If you’ve become disabled due to a medical condition or injury, Social Security Disability Insurance benefits can provide you with financial support to help you make ends meet. Contact Wambach Disability Law for a free case evaluation to learn more about the SSDI program and discuss your eligibility with a Social Security disability attorney.
The Social Security Administration operates benefits programs for disabled individuals, including the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program. SSDI offers disability benefits to workers who cannot work due to medical conditions. An SSDI applicant must have a qualifying disability and sufficient work history to receive benefits. The Social Security Administration measures work history by work credits. People earn work credits when they earn a specific amount of taxable income, up to four credits per year. Applicants need a minimum number of lifetime work credits based on age and recent work history to qualify for SSDI.
The Social Security Administration defines a qualifying disability as a medical condition that prevents an individual from performing substantial gainful activity (earning a minimum amount of monthly income), with that condition lasting or expected to last at least 12 months or result in death. The SSA maintains a listing of medical conditions that can qualify as disabilities; however, other conditions can qualify if an applicant shows that their condition equals the severity of a listed condition.
SSDI provides monthly financial payments based on an applicant’s contributions to the Social Security system. After two years of benefits, SSDI recipients also qualify for Medicare coverage, although people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig’s disease) or end-stage renal disease automatically qualify for Medicare.
SSDI has special return-to-work programs for recipients who wish to try returning to the workforce. Recipients can obtain training and job search services and temporarily continue to receive monthly payments while they test their ability to work.
SSDI benefits continue until a recipient recovers enough to return to the workforce or until they reach retirement age. At this point, SSDI benefits automatically convert to Social Security retirement benefits.
Applying for SSDI will require applicants to establish they meet the work history and disability eligibility requirements for benefits. An SSDI application must include information about an applicant’s work history and medical information about their disabling condition(s). Applicants can provide copies of their medical records, progress notes, diagnostic/lab test results, medication records, or letters from their healthcare providers describing the nature of the applicant’s disability and how it affects their ability to work.
After receiving an SSDI application and confirming an applicant’s work history, the Social Security Administration will forward the application to a state Disability Determination Services office to evaluate whether the applicant has a qualifying disability. The DDS office will review the medical information supplied by the applicant, request additional medical records from the applicant’s providers, and may ask the applicant to attend a special examination to obtain updated information about the applicant’s condition.
The DDS office uses a five-step process to evaluate whether an applicant has a qualifying disability:
As SSDI has strict eligibility requirements for benefits, many applicants will have their applications denied after initial review. Some of the common reasons for denials include:
When an applicant receives a denial notice, they can pursue a three-step administrative appeals process to challenge the denial of their application:
Below, you’ll find the answers to some of our most frequently asked questions about Social Security Disability insurance benefits.
A person can qualify for SSDI when they have a medical condition that qualifies as a disability—usually, any condition that prevents them from engaging in substantial gainful activity (earning more than a certain amount of monthly income) and that doctors expect to last at least 12 months or cause the person’s death. An applicant must also meet the work credit and recent work history thresholds, which vary depending on their age when their disability began.
The dollar value of the SSDI benefits you can receive will depend on your average earnings during your working life. The Social Security Administration will calculate your Average Indexed Monthly Earnings by averaging your highest earnings over the past 35 years (adjusted for inflation), then use that amount in a formula to calculate your primary insurance amount.
The Social Security Administration may pay you “back pay” for the period between when your disability started and the date the agency approved your SSDI application, minus the five-month waiting period for SSDI benefits (unless you have a condition that exempts you from the waiting period). The maximum back-pay period is 12 months. The SSA usually pays back pay in a lump sum after approving an application, although it may pay back pay in installments if you receive a substantial sum of back pay.
The Social Security Administration offers work trial programs that enable individuals to test their ability to return to the workforce without immediately losing their SSDI benefits. Under the work trial period, you can work for up to nine months while continuing to receive SSDI benefits. After this nine-month period ends, you would enter a 36-month extended period of eligibility, where the Social Security Administration will review your monthly income to determine whether you still qualify for SSDI benefits.
Although you do not have to hire an attorney to file an SSDI application, you have the right to obtain legal counsel to assist you with the application process. Hiring a Social Security disability lawyer can help you present the strongest possible application for benefits. Furthermore, a lawyer can represent you if the Social Security Administration denies your initial application and you need to file an administrative appeal of that decision or appeal further to the federal courts.
Whether you have to pay taxes on your SSDI benefits will depend on your total income and filing status (single, married filing jointly, married filing separately). If you have qualifying income that exceeds certain thresholds, you may have to pay federal income taxes on a portion of your SSDI benefits. Indiana does not tax SSDI benefits.
You may eventually lose SSDI benefits if you return to work and earn more than the substantial gainful activity threshold for a long enough period. Furthermore, the Social Security Administration may conduct periodic Continuing Disability Reviews (CDR), during which the agency will examine your most recent medical information to determine whether your present medical condition still qualifies you for SSDI benefits. If the Social Security Administration determines that your condition no longer qualifies you as “disabled” and that you can perform some types of work, it may terminate your SSDI benefits.
Your SSDI benefits will automatically convert into regular Social Security retirement benefits when you reach full retirement age (which varies based on your birth date).
A Social Security disability lawyer from Wambach Disability Law can help you with your application by:
Reviewing your medical and work history to evaluate your potential eligibility for SSDI benefits.
Social Security Disability Insurance benefits are designed to provide crucial financial support for those who can no longer work due to prolonged, permanent, or terminal medical conditions. Unfortunately, the SSDI application process is complex, and just one out of five applications receive initial approval. An experienced Social Security disability lawyer can assist with your application, improve your likelihood of an approval, and take significant anxiety and stress off your shoulders.
Turn to Wambach Disability Law for the advice and advocacy you need to secure disability benefits because:
If a disability has kept you from working, you may qualify for Social Security disability benefits. Get the answers you need right now when you contact Wambach Disability Law today for a free, no-obligation consultation with a knowledgeable, caring Social Security disability lawyer.
