What You Need to Know Before Applying for Social Security Disability Benefits Online

People live in the age of the Internet, where they can do almost everything using an online connection. From communication to shopping, online services and social media have become a normal thing for most people, young and old alike.

To go with the times, government offices and entities have made themselves available to the people through online means. One of them is Social Security Administration (SSA). Accordingly, people who wish to apply for disability benefits can do so using the online tool of this federal entity. The old-fashioned way of applying for benefits is still there, but it is said that the online option is a faster, more reliable way of getting an approval.

Visit Ssa.gov for further information regarding the online application

If you are planning to apply for disability benefits online, you may have to first consult with the online tool on the website of the SSA called the Benefit Eligibility Screening Tool. This will help you determine if you can actually qualify for benefits under the Social Security disability program or not. All the needed information and your expectations regarding the disability program will be provided by the said tool.

Moreover, it is important for you to know that the online application isn’t entirely the whole process in itself. In fact, you still need to write down pertinent information on certain SSA forms and to collect valuable information such as medical evidence to support your claim. Also, it is required that you submit in person, or through an authorized representative, your claim to your local SSA field office.

Furthermore, the online application is not for everyone. While the online option is a quick and convenient way of having a chance for disability benefits, your case may not qualify for such. For example, if you are applying for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), you cannot use the online application option.

To begin with, there is no online option for SSI; such option is available only for those applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI).

Applying for disability benefits online is a choice. However, it is best that you consult with any Los Angeles Social Security claim lawyers to help increase your chances of getting your claim approved.

Source: http://www.socialsecurity-disability.org/blog/applying-social-security-disability-online

The Need of a Social Security Lawyer in Updating a Hearing Testimony

Getting through the hearing process can be quite a hassle. If you are under stress in dealing with this stage of the appeals process, it is quite common to forget certain things that are worth mentioning to the administrative law judge (ALJ) who is handling your case. In this regard, you may be thinking if you can do something about updating your testimony for the hearing.

Photo Credits: Ricochet.com

In essence, you may feel like doing so if the information that you need for the update would be very important in shifting your chances of winning the case at the disability hearing. Good thing there are ways in which you can update your testimony, especially if you forgot to bring up that so-called “missing link” to help the ALJ veer towards an approval.

For this to happen, you must have first retained the services of an expert disability attorney. To begin with, since your claim is denied, it would be very useful for you if you work with a lawyer at this stage of the appeals process. If you have one, then your two-way communication with the ALJ will go through your representative first.

In this sense, if you want to update your hearing testimony with the ALJ who is handling your case, it is best that you consult with your attorney first. You must let your attorney know about what you left out in the testimony, and ask him or her to submit the information to your judge through writing.

Meanwhile, if you don’t have a lawyer from the start of the disability appeals process, it is best that you should retain one at the soonest possible time. As it is, not having one would just hurt your chances of winning back your disability benefits, therefore resulting in another denial and another stage of the appeals process, which is the Appeals Council.

Incidentally, as early as now, you may want to retain the services of an attorney, even at the initial application process. If you are living in California, you may retain the services of any Los Angeles Social Security disability lawyers to boost your chances of getting an approval.

After Disability Claim Approval, What’s Next?

The feeling of overwhelming joy and exuberance rules over a lot of approved disability claimants every year. Waiting for months just for the Social Security Administration (SSA) to decide on their claims finally ends with a proverbial sigh of relief.

At last, Social Security applicants, now beneficiaries, can collect benefits while they are trying to improve their status of health after they were held out of work because of disabling medical conditions.

Now the “waiting game” is out of the picture, and that they are bound to receive their first monthly payment, a lot of them may wonder and ask this question: “What’s next?”

What to do next when your Disability Claim gets approved?

Most Social Security disability beneficiaries may think that their only focus is collecting monthly benefits from the SSA. However, every one of them must remember that they should still carry the responsibility of dealing with their Social Security status, especially if there are changes in certain aspects in their lives, such as living arrangements and the like.

Here is a list of what newly-approved individuals must prepare and must know regarding their Social Security case:

·         Continuing disability review. The SSA, from time to time, may ask you to undergo a continuing disability review. The purpose of this is for the federal agency to see if your disabling condition still meets the qualifying criteria that will determine if you may still continue receiving disability benefits. The disability review would depend on the severity of your condition and your likelihood of improvement.

·         Medicare. If you are a Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiary, you may be eligible for Medicare, the United States’ top health insurance program. If you have been entitled for benefits for 24 months, you are then eligible to receive Medicare benefits on the next month.

·         Changes in living arrangements. It is your responsibility as a Social Security beneficiary to inform the SSA about certain changes in your living arrangements.

·         If you are moving to another state, you don’t have to re-apply for disability benefits again. If you are a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary, you must be aware of the changes in the state supplemental payments. Not all states are the same in terms of the amount of the supplemental payments they provide to their constituents who are receiving SSI benefits.

Beneficiaries may need the expertise of Los Angeles Social Security Claim Lawyers in case their disability cases are denied. They may be denied once they failed to inform the SSA about any changes, or the continuing disability review proves that their health has improved.

SSA Beneficiaries to Receive Electronic Payments by 2013

The year 2013 marks a new chapter in the history of the Social Security Administration (SSA). It was announced by the federal agency that starting March of next year, all benefits will be paid electronically. This means that next year, every SSA beneficiary won’t be relying on their mailboxes anymore for them to receive their monthly disability benefits.

This development won’t only affect the SSA and its beneficiaries, but also beneficiaries who are receiving veteran’s benefits, railroad pensions, and federal disability payments. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) even strongly encourages taxpayers to process their tax refunds with the use of the electronic method.

Image Credits: http://www.thetowntalk.com/

Last year, the SSA told those who were planning to apply for Social Security benefits on or after May 1, 2011 that electronic payments would be given to them. Anyone who is thinking of applying for Social Security disability or retirement benefits this year may still receive checks via mail after getting approved. But with the March 2013 deadline looming, every new beneficiary is now encouraged to sign up for electronic payments.

Before, disability checks sent through mail was the SSA’s primary method of payment. But because of the rising incidents of fraud and lost or stolen benefits in the mail delivery system, the SSA decided it was time to switch to the electronic method.

The SSA’s effort to exclusively send payments electronically from March 2013 onwards is seen by the federal agency as a cost-cutting measure. The SSA, with the switch to the electronic mode of payment, will save the federal government nearly $120 million. For the next ten years, the SSA will be saving up to $1 billion dollars.

For those who are still receiving benefits via mail, here are some options in which they can sign up for the electronic method:

A.      Direct deposit

B.      Direct Express® card program

C.      Electronic Transfer Account

Signing up for any of the above options must be done before the deadline next year. They can contact their nearest bank or their nearest Social Security office for further inquiries.

Source: http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10153.pdf

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/dont-wait-social-security-check-120033750.html

Dealing with SSI Overpayments

If you are a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary, you are expected to receive an exact amount of monetary benefits. The amount is based on your “limited” income and resources. However, a monthly SSI payment may exceed more than the amount you are expected to receive. The difference of the payment you received and the amount due is called an overpayment.

There are many reasons for having SSI overpayments. First, your income may be more than what was estimated prior to your approval of your SSI claim. Then, you may have more resources than the set criteria for possible beneficiaries.

Another is that you may have failed to inform the SSA about any changes in your living arrangements such as divorce, marriage, separation, or having a child. And then, you may have also provided insufficient information that caused the SSA to give you a large sum of monetary benefits.

If the SSA has knowledge of your overpayment, they will send you a notice asking you to fully refund the excess amount within a month. The notice also contains the following guidelines in case you failed to refund the overpayment:

·         The withholding of the overpayment at 10-percent rate from your total income

·         The month the withholding scheme would start

·         Instructions for appealing

·         Instruction on how the overpayment can be reviewed and waived by the SSA

If you know that you are not overpaid, you can file an appeal through the reconsideration process. You have 10 days to appeal your case, starting from the date you received the notice from the SSA. You can still receive monthly SSI payments until the SSA decides on your case.

If you know that you are receiving overpayments but you believe it is not your fault, you can ask for a recovery waiver. You can secure a request for waiver form (SSA-632) anytime. You can also ask for a waiver if you have to use the overpayment for your monthly expenses. You must provide proof of billing. You must have also possessed hardship in repaying the overpayment.

If ever you get in this kind of situation, solicit the legal counsel of a social security disability benefits attorney. You can be sure that his or her expertise will help you with your problems regarding SSI overpayments.