March 28, 2024

How to Win Your Disability Claim Early


One of the biggest complaints I hear from my clients has to do with the delays that plague the Social Security disability system. Why should a claimant have to wait 2 to 3 years to get a decision on his application?
When you file your claim, there are 5 different points in time where you can be approved:

  1. initial application
  2. reconsideration appeal
  3. administrative law judge hearing
  4. Appeals Council review
  5. District Court appeal

For most claimants, the Appeals Council and District Court appeal do not come into play.  Very few cases are taken to these levels of appeal and even fewer are approved.

Thus, for all practical purposes, most claimants should be concerned about getting approved at the “State Agency” level – initial application and reconsideration, or at the “Administrative Law Judge” level – the hearing.

In terms of the time frames involved, a decision on your initial application will be made within 4 to 6 months after you apply.  If you are denied, and file a reconsideration appeal, that decision will be made within another 4 to 6 months.   The initial and reconsideration phases of your case, therefore, will be complete within 8 months to 1 year after you apply.

If you are denied at reconsideration and you request a hearing, you are likely to see a 12 to 18 month wait.  As you can see, it takes twice a long to get a hearing as it does to get a decision from the State Agency.

If you want to get approved early, your best shot is to do so at the initial application process.    Relatively few cases are approved at reconsideration so if you are going to be approved by a State Agency adjudicator, the place to put your focus is at the initial application time.

About 60% of cases denied at reconsideration are approved at a hearing, but, again, you won’t see a judge for at least 2 to 3 years from the date you apply.

I wish I could tell you that Social Security makes it easy to get approved at the initial application phase.  The truth of the matter is that the State Agency adjudicators are overworked and understaffed and in order to win approval there, your file must be complete and it must clearly support your claim for disability.

It is important that the medical information in your file be unambiguous and supportive – to a certain degree you do not have control over this because you have no control over what your doctor writes in his notes, and the medical tests you take (i.e., the MRI’s, CT scans, even x-rays) will reveal what they reveal.

However, you do have control over the forms you fill out and how you present your claim.  The video below discusses some common sense steps you can take to significantly improve your chances at a fair look by the State Agency adjudicator.   I see far too many files that could have been approved early but the information was poorly presented that the adjudicator must have felt that it was just easier to deny the claim and let the judge worry about it 2 years later.

 

Jonathan Ginsberg
About Jonathan Ginsberg

Jonathan Ginsberg represents clients in disability claims filed with the Social Security Administration.

Would you like your Social Security disability question answered on Jonathan's podcast?  Record your question for Jonathan directly from your computer.

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