If you suffer from an illness or sustained an injury that has kept you out of work, you might have one or more questions about a federal government program that provides Social Security disability benefits.
Managed by the Social Security Administration (SSA), Social Security disability acts as a financial safety net for Americans that can no longer work due to a prolonged illness or injury. Although the program gives workers much-needed financial help, it can produce questions that make the process of obtaining financial assistance difficult to do.
We are here to help you answer one or more questions about Social Security disability benefits.
What is Social Security Disability Benefits?
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) represents a federal government program that provides financial assistance for Americans that cannot pay their bills.
The program sends monthly checks to American workers that cannot hold down a job due to a disabling medical condition that medical experts expect to last for more than 12 consecutive months. SSA administrators calculate the value of benefits based on several criteria, including past income and the extent of your disabling medical condition.
What Are the Two Types of Disability Benefits?
The SSA provides two types of disability benefits. SSDI is a federal program that offers financial assistance for Americans that fund Social Security with taxed income. On the other hand, the Supplemental Security Income (SSA) program represents a financial safety net based on Americans that do not qualify for SSDI, yet earn a low enough income to warrant assistance.
SSDI covers workers that have earned enough credits to become eligible for financial assistance, while SSA covers Americans that do not have enough work credits to qualify for SSDI assistance.
Who Qualifies for SSDI?
The criteria established for obtaining SSDI benefits remain strict. First, you have to meet the medical standards created by the Blue Book, which the SSA publishes to designate eligible medical conditions and the severity of symptoms associated with qualifying medical conditions. Second, you must have missed work for 12 consecutive months to become eligible for federal financial assistance. Finally, the SSA requires applicants to meet a minimum income standard that makes it difficult to uphold a certain standard of living.
How Long Does It Take To Apply For Disability Benefits?
Applying for SSDI can take between three to five months, depending on your medical condition and whether you work with a Social Security disability attorney. The length of time it takes to apply for financial assistance is determined by how long it takes you to gather and organize medical evidence in the form of records, as well as the backlog of applications the SSA needs to process.
If you submit a persuasive claim that contains plenty of physical evidence, your claim might get processed in as few as 30 days. However, incomplete applications that contain one or more errors might make you wait more than six months to finish the application process.
Schedule a Free Case Evaluation
With a majority of disability claims coming back denied by the SSA, you should consider working with a lawyer who specializes in handling disability cases.
Your legal counsel monitors the progress of your claim after ensuring you have submitted the most convincing evidence that validates your need for financial assistance. Schedule a free case evaluation today to build a compelling claim for Social Security disability benefits.
