Northport Social Security Disability Lawyer

If you become unable to work due to an injury, illness or disease, you may qualify for income and/or medical coverage benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA).  To qualify for these benefits, you must prove that your condition has either prevented you from working for at least one year, or that it is expected to prevent you from working for at least 12 months.

The Social Security Disablity Evaluation Process

When the SSA evaluates your SSD claim, the first thing they determine is whether you are currently working.  In order to qualify for benefits, your current work earnings must be under the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level that SSA considers full-time work. Currently, this means that if you earn over $1000 per month, you will not qualify for disability benefits. If you are working and are earning less than $1000 per month, SSA may still consider the kind of work you are doing, as well as the amount you are working and earning as factors in determining whether you are disabled.  In most cases, you cannot continue to work and seek Social Security Disability benefits.

Once the SSA is convinced that you are no longer currently working, they will determine whether you have any physical or mental impairment that they consider to be “severe.”  A severe impairment is one that causes interference with basic work activities.  In order to have your case considered, you must have at least one impairment that SSA considers to be “severe.”

After the SSA determines that you are not working and that you have at least one severe impairment, the remainder of the evaluation process involves determining specifically how your impairment(s) affect your ability to do the kind of work you have done in the past and, depending on your age, how it would affect your ability to work in other jobs.  In some cases, if your condition meets certain specific medical criteria, your case can be won without consideration of your past work and other jobs, but those situations are rare.  In the vast majority of cases, success or failure depends upon the outcome of a complicated analysis and specific impairment-related limitations and determinations.

The Initial Application Process – We Can Help!

Tuscaloosa Social Security Disability Attorney

The SSA Initial Application Process requires that an applicant navigate a complex labyrinth of laws, rules and regulations.  You will be ask to fill out several lengthy questionnaires in which you will be expected to describe, in detail, virtually every aspect of your day-to-day life.  This paper work nightmare is designed to frustrate and demean the disabled worker.  Repeated questions on different pages and forms are designed to encourage slight variations that the SSA will later say supports a determination that you haven’t been truthful.

The Initial Application Process is designed to result in denials in the vast majority of cases at the end of three to six months of frustration and aggravation.  Do not gamble your future and attempt to navigate the Initial Application Process alone.  Let the attorneys and staff at Blume & Blume assist you with the Initial Application Process.

If You Have Been Denied – Don’t Quit!  We Can Help!

West Alabama Social Security Disability Lawyer

The denial letter sent out by the SSA can be demoralizing, often indicated that they think that your problems aren’t a big deal and you just need to quit being lazy and get up off the couch and back to work.  At Blume & Blume, we understand that losing your ability to work is the hardest thing you’ve ever confronted. The loss of the ability to provide for your family and yourself is not a choice that you have made voluntarily, but rather is the unfortunate result of you having been a victim of bad circumstances.

If you have been denied by the SSA, you should not give up. Let the attorneys and staff at Blume & Blume appeal your case for a hearing before a Federal Administrative Law Judge.

For a free consultation please call:  (205) 556-6712