SSD Eligibility Lawyer
The Social Security Administration (SSA) engages in a five-step process for determining your eligibility for Social Security Disability (SSD) payments. This process examines your age, education, work history, skills, and physical and mental condition to determine whether you are eligible to receive SSD based on a claimed disability. In the vast majority of cases – around 70% – SSA finds a reason to turn down applicants’ claims for benefits. Understanding what makes an employee eligible for SSD is critical to submitting an application that thoroughly documents eligibility in line with SSA’s criteria. Learn more below about what it takes to be eligible for SSD benefits, and contact SSD eligibility lawyer Stephen Barszcz for help with your application or denial.
One medical requirement and two earnings requirements
Eligibility for SSD is based not only on your medical condition but also on your history of earnings. To meet the medical requirement, your application and supporting documentation must show that you cannot work due to a medical condition that is expected to last for more than a year or end in death. You may feel you are unable to work and still not meet the strict definition of disability utilized by the SSA. Make sure your medical documentation shows that:
- You are unable to work a full-time sedentary job.
- Your earning capacity is permanently and significantly diminished
- You suffered a permanent injury or an injury that is expected either to last for a year or more or eventually end in death, as demonstrated by medical certification
Your medical condition may be evaluated by a doctor and/or a disability agent who will consider whether you are currently working, whether you can do the same type of work you did before your disability, and whether you can do any other kind of work at all. A review of your medical records will look at the severity of your condition, what the medical tests show about the impairment, what treatment you have received, and how the condition limits your activities, including your ability to work.
In evaluating your earnings, SSA uses two different earnings tests to determine eligibility for SSD:
Recent work test – What was your age at the time of disability, and have you worked in five of the previous ten years if you were 31 or older in the quarter in which the disability occurred?
Duration of work test – Have you worked long enough under Social Security? The older you are, the more you must have worked.
Generally speaking, you’ll need to have accumulated 40 work credits to be eligible for SSD, with 20 of those credits earned in the last ten years. As an employee, you can earn up to four work credits in a year. One work credit equals $1,360 in wages or self-employment income for 2019 (the amount increases slightly from year to year). In some situations, you can be eligible for SSD with less than 40 work credits, so talk to an attorney regarding your specific circumstances before deciding on your own whether you are eligible for SSD or not.
Get Advice and Expertise on your SSD Eligibility from an Experienced, Knowledgeable and Successful SSD Benefits Lawyer
SSD eligibility lawyer Steve Barszcz has been securing Social Security disability for clients throughout the country for many years. We invite you to take advantage of his medical and legal expertise in favorably matching your injuries or personal conditions to the Social Security Administration requirements for disability. Steve has working relationships with doctors and specialists throughout the country who may be able to provide additional insight to your condition that could mean the difference for you obtaining a favorable decision.
