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SSA Disability Facts

• There are two different types of Social Security Disability. They are referred to as SSI (Title 16) and SSDi(Title 2). When you applied for benefits at your local social security office, they determined which type of disability you qualified for. Some people qualify for both.
• The SSA disability process can be long and tedious. There are generally three levels.
• The initial level occurred when you originally filed for benefits. SSA gathered your medical records and referred your case for review in Columbus. A person in Columbus reviewed the medical, compared it to their guidelines and determined that you are not eligible for benefits. This happens to around 80% of applications filed at the initial level. The initial process is currently taking around 3-6 months for a decision. A lot of people seek an attorney after receiving their initial denial.
• The second level is called the Reconsideration level (or Recon). At the reconsideration level, SSA will again gather your medical records and have them reviewed by a different person in the Columbus office. 85% of these cases also get denied. This process can take an additional 3-6 months. Most people choose to hire an attorney upon receiving this denial.
• The third level is called the Administrative Law Judge level (or ALJ). Once this appeal is filed, the local office moves your file to the SSA Office of Adjudication and Review (ODAR) office that services your address. Casper & Casper handles hearings in the Cincinnati, Dayton and Columbus ODAR offices. Your file will be reviewed for hearing on a “first come, first served” basis and unfortunately, the waits can be extremely long. A general rule is that you will wait approximately two years after filing the ALJ appeal, give or take a few months depending on the wait at the specific ODAR office. Your attorney will do everything possible to keep your file up-to-date and ready to schedule at your specific ODAR office, however, ODAR sets the calendar and there is little we can do to eliminate the wait.
• However, there are times that we can request an expedited hearing. Please inform us right away if you
  • Get a diagnosis of a terminal illness,
  • Get a notice of foreclosure on your home (this would mean a notice from a Court regarding

  foreclosure, not a letter from your mortgage company),

  • Have become homeless, or
  • Are unable to get access to life-maintaining medical care or medications due to lack of funds.

  Casper & Casper cannot guarantee that your hearing will ultimately get expedited treatment; however, we will certainly make the request on your behalf.

Please keep in mind that it is very difficult to get ODAR to expedite a hearing without an extremely good reason. Everyone ahead of you gets bumped back in order to hear your case out of turn. As these people are generally just as disabled and in just as dire need as you, and have been waiting longer, ODAR is very reluctant to bump them. As a matter of common practice, financial need is NOT a basis for which they will expedite your hearing.

• Casper & Casper will gather your medical records, get supportive documentation from your treating sources, and if necessary and applicable, refer you out for an Independent Medical Exam. We will make sure that the information gets to the ALJ to be reviewed.
• It is very important that you keep us up to date on your current medical condition. We need to know about any new:
• Doctors
• Hospitalizations, including ER trips where you are not ultimately admitted
• Any new testing (MRI(s), Cat Scans, X-Rays, Breathing Tests, EKG(s), etc)
• Procedures (Surgeries, Discograms, Injection series, etc)
• Diagnosis
• Physical Therapy
• And, if you are also getting benefits from the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation – any IME examinations you have.

• You can call our office and report any new information to the Attorney’s Assistant who has been assigned to your case. You will be told the name of this person at your initial meeting with the attorney. This person is very familiar with the facts of your case. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to speak with your assigned attorney. Our Assistants are well-informed in the Social Security process, the medical information necessary to prove a case, and the status and facts of your particular case.

• Please, do not call regularly to get a “status” report. The SSA process takes a long time and if we have any updated information, we will call or write you with it immediately. Generally, we have no new “status” to report.

• Working During the Disability Process
• Some people wonder if they may work during this waiting process, in limited amounts. If your doctor releases you to return to work, contact your attorney to discuss the ramifications. It is possible that you could return to work and find after a short period that you are unable to continue due to the severity of your impairments. SSA will not hold this type of work attempt against you. Indeed, as the ultimate goal is to get everyone well and back to work, SSA encourages this sort of work attempt. However, clearly, if you are able to work on a full-time basis or a significant number of hours approximating full-time work, you are not disabled and should no longer be requesting ongoing benefits. If you are able to maintain full-time employment for 90+ days, it is possible to ask SSA to consider paying you only for the period of time that you were not working. In essence, asking them to pay you for a closed period of time. This is something that you will need to discuss with your Attorney.
• However, if you believe you are able to work on a limited part-time basis, it is possible for you to do so while still applying for disability benefits. There are some things to keep in mind:
• If you make more than $800/mo this could disqualify you from disability benefits
• If you work outside of your doctor’s restrictions, this could disqualify you from disability benefits
• The responsibility is yours to keep a record of how much money you receive while your claim is pending, so please keep all of your pay-stubs.
• The best course of action is to contact your Attorney and discuss any job opportunity prior to accepting it. However, ONCE YOU HAVE STARTED WORKING IT IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT THAT YOU LET YOUR ATTORNEY KNOW.

In general, Casper & Casper will do everything possible to give you the best chance of winning your SSD or SSI disability case.

In addition, Casper & Casper also handles Ohio Workers’ Compensation cases as well as Personal Injury cases in Ohio and Kentucky. Please speak with your Social Security Attorney if you need a referral into one of these areas. We will be happy to assist you.