Workers’ compensation could reduce your SSDI payment. This is true for both types of workers’ compensation settlements: lump-sum and periodic payments. The general rule is that the combination of your SSDI and workers’ compensation payments cannot be more than 80...
SSD – Social Security Disability Process And Benefits
Will receiving a personal injury settlement affect my disability benefits?
The answer depends on what type of disability you receive – SSI or SSDI. The amount you can have in assets (like a savings or checking account) is limited with SSI. To get SSI, your countable resources must not be worth more than $2,000 for an individual or $3,000 for...
Taking steps to prepare for a consultative exam
If a medical condition diminishes your ability to make a living, you might feel somewhat overwhelmed by the changes in your life and wish to seek insight on your options. While you might be eligible for aid via Social Security Disability Insurance, filing a claim for...
Doctors: How They Help or Hurt
Social Security has all your doctors’ records AND one of them even wrote a letter saying you are disabled….you’re all set! Right??? Maybe, but maybe not. Sometimes doctors’ records are helpful, sometimes they don’t have much information, and sometimes they hurt your...
Getting Disability Benefits: What a Headache!
Literally. Pound! Zing! Lightning flash! Turn off the lights, quiet the noise, lay down and hope it goes away. If you suffer from chronic headaches or migraines, you CAN apply for disability benefits. But just like those headaches, the process can be painful,...
The Decision: Possible Outcomes and What They Mean for Your Case
Following the conclusion of Social Security Disability hearing, majority of judges will take the case “under advisement.” What this means is the judge wants the opportunity to review your medical records as well as your testimony given at your hearing before they make...
The Issue of “Young Individuals” and Social Security Disability
In Social Security Disability the term “young individual” does not necessarily mean what many assume it to mean – young adults. Instead, the term young individual is used to include all individuals who are under the age of 50. This age category is important to note...
How a disabled adult can receive SSDI without a work history
As we have talked about before, Social Security Disability Insurance (SSD) benefits are based on your work history. The more time you spent working (and the higher your income) before you became disabled, the higher the benefit amount you might qualify for. There is...
The possible role of work credits in SSDI claims
There may be few things in life as harrowing as losing your ability to perform everyday tasks or maintain gainful employment in Minnesota. The onset of a physical or mental health condition could disrupt your life in various ways and leave you with questions about the...
What is the role of the vocational expert?
A vocational expert is also called a VE. A VE is a professional trained in the labor market who usually has education and experience in the field of vocational rehabilitation. A VE is not an employee of the Social Security Administration (SSA); however, SSA pays the...
Exertional Limitations
A medical disability can severely limit an individual’s exertional capacity to work. Exertional capacity addresses an individual’s limitations and restrictions of physical strength and defines the individual’s remaining ability to perform activities in the areas of...
Nonexertional Limitations
Many people recognize that a disability can impose exertional restrictions on performing physical activities at work. However, the inability to work does not just depend on exertional limitations. A medical impairment or combination of impairments can also affect...
Treating Source Statements
When you apply for Social Security Disability benefits, all medical records during the relevant time period of disability must be requested and submitted. Along with submitting mandatory medical records, you also may ask your treating doctor or health provider to fill...
Social Security Disability Hearing: The Vocational Expert’s Role
Along with the judge, every Social Security Disability hearing has a vocational expert who appears and testifies at the hearing. By definition, a vocational expert is a professional who provides impartial expert opinion evidence about a claimant’s vocational...
Medical Vocational Guidelines, Grid Rules
So from the five step process we know we need to prove you cannot do other work, not just the work you have done before. There are a few rules we can use to help us rule out other work, one discussed here (link to first post). Another way in which we can rule out...
Injured At Work?
Find out if you can collect Work Comp benefits too