Social Security Disability Law: News and Facts

Hidradenitis Suppurativa (HS) is a painfule and serious skin disease that tragically is often misdiagnosed. Because HS usually begins as pimple-like bumps on the skin, many victims (and doctors, too) think their condition is acne, ingrown hair, or boils. As the disease worsens, the pimple-like bumps most commonly erupt in the underarm or groin areas—places that everyday pimples typically do not appear—and grow deep into the skin becoming very painful. To make matters worse, they often rupture, leaking bloodstained pus. There is no cure for Hidradenitis Suppurativa, but some who have the disease can experience long periods of remission. For others, however, their life may be characterized by constant pain and ever-worsening symptoms. If your HS prevents you from working, you may be eligible for Social Security disability benefits. The Social Security Administration (SSA) recognizes Hidradenitis Suppurativa as a disease that can be potentially disabling. In determining your eligibility f...

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) is not just one disorder, but a whole group of impairments currently classified into 13 subtypes. What the subtypes have in common is that they are connective tissue disorders which are often inherited. Generally, EDS is characterized by fragile tissue, and joints and skin that can be stretched further than normal. Ehlers-Danlos syndromes affect both men and women of all ages and all ethnic backgrounds. While there is no cure for EDS, there is treatment for its symptoms, and there are preventative measures that bring relief to some who are affected by the disease. For others, however, their EDS causes joint pain, back pain, heart problems, loss of vision, or other issues which don’t respond to treatment and are so severe that they affect their everyday life and prevent them from working. If you have EDS and are unable to work because of severe symptoms from it, you may be eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Inco...

Your U.S. congressional reps don't have any impact on the decision as far as approval or denial. You should be able to goggle the contact information for your congressional representatives. Information about  confessional inquiry: A congressional inquiry is a “status check” of your disability claim conducted by your local U.S. senator or representative on your behalf. To initiate a congressional inquiry, which the congressperson can refuse to undertake, you will need to contact your local U.S. senator or representative’s office to request that he or she look into where your disability claim stands. In your request, you should give a general overview of the circumstances surrounding your claim. You may include factors such as how long it has been since you began the application process; how long you have been waiting for an appeal hearing to be scheduled; any medical, emotional, or financial distress the application process has caused; or the number of family members you are current...

  There are three mistakes, in particular, that you should be careful to avoid during your own disability hearing: Straying from the Topic.  KISS- Keep it simple stupid. Most ALJs will have read all your medical records prior to the hearing. The ALJ will know your case and have notes. The purpose of the disability hearing is for you to explain to the Administrative Law Judge (the ALJ) the physical and mental effects of your impairments. If you try to just gie your life story or talk about other impairments that the ALJ did not ask about  you’ll be wasting valuable time that you could be using to help the ALJ understand the only thing the judge needs to know about you disability case. So don’t talk about things how you really want to work, how hard it is to find a job, or other such complaints. It wastes the judge’s time and means you’re not talking about the one thing that matters at that moment – why you’re eligible for disability benefits. The hearing is limited in time...

Multiple pulmonary function tests (PFTs) are necessary for assessing lung functioning. In addition to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, PFTs are also given to people with asthma, chronic bronchitis, lung cancer and scleroderma. The most common type of PFT is called a spirometry test. If you are planning to apply for SSD benefits for COPD, you will need detailed documentation regarding the results of multiple PFTs. Spirometry –calculates how much air a patient can inhale and exhale as well as how quickly lungs can empty themselves of oxygen in one second. You will be asked to exhale as much air as possible into a tube connected to a spirometer machine. Lung Diffusion Capacity– this test analyzes how quickly a person’s red blood cells can transport oxygen to the lungs. LDCs are important to getting approved for SSD if you have COPD because it also shows the amount of damage done to blood vessels connecting the lungs and heart Body Plethysmography- -by measuring how much air remains ...

Kidney Failure is a complex disorder that affects every system in the body. It is also known as Renal Failure and is characterized by an inability of the kidneys to properly filter the blood, which leads to blood with increased levels of chemicals and toxins circulating through the body. Symptoms vary greatly from person to person. Some individuals may barely feel the effects of kidney failure while other are too fatigued and sick to leave their beds. In general, the most common symptoms include upset stomach, swelling in the feet and other extremities, fatigue, and muscle soreness or cramping. In some cases, abnormal heart rhythms and dozens of other symptoms may occur. Causes of this condition can also vary greatly based on the medical history of the individual, but in America the most common causes of kidney failure are hypertension, glomerulonephritis, and diabetes. Diagnosis is based upon analysis of an individual's GFR, or glomerular filtration rate, which refers to the speed...

Most Social Security disability claims are initially processed through a network of local Social Security Administration (SSA) field offices and State agencies (usually called Disability Determination Services or DDSs).  The field office is responsible for verifying non-medical eligibility requirements, which may include age, employment, marital status, or Social Security coverage information. The field office then sends the case to a DDS for evaluation of disability. Disability Determination Services (DDS) is a State agency responsible for developing medical evidence and making the initial medical disability determination on whether a claimant is disabled or blind under Social Security law. The agency and its offices are fully funded by the federal government. DDS usually tries to obtain medical evidence from the claimant’s own medical sources first. If that evidence is unavailable or insufficient to make a determination, the DDS will arrange for a consultative examination (CE) to...