Approximately 4.8 percent of the more than six million residents living in the State of Michigan receive Social Security Disability benefits. There are approximately 50,000 more Michigan residents backlogged in the Social Security system waiting for a decision on their Social Security Disability claims. This is largely due to the fact that the majority of Michigan Social Security Disability applications are denied during the initial stage of the application process. In fact, approximately 65 percent of initial disability claims are denied by the Michigan Social Security offices. These applicants must then go on to file a Request for Reconsideration, which is the first stage of appeals for Michigan Social Security Disability applicants. In Michigan, approximately 70 percent of these reconsideration requests are also denied.
For most Michigan Social Security Disability applicants, a hearing before an administrative law judge will be needed in order to obtain the disability benefits they may be entitled to. Depending on where in Michigan you live, it can take anywhere from 408 to 727 days to be scheduled for a disability hearing. It then takes another 45 to 90 days to receive a notice regarding the administrative law judge's decision on your disability case. This means that some Michigan Social Security Disability applicants will have to wait well over two years before ever seeing a payment from the Social Security Administration (SSA).
The office in charge of scheduling disability hearings for Social Security Disability applicants is the SSA's Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR). The area of Michigan that you live in determines which ODAR office handles your disability case and how long you will have to wait to obtain a hearing before an administrative law judge. The cities and towns in which the Michigan ODAR offices are located and the areas that each office serves are as follows:
- Detroit, Michigan
- Flint, Michigan
- Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Lansing, Michigan
- Livonia, Michigan
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Mount Pleasant, Michigan
- Oak Park, Michigan
- Toledo, Ohio
- Valparaiso, Indiana
The ODAR office located in Detroit, Michigan is responsible for handling the disability hearings for the Dearborn, Detroit (Connor), Detroit (Downtown), Detroit (East), Detroit (Grand River), Detroit (Southwest), Fort Gratiot, Hamtramck and Wyandotte Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of 498 days to schedule a hearing for Michigan Social Security Disability applicants.
The ODAR office located in Flint is responsible for the disability hearings for the Flint-Downtown and Flint-North Social Security field offices. It takes the Flint office an average of 408 days to schedule a disability hearing for Michigan Social Security Disability applicants.
The Grand Rapids ODAR office services the Grand Rapids, Holland, Kalamazoo and Muskegon Social Security field offices. The average processing time for this office is 539 days.
The Lansing ODAR office serves the Battle Creek, Jackson, Lansing and Owosso Social Security field offices. The average processing time for this office is 616 days.
The Livonia ODAR office services the Inkster, Ann Arbor, Farmington Hills, Livonia, Detroit-Northwest and Pontiac Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of seven months to schedule a disability hearing.
The ODAR office located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin serves the Escanaba, Houghton, Marquette, Ironwood and Sault St. Marie Social Security field offices in Michigan. The average processing time for this office is thirteen months.
The Mount Pleasant ODAR office services the Alpena, Bay City, Big Rapids, Cadillac, Ludington, Mount Pleasant, Petoskey, Saginaw, Traverse City and West Branch Social Security field offices. The average processing time for this office is eighteen months.
The Oak Park ODAR office serves the Chesterfield (Mt. Clemens), Detroit-Wyoming, Highland Park, Northwest, Pontiac, Roseville, Royal Oak and Sterling Heights Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of 727 days to schedule a disability hearing.
The ODAR office located in Toledo, Ohio services the Adrian and Monroe Social Security field offices located in the State of Michigan. It takes this office an average of fifteen months to schedule a disability hearing for Ohio Social Security Disability applicants.
The ODAR office located in Valparaiso, Indiana services the Benton Harbor Social Security field office in the State of Michigan. The average processing time for this office is nine-and-a-half months.
Hiring a Michigan Social Security Disability Attorney
Many Michigan Social Security Disability applicants hope to avoid lengthy and complicated disability appeals. They often want to know what they can do to increase their chances of obtaining an approval at the initial stage of the application process. Working with a Michigan disability attorney may help.
When you hire a Michigan Social Security Disability lawyer to represent you in your claim for Social Security Disability benefits, he or she will work with you to prepare your disability application. Your lawyer will help you gather the necessary medical evidence and will assist you in preparing your application so that it may be presented in the best light possible to the SSA. If your initial disability claim is denied, your lawyer will also be able to represent you during your disability appeal.
If you have applied for disability benefits and have been denied by the SSA, you should consult with a Michigan Social Security Disability attorney as soon as possible. You only have 60 days from the date you received the notice to appeal the SSA's decision to deny your benefits and statistics show that your chances of overturning an SSA's decision to deny benefits are significantly increased with proper legal representation.
If you would like to learn more about hiring a Michigan Social Security Disability attorney, click here to receive a free evaluation of your Social Security Disability case.
