free_spirit_etc

Hamslice, I have actually told a couple of people to check them out, and if they offer to represent you, you might be able to go it alone -- if they turn your case down, you might start looking for an attorney. lol. By the way -- Congrats to you daughter! Your post was so funny - but I am not good at replying on my phone.

Buck52, I think her biggest hurdle will be their questioning her going from making the amount of money she did a couple weeks ago to being totally disabled. However, they should realize some people keep dragging their bodies around to work when they are totally physically disabled. But another word you might want to keep in mind is "accommodation." She had been employed with the family for a long time and so they made accommodations for her as long as they could, but as she got worse they were no longer willing to make accommodations. Also -- as to whether she could do the same type of work they are NOT supposed to take accommodations into consideration. Though the ADA says employers must make accommodations, SSA isn't supposed to consider them -- i.e. they can't say "Well, if she can find some other employers who will make accommodations for her she would be able to work. To consider her employable, they have to consider it as - Can she do this type of job without any accommodations being given to her for her disability. Hamslice, Yes, 49 seems to be a rough age for SSA claimants. They are ALMOST in the next category age-wise, but still considered with younger claimants. I had a friend in that situation. She was denied and I had to keep encouraging her to apply again the following year when she turned 50. She was so afraid of being denied again, but she was close to running out of her insured status time. She was approved, but still had to take it to a hearing. The lower level employees have to follow the GRIDS and POMS. ALJ's have more latitude, and are guided by the laws more than POMS. ALLSUP has a very good record, though I hear they only take claims they know stand a good chance of winning. I live pretty close to them. I was actually recommended to work for them once. I hung out in an SSA forum for a couple of years while I was dealing our claims for survivor benefits. Most of the people in the forum were Social Security representatives and lawyers. One of them referred me to work for ALLSUP as a claims rep, but I wasn't interested in it at that time. Most of my experience was with our survivor claims - but I had to read through so much law and policies, I picked up some other stuff along the way. He seemed to think I would make a good claims rep, but I wasn't so sure that I would. The whole disability law can get pretty complex. I am happy your wife hung in there and got her benefits! And good luck to Buck52's wife too!

I know it seems very unfair to be terminated because of a disability, but I wouldn't push that point with Social Security. I would highlight the point that she can no longer work. At age 60 the standards to meet disability are much more lenient. It mostly comes down to whether she can continue to do the type of job she always did.

I agree Hamslice. Every situation is different and every SSA adjudicator is different. You brought up a very valid point about applying soon after stopping work. It looks like the law says you are only required to show you are expected to be out of work for 12 months, but a lot of SSA employees tend to deny unless you have been out of work for a while. Though you don't have to wait a year before applying, applying immediately might not be in your best interest, if you want to get approved on the first round, unless you have very strong medical evidence. But then again, the majority of people don't get approved on the first round anyway.

It doesn't take a young person to not know SSA law. The person who processed my husband's claim was a long-term employee - and somewhere around a GS 10 or GS 11. Yet she told him he wasn't eligible because he was no longer insured. She seemed truly sad that she couldn't help him. I had to point out that he was still insured the year before when he became disabled (stopped working in December of the previous year). I also had to point out he dropped below substantial gainful in August. She agreed and then let him apply. But I was surprised she didn't seem to know, and had to go check. I didn't shove the law at her. I just asked it as a question (i.e. But can't they go back to _____?) You don't want to upset them because some of them can get pretty wicked.

As far as talking to an attorney, you can get recommendations from NOSSCR http://www.nosscr.org/. They will give you some attorneys to call that will talk to you for free. You might want to reschedule her SSA appointment and talk to a couple attorneys and get their take as to whether she should apply immediately or wait a bit. You don't have to rush the appointment, as applying later this month is still applying this month. It wouldn't change the waiting period.

This is the part I am talking about. However, This site says it is often better to wait a few months after you quit work before applying http://ultimatedisabilityguide.blogspot.com/2010/04/do-you-really-have-to-be-out-of-work.htmlas SSA workers will deny you more frequently if you apply right after you quit working. This would especially be the case if SSA knew you were terminated instead of quitting. So if you can wait a while before applying, it can be helpful to your case. However, you don't have to be out of work for a year before you apply (or are eligible). The site also said if you have to apply right away, to get a letter from your doctor stating that you are disabled and expect the disability to last over a year. I think that is good advice because even though you can state the doctor told your wife she was disabled two years ago, SSA can pull up the records and see what she has earned in the last two years (since he said that). So a letter from him stating her condition has worsened since that time and is not expected to improve would be helpful.

Hamslice, My husband's work dropped below substantial gainful in August 2006. He stopped work completely in December 2006. He applied for SSDI in May 2007 and received his first payment in June 2007. They went back to August 2006 to start his waiting period and paid him for January - May in June. He was not out of work for a year. You don't have to be out of work for a year before you can get benefits. If you can show you will not be able to work for at least a year. Granted, it may not be totally easy, but you don't have to wait a year to apply or get paid.

Wow! SeattleShay, I hope they quit using that doctor for IMEs.

Hamslice, You have to show that your disability will most likely last a year, but you don't have to be out of work for a year before you apply. If you have ongoing disability, and keep working until you can't work anymore, you can apply right away.

I really like this part. -- Also, have you posted your IMO here? "First and foremost, the only rationale provided by the June 2010 VA examiner to support his conclusion that the appellant’s right club foot was not aggravated by service shows that the examiner relied on the absence of objective evidence of aggravation –particularly, the lack of notation in the service medical records of an injury or event. “As the Court noted in Horn, reliance on the absence of record evidence of worsening is flawed because it “effects an impermissible burden shift” to the veteran to show an increase in disability during service. 25 Vet.App. at 239. In addition, the examiner did not provide a medical explanation for his conclusion, supported by extant medical knowledge and the facts of record. See id. at 240 (indicating in the context of evaluating whether the Secretary’s proof is sufficient to rebut the presumption of soundness that “there is no reason that the Court should not follow its caselaw that … an unexplained conclusory [medical] opinion is entitled to no weight in a service-connection context (citing Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake, 22 Vet.App. 295, 304 (2008))). As a result, the Court concludes that the June 2010 opinion is inadequate and Board erred in relying on the examination.”

Another option to cramming could be -- I think you can request a postponement up to two weeks prior to your hearing. That could give you a few more months.

hutchtam, It is so sweet that you are thinking of ways to provide for your family -- but I think you need a better plan. I don't know if suicide is specifically excluded, but I do know your survivors would have to fight to prove to the VA that it was caused by the service connected illness. That would probably take 5 to 10 years and they might not succeed. I don't think it would be helpful to put them through that. So I think you need to explore other options. I agree with Leanne, that if you are under this much pressure, you need to reach out for help. Is the health care and college expenses causing most of the pressure?

In general, I think that depends on the laws of the state. In my state both parties have to consent. My adjoining state only requires one person's consent.

It is hard to tell how dire it is. It depends on who you listen to. I am not sure why MSN is treating this as new news. This 2011 article in the Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sen-don-riegle/post_1901_b_845106.htmlstated that the 2010 SSA trustees report stated SSA has enough surplus funds to pay full benefits through 2037 and after that they project they will be able to pay about 78% of projected benefits if nothing is done to strengthen the program. That is not that far off from the new MSN report. I think everyone knows they need to do something to strengthen the program. The sooner they start, the less drastic the changes need to be. There has been plenty of discussion about delaying the retirement age more, raising SSA taxes, cutting benefits, etc. Though everyone says it was never meant to be someone's full retirement funds, but only to supplement people's retirement, many people are totally dependent on Social Security for their retirement. There are many low wage workers who have no retirement plans and barely earn enough to get by, let alone save for the future. So Congress needs to find a way to strengthen the program. .

Interesting information on how Social Security uses the GRID rules if your impairment does not meet the established standards. If your impairment meets the standards, you are considered disabled. If not, they apply the GRID rules: http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/how-social-security-uses-grid-medical-vocational-rules-decide-disability.html

Here is the Social Security Blue Book listing of Impairments http://www.ssa.gov/disability/professionals/bluebook/AdultListings.htm

Buck, I don't think they will want that many medical records. The most current ones, that show her current condition, are probably the most important. You could take them all, in chronological order, and they can make copies of the ones they need. Your wife can actually apply online at: https://secure.ssa.gov/iClaim/dib. On that page is a link to click about documents you will need. I would hand carry any records they need to the office. You might also consider filling out an application form and taking it with you to the appointment. I would much rather fill it out myself than have someone write down part of what I said, especially if I didn't know what the questions would be. So if you would rather have them fill out the form for you, it would still be best to read the forms and know in advance what questions you will be asked. Here are the forms she will need to complete: Form SSA-16-BK, Application for Disability Insurance Benefits - PDF file - www.socialsecurity.gov/forms/ssa-16-bk.pdf Tips for filling the report out: http://www.disabilitysecrets.com/resources/disability/how-fill-out-application-social-security-disab Form SSA-3368-BK, Adult Disability Report, PDF file - www.socialsecurity.gov/forms/ssa-3368.pdf Tips for filling the report out: http://social-security-disability.org/completing-the-disability-report-form-ssa-3368/ Form SSA-3369-BK, Work History Report, - PDF file - www.socialsecurity.gov/forms/ssa-3369.pdf Tips for filling the report out: http://www.disabilitybenefitscenter.org/how-to/fill-out-form-ssa-3369 Form SSA-827-BK, Authorization to Disclose Information to the Social Security Administration. - www.socialsecurity.gov/forms/ssa-827.pdf Fill out and sign several forms. Some sources also list Form SSA-3373-BK, Function Report - Adult - PDF File: www.socialsecurity.gov/forms/ssa-3373-bk.pdf That should keep you busy for awhile.

They might have already decided she wouldn't be eligible for SSI based on your income or resources, and simplified it by stating she didn't want to apply. Otherwise they would have to go through completing the entire application. Here is an explanation about how they deem income: http://www.disabilitysecrets.com/counting-marital-income.html On one hand -- it is not good that Federal workers are taking short cuts to avoid the requirement that they have to process an application for both (at least the worker told us they were required to). On the other hand, it saves you the time of filling out unnecessary paperwork and having to provide a lot of personal information (since it is a needs based program) that isn't required for an SSDI application. It is kind of like the difference between applying for a Veteran's pension vs. Disability. They need all sorts of information on your income and resources for Pension. The standards for being disabled are the same for each program. So if your wife is declared disabled, she will most likely be qualified to receive SSDI - and SSI would only come into play if her monthly benefit amount was less that the $773 SSI benefit. It would seem like SSA would just process the SSDI application and not even bother with an SSI application unless the applicant didn't have insured status anymore or qualified for benefits that were less than the SSI amount. I have no idea why they waste their time with SSI applications until they need to.

Buck52, The denial said she didn't want to apply for SSDI? Or SSI? She might not be eligible for SSI, based on your income. They count a certain amount of the spouses income as "deemed" to her. You are also only allowed limited resources on SSI also. But I am not sure if they can count your veterans benefits. But the SSA applications say you are applying for ALL benefits to which you might be entitled. So they should consider all benefits. I know some workers state the person doesn't want to apply for SSI, just to save the time of having to process an application if they don't think they will qualify. OR other employees, like the one who handled my husband's claim just type in a bunch of numbers for income (that have nothing to do with reality) to quickly process that part of the claim and deny them SSI. Granted, my husband was not eligible because of his retirement income -- but still they should not just make up numbers on government documents. If it says she didn't want to apply for SSDI - That is puzzling. Why else would she be applying? It might be good if she got a new letter from her doctor. If the doctor told her she was disabled a couple years ago, but she kept working, it might be helpful if the doctor would state that she worked as long as she could despite her disability, but can no longer do so. At her age, she should be considered disabled if she can no longer do the work she used to do.

Buck52, SSA can pay back to one year prior to when you applied, if your wife was disabled at that time. However, one measurement SSA uses to determine if you are disabled is if you are gainfully employed, They consider you gainfully employed if you earn over substantial gainful earnings. My husband automatically qualified for SSDI as far as his physical disability, but he wasn't qualified for benefits until his income dropped below substantial gainful. If your wife's income was below substantial gainful, she should qualify for benefits up to one year back -- and there is a 5 month waiting period before you can start receiving benefit (after you are disabled - not after you applied). If she was earning under substantial gainful, I would need to check it out before I answered for sure whether she would get 12 months of benefits at first, or seven months. ( I can't remember if the 5 months waiting period is deducted from the 12 months they can go back or added. I think they can actually go back more than 12 months but only pay 12 months. i.e if they could go back two years she gets credit for her waiting period AND 12 months of paid benefits -- but I am not totally sure about that). If your wife was earning above substantial gainful, she should be able to go back to the date her income dropped below substantial gainful. For instance, if her income dropped below SGA three months ago - those three months should count as her waiting period -- and then she would only have to wait two more months to start receiving benefits. Also -- her application date should be the date she notified them she wanted an appointment; not the date of the appointment. So if she notified them in April, her "protected filing date" would be April 2015. Keep a watch on them on the dates. They often want to go by the date you apply. My husband was no longer under insured status the day he applied. The SSA employee told him he was not eligible. I pointed out that he was disabled while still under insured status. She decided he was eligible because he had stopped working in December, while he was still under insured status. But she wanted to set his onset date in December, when he totally quit working. I had to ask her to consider August as his onset date, since his income dropped below SGA at that point. So they approved them all the way back to the month his income dropped below SGA. But if I hadn't read up on the law before the appointment, we would have left believing he wasn't eligible. The annual amounts for SGA are here http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/COLA/sga.html

I think it is a wonderful idea! I am in! I might have some other ideas but don't have a lot of time to discuss them right now. (I sneaked into hadit while my son is patiently waiting for me to finish my homework so I can take him somewhere...)

Good luck atomicwidow!

I am not sure, but you can often shorten the time if you obtain the SSA records yourself and submit them to the VA.

Berta, Here is an interesting claim http://www.va.gov/vetapp12/Files5/1236924.txt