Social Security retirement benefit.

It is tied to your actual earnings record so you do not need to enter years of earning information. Your reported earnings are automatically accessed.

The Social Security Administration maintains that the site is secure. According to the Social Security Administration, the estimator does not reveal any personal information such as your address, earnings, or other information. The estimates are only provided online. And, for security reasons, there are time limits for viewing each page. After 25 minutes without any activity, you are given a warning.

The estimator is not for everyone. It is intended for use by those you are not receiving benefits (including medicare) on their own social security record and have enough credits to qualify for benefits. If you are subject to an offset based upon a pension, it is not for you.

One benefit of the estimator is that you can compare different retirement options by entering different dates of retirement or expected earnings. But, keep in mind that estimates are just estimates. The estimator is not adjusted for inflation and it bases its estimate on projected earnings.

To access the retirement estimator go to www.ssa.gov and click on retirement.

To learn more about social security disability law issues please click social security law. To learn about our social security disability lawyer in Maryland, please click social security disability lawyer maryland, and read our firm bios on Dory Sutker or Suja Varghese.

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Our Response to SSA Commissioner

Posted on December 27, 2007 by Dory Sutker
RE: Docket Number SSA-2007-0044

Upon review of the proposed regulations for hearings and appeals, we have several concerns. While we applaud SSA’s desire to expedite the agency’s processing times, we are fearful that the steps implemented in order to accelerate the process will come at the sacrifice of fair and accurate decision making.

1) The proposed changes to the regulations transform the program from an informal, non- adversarial one into a complex, legalistic, formal one. This transformation comes with many pitfalls along the way. For example, there are more time limitations in the process. Failure to comply with the strict time limitations can result in dismissal. The unrepresented claimant is especially vulnerable.

The new requirement that the request for hearing include a statement that lists the "medically determinable impairments" is unduly restrictive. Does this limit the impairments that can be considered by the ALJ? Claimants should not be limited only to those impairments listed at the time of their appeal.

The new proposal eliminates the criteria in the current regulations which direct when the ALJ is required to change the time/and or place of hearing. It also severely limits the good cause factors for rescheduling and gives nearly total discretion to the ALJ. Without these guidelines, there will be cases dismissed inappropriately and many claimants will have little, if any, recourse.



2) New restrictions on the submission of evidence violate the Social Security Act and are fundamentally unfair.

The proposal requires that all evidence must be filed five (5) business days before the hearing date or it is considered "late" and is subject to new rules. Similar proposals were advanced years ago but were abandoned for a variety of reasons. SSA itself previously discarded such a proposal because it appeared to close the record in contravention of the statute. Congress reviewed the issue and concluded that limitations on the introduction of evidence overlook the reality that it is often difficult, if not impossible, to obtain evidence in a timely fashion, and that, in some instances these limitations may conflict with the statute.

In addition, the proposed changes conflict with the ALJ’s obligation to fully and fairly develop the record. It is well established in case law that an ALJ has a duty to develop the record. This duty is heightened in cases where the claimant is unrepresented. This duty would be negated by the time limits for submitting evidence. These changes will result in ALJs making decisions based upon an incomplete record.


While we support the submission of evidence as early in the process as possible, to the extent that important and relevant evidence becomes available at a later point in the process, the claimant should not be precluded from submitting it, since this is not an adversarial process but a "truth-seeking" one. There are many practical reasons why the record should not be closed before the hearing. For example, in many instances, claimants seek representation after the hearing has been scheduled. In many of these cases, there is simply insufficient time to obtain the records. Even if the full 75 days notice is available, that is not always sufficient. Medical providers are frequently uncooperative in providing the records in an expeditious fashion. Some ALJs refuse to issue subpoenas and even in cases where the ALJ agrees to issue the subpoena, they do not have the power to enforce same.

Finally, this new proposal would precipitate more court filings. Under 42 U.S.C. §405(g) a federal court may remand a case and require SSA to consider additional evidence if (1) it is new and material; and (2) there is good cause for the failure to submit it earlier. The proposed requirement for submission of evidence is more restrictive than the Act, and would create conflict. Claimants will be forced to file appeals to federal courts in order to have SSA consider evidence that was improperly excluded. The district court judge will be asked to decide whether the ALJ or Review Board was wrong to refuse to consider evidence. As a result, the new time limits will create unnecessary litigation and will cause an increase in federal court filings.

3) The proposal regarding administrative review significantly limits the claimant’s right to review erroneous ALJ decisions.

The proposed change is inconsistent with the Social Security Act and raises some troublesome legal issues. For example, what if the court reverses and specifically states in its remand order that the agency consider new evidence? Does the proposed change attempt to limit the court’s power by restricting the scope of review it can order for remand proceedings?

Moreover, this proposal is ambiguous and can be interpreted as establishing time limited benefits. On remand, the ALJ would not be allowed to consider an increase in severity of the original impairment or the development of a new impairment. At best, the proposal means that a claimant, on remand, will be limited to establishing disability no later that the date of the first ALJ decision. But, at worst, the proposal could be interpreted to mean that the claimant could be found disabled for a period, ending no later than the date of the original ALJ decision. Under either scenario, the claimant would be forced to file a new application for any change in his/her condition that occurs after the date of the original ALJ decision. Both interpretations will have an adverse impact on claimants and the fallout from this includes, inter alia, loss of access to health care benefits and loss of protection from the medical improvement standard.


4) Forcing claimants to file multiple applications is not fair or efficient. By closing the record to new evidence and limiting the period that can be considered to determine eligibility, claimants would be forced to file multiple applications. This, in turn, raises other concerns. Claimants may jeopardize eligibility by reapplying. There are consequences to reapplying in lieu of appealing. Congress recognized this years ago. One can’t help but wonder why SSA would force a claimant to file an additional application when the claim for disability could be resolved by making a decision based upon a complete record.

5) The new restrictions on re-opening prior applications are unfair. Under current law, reopening for good cause may occur within two years (SSI) or four years (Title II) on the initial determination if there is "new and material evidence". Reopening is discretionary and cannot be required but it can be used to correct unjust determinations. The proposed regulations eliminate ALJ discretion to reopen a previous decision where new and material evidence demonstrates that the claimant was disabled at an earlier time. The rationale for this is that claimants should not be able to circumvent the new time limits for submitting evidence after the record is closed. This proposal is unfair for claimants in many situations. It is especially unfair for claimants who were unrepresented and whose cases were poorly developed. It is also particularly unfair for mentally challenged claimants whose limitations prevent or interfere with their ability to cooperate with the development. There are many instances in which this proposal could lead to an injustice which could not be corrected. In cases where insured status has expired, the individual could be left without recourse.

6) The proposed standard of review before the Review Board is too vague. The proposal includes a new "harmless error" rule and states that the Review Board will only act on "significant errors of law". There is no further clarification.

The above comments touch upon some of our concerns. Again, we are grateful that SSA is looking for solutions which will expedite the administrative process. While a more expeditious process is desired, the principles of fairness and justice cannot be compromised. We implore you to reconsider these proposals and work toward creating a new proposal that will accelerate the process without sacrificing due process and fundamental fairness.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

VTY,

To learn more about social security disability issues, please visit social security disability law.  To learn more about our social security disability lawyers, please click on social security disability lawyers maryland, and read our firm bios on DOry Sutker or Suja Varghese.
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