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Are you working?
If you are and your earnings average more than
$780 a month in 2002 or $800 a month in 2003,
you generally cannot be considered disabled.
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Is your condition
severe? Your impairments must interfere with basic
work-related activities for your claim to be considered.
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Is your condition
found in the list of disabling impairments? The
Social Security Administration maintains a list
of impairments for each of the major body systems
that are so severe they automatically mean you
are disabled. If your condition is not on the
list, a decision has to be made if it is of equal
severity to impairments on the list. If it is,
your claim is approved. If it is not, go to the
next step.
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Can you do the
work you did previously? If your condition is
severe, but not at the same or equal severity
as an impairment on the list, then the Administration
must determine if it interferes with your ability
to do the work you did in the last 15 years. If
it does not, your claim will be denied. If it
does, your claim will be considered further.
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Can you do any
other type of work? If you cannot do the work
you did in the last 15 years, the Administration
then looks to see if you can do any other type
of work. They consider your age, education, past
work experience, and transferable skills, and
review the job demands of occupations as determined
by the Department of Labor. If you cannot do any
other kind of work, your claim will be approved.
If you can, your claim will be denied.
You need to know that the law allows only a limited
period of time for social security disability claims
to be brought and we can help you determine how much
time you have left. If you do not file your claim
within the time provided by law, it may be dismissed
and you may be denied benefits. You should apply at
any Social Security office as soon as you become disabled.
(You may file by phone, mail, or by visiting the nearest
office.) However, Social Security disability benefits
will not begin until the sixth full month of disability.
This "waiting period" begins with the first
full month after the date the Social Security Administration
decides your disability began.
Seven
Important Questions and Answers About Social Security
For more information on Social Security
Disability,visit www.socialsecurity.gov
To find out what your options are
for obtaining
Social Security Disability, today. |
