What To Do When You’ve Been Denied Social Security Disability
Even though you are entitled to Social Security Disability when you become or are injured and are unable to work, you will have to apply for it. And, there is no guarantee that you automatically will be granted your Social Security disability benefits. The fact is, you may be denied, especially if your Social Security disability claim lacks medical evidence. However, according to federal law, you may appeal that denial. This can be a five-step process.
If your initial Social Security disability claim is denied, you may submit a Request for Reconsideration to the Office of Disability Determination. During this process, a medical consultant(s) and other claims examiners review your file. If after this process SSA still denies your Social Security disability claim, you can request a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ). This hearing is supposed to be non-confrontational, and the ALJ presumably is impartial. However, sometimes an ALJ will seek to prove you are not disabled rather than objectively reviewing the claim. So, it is prudent to be represented by counsel at the Social Security disability hearing. Please note that in addition to your testimony, the ALJ typically will enlist a Vocational Expert and a Medical Expert to testify. Your counsel should have the opportunity to cross-examine both of them.
Should the ALJ deny your Social Security disability claim, you still have a chance to appeal by filing with the Appeals Council. Although the Appeals Council usually does not grant you your benefits, they might remand your case, meaning, they could send it back to the original ALJ or assign it to another ALJ for another hearing. If at this stage your Social Security disability claim still is denied, you can file an appeal in federal district court. There, a federal judge will review the evidence and decide whether the ALJ erred in his or her decision.
VA Makes Improvements To Benefits Delivery
SOURCE: va.gov
The VA will implement a transition to paperless processing of Veterans’ disability and other benefits claims at its regional benefits processing offices nationwide. They are building a foundation for a new electronic claims processing system. Veterans Benefits Management Systems (VBMS) – a solution intended to eliminate the backlog of VA claims in 2015.
Says Eric K. Shinseki, secretary of Veterans’ Affairs, “Our approach to claims processing is being modernized to better serve Veterans and address the complex claims our employees are dealing with every day. We continue to transform our claims system to be more responsive through new processes and technology, because taking care of our VEterans and their loved ones is our highest priority.”
As of December 2012, 18 VA regional offices have implemented the new system and are beginning to process newly received compensation claims in an entirely digital format. The VA is on track for full deployment of the system to the remaining 38 regional offices in 2013. This marks a major milestone in VA’s transformation of the processes and systems used to deliver benefits to Veterans, their families, and survivors. Critical to VA’s transformation is ending reliance on the outmoded paper-intensive processes which prevent timely and accurate claims processing.
According to the VA, the current backlog of claims is the result of increased demand, over a decade of war with many Veterans returning with severe, complex injuries, and increased outreach to Veterans informing them of their benefits.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome’s Disabling Effects
Unfortunately, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) often is casually discussed, characterized and, too often, dismissed. However, CFS can be a serious, debilitating medical condition that can render an individual disabled and unable to work.
An individual with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome suffers from extreme tiredness; a fatigue that is not mitigated by sleep or rest. Generally, persons with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) tend to tire even more with increased activity. To date, medical professionals do not know the precise cause of this disabling condition, but have linked it to Epstein-Barr virus or human herpes virus-6 (HHV-6).
Symptoms of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome often include extreme tiredness (fatigue) enlarged lymph nodes, memory loss, concentration loss, muscle pain, sore throat, joint pain, fever, irritability, and interrupted sleep patterns. Individuals with severe Chronic Fatigue Syndrome have extreme difficulty sustaining work on a regular basis, and are rendered disabled. At-risk factors for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome include your sex (it usually affects women); your age (usually affects people in their 40’s and 50’s); and your lifestyle (people who are overweight or sedentary are most often affected). Since there is no diagnostic test for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, often your doctor will want to rule out the following illnesses: fibromyalgia, myalgic encephalomyelitis, mononucleosis, Lymes Disease, thyroid conditions, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, various cancers, depression, bipolar disorder, neurasthenia, and chronic mononucleosis. If you suspect you may have symptoms of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, seek help from a medical professional immediately.