Don’t Lose Time; Get Help With Social Security Disability
SSD law firm Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA, helps qualifying individuals in Northeastern Ohio get the SSD and SSI benefits they deserve. Our Ohio SSD claim attorneys have more than 25 years of experience in Social Security Disability law securing SSD and SSI benefits for clients, whether assisting clients with applications or with appeals of unfavorable benefit claim decisions.
If you or a loved one thinks you may qualify for Ohio SSD or SSI payments or were denied Social Security benefits, we urge you to contact our Social Security Disability lawyer in Ohio right away. Time wasted means benefits lost. Let us begin work for you today.
What To Know About Social Security Disability
The United States, through law and generations of practice, has decided that citizens who have disabilities caused by injury or illness and are unable to work for a living shall be taken care of through the Social Security Administration. This is accomplished by the two categories of benefits: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. Our Ohio Social Security Disability (SSD) attorneys are here to help.
Like many government programs, SSD and SSI have grown large and complex due to need and regulation. Obtaining SSD and SSI benefits from the Social Security Administration has become a bureaucratic nightmare for many claim applicants, including residents of Northeastern Ohio’s Mahoning Valley, who should easily qualify for these government benefits. This is why many SSD applicants find themselves seeking legal aid and consulting an Ohio Social Security Disability attorney to help with the process.
Read What Our Clients Have To Say
“Attorney Magill has been representing me since 2010 and I couldn’t have picked a better attorney!! Attorney Magill and his staff fought hard for me with worker’s comp cases and got me the justice and fair compensation that I deserved. If you want great people that will work hard to get you the justice and compensation that you deserve then call Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA. great attorneys that will fight to get you what you deserve.” – LRF
Do You Qualify For Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits?
Both the Ohio Social Security Disability (SSD) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program provide payments to individuals who have a disability that prevents them from working for a living and who also meet certain qualifying medical and financial criteria. However, the two programs have different purposes. Social Security Disability is an insurance program for workers who have developed an incapacitating disability. Supplemental Security Income is an entitlement for those with severe disabilities who have never worked, or poverty-stricken elderly citizens.
To obtain SSD benefits, in addition to having a disability, you must have previously paid Social Security taxes through employment and worked long enough to accrue a benefit. Formerly employed workers must be able to demonstrate to the Social Security Administration that they:
- Cannot perform the work they did in previous jobs.
- Have a disability that has lasted or is expected to last at least 12 months, or cause their death.
- Have a medical condition that prevents them from adjusting to any other type of employment.
The SSD applicant must also show that they have worked long enough and recently enough under Social Security to qualify for benefits. That means you must have earned 20 work credits within the last 10 years of working ending with the year you became disabled. A work credit is counted by how much you are paid in wages. For 2017, you must earn $1,300 within a three-month period to earn work credit. Once your wages reach $5,200 within a year, then you have earned all four of the work credits for that year. If you are unsure of how many work credits you have earned, you can visit www.ssa.gov and create a mySocialSecurity login account. You can see all of your reported earnings there.
What Documents And Records Will I Need?
As you may expect, legal forms for an application for SSD benefits consist of multiple forms to be completed and require supporting records demonstrating:
- Disability (medical records)
- Employment (job records over many years)
- Workers’ compensation claims (if applicable)
- Financial assets (bank accounts, retirement accounts, additional assets).
Your medical records are the most important. To qualify, you must show that your physical or mental disability matches an impairment in the Social Security Administration’s “Listing of Impairments” (also known as the “Blue Book”). If there is no specific match, your evidence must convince claim examiners that your condition is equivalent to an impairment listed in the Blue Book.
Filing a complete and accurate application increases your potential for approval and for benefit payments to begin. Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA, can help you gather the information necessary for a proper application and ensure there are no omissions, technical errors or discrepancies that can cause your claim to be denied. Our SSD lawyers help former workers file SSD claims that reflect cases much like yours every day and have filed SSD applications on behalf of clients for many years. You are no longer alone. We know the system, and we can make the system work for you.
Do You Qualify For Supplemental Security Income?
Supplemental Security Income pays benefits to people with disabilities who demonstrate a financial need. The SSI program typically serves people who have had a disability since childhood and have never been able to work to earn a living. In many cases, a family member, such as a parent, applies for SSI on behalf of a young adult with a disability.
SSI is also available to adults over age 65, or people who are blind if they demonstrate the required financial need. An SSI applicant’s “countable resources” cannot exceed $2,000 ($3,000 if married). Countable resources include savings, stocks, bonds, real or personal property or other assets. But not necessarily everything the applicant owns, such as a primary home, is counted. Other government benefits, such as SNAP assistance (food stamps) or home energy assistance, are not counted. If an applicant is younger than 18, their parents’ assets are taken into consideration.
An applicant must also be able to demonstrate that they are:
- Disabled by a medical condition that keeps them from working and is expected to last at least one year or cause their death, or
- Totally or partially blind
- At least 65 years old
An application for SSI benefits consists of multiple forms to be completed and supported by medical records. Parents applying for benefits for a disabled child must submit an Application for Supplemental Security Income and a Child Disability Report.
Medical records must show that the applicant’s physical or mental disability matches an impairment in the Social Security Administration’s “Listing of Impairments.” Part B of what is also known as the “Blue Book” is “Childhood Listings” with congenital disabilities. If there is no specific match between the applicant’s disability and a Blue Book listing, evidence in the application must convince claim examiners that the condition is equivalent to an impairment listed in the Blue Book.
An initial application that is complete and accurate increases the likelihood for approval and for benefit payments to begin. SSI lawyers at Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA, can help you gather the records a proper application requires. We’ll ensure there are no omissions, technical errors or discrepancies that could result in your SSI claim being denied. We have helped many individuals and families much like yours with SSI claims and have helped clients file SSI applications for many years. We know the system, and we can make it work for you. You are no longer alone. Let us help.
We Can Help Appeal An SSD Or SSI Claim Decision
Whether you have worked with Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA, from the start or you have applied for benefits on your own, we can help you appeal a decision that does not provide benefits you deserve and help you with your Social Security Disability claim appeal. Applying initially with our assistance greatly reduces your chances of being rejected, but errors and examiner misjudgment do occur. In fact, most first-time claims are rejected. The Social Security Disability and Supplemental Security Income programs are the largest of several federal programs that provide assistance to people with disabilities.
The Social Security Administration provides a four-tier appeals process for both the SSD and SSI program:
- Reconsideration: A request for reconsideration involves a second review of your file by a claims examiner not connected to the initial examination of your application. You must request reconsideration and are allowed to add to the application prior to reconsideration.
- Hearing: If your reconsideration is denied, you may request a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). At this hearing, you can testify and present witnesses to testify for you, such as doctors who have treated you.
- Appeals council review: If necessary after a hearing, you can request that the Social Security Administration’s Appeals Council take up your case. The Appeals Council may decline the request, conduct the review and hand down a decision or send your case back to the ALJ for another review. You do not participate in this appeal.
Let Us Help With Your District Court Case
After a denial at the Appeals Council, you have the option of going to District Court. At District Court, a civil suit is brought against the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration.
- District Court appeals are very complicated, time-consuming, and may be expensive.
- The District Court judge does not determine whether or not you are disabled, but rather whether errors occurred during your administrative hearing.
- Because of this, new medical evidence typically cannot be submitted to District Court.
- The District Court may deny your appeal, grant your appeal and award benefits, or grant your appeal and remand the matter for another hearing with an administrative law judge.
- If you are still eligible for SSD or SSI benefits after your hearing denial, filing a new application and starting the process over may be more advantageous than going through the District Court process.
- If your medical conditions have worsened or new ones have developed, filing a new application may also be more advantageous than going through the District Court process.
Our office weighs these considerations in determining whether a District Court lawsuit or filing a new application is more appropriate in your case if the Social Security Administration has continued to deny your claim.
Each appeal must be requested within specific deadlines to move forward. The final appeal to the federal district court requires the assistance of an attorney. But earlier appeals procedures operate on standard accepted rules of evidence and procedure, and the SSA’s case will be presented by professionals who deal with SSD and/or SSI claims every day.
Contact Our Ohio Social Security Disability Lawyers For Help
We have taken up the duty of helping Northeastern Ohio residents who have disabilities get all of the federal benefits the law says they should. It’s unfortunate that the process for obtaining this much-needed assistance is so complex, but we know how to get it done. We can provide this service to you if you’re having trouble with a Social Security Disability claim in Ohio.
The Social Security attorneys at Heller, Maas, Moro & Magill Co., LPA, have secured favorable decisions for SSD and SSI claimants for over 25 years. We know how the system works. We are ready to answer all your questions. Our attorneys do not get paid a fee unless you get paid benefits. If you’re considering applying for SSD in Ohio, let our lawyers seek benefits for you.
We Are Ready To Help You Get Benefits
You should not have to go through the complicated process of applying for Social Security Disability benefits on your own. Our team of knowledgeable attorneys can help you. For a free initial consultation, reach out to us by calling our toll-free number, 330-974-1231. You can also send us an email. We have office locations in Youngstown, Warren, Salem, Kent and Akron.
