Disability

[Jed]

Hi All,
I'm hoping you guys can help me out. I have at least 2 doctors tell me i should apply for disibility. I have a strenious job as a meat manager for a grocery store that i have worked at for over 18 years. I have a million questions but i will limit them to a few. I have heard from several doctors that they will deny me the first time. Is that true? I don't see myself going back to my current job under my health situations and the work requirements. I am out on sick leave right now all related to my heart and a few new things. I don't want to move up in the company because that involves jobs i am not interested in. Some more of my questions are: What are my work limitations under disibility guidelines? How is my disibility pay determined and how much will i get? Will i be able to work somewhere else part time? I was a martial arts student/instructor before this last incident happend, will i still be able to instruct? That is something that is important to me, help teach and form young minds as well as older, lol. I am sure i have more questions but i will limit them to these. Thanks in advance for your help, Jed

 

[Lynlw]

I'm not sure of all the questions, but i have a bad back and am on SS dis and it took me 3 years to get approved thank God I was/am married since I still haven't figured out how they think you can survive 3 years w/out a dime coming in. anway one of my jobs over the years was a meat wrapper in a grocery store, so i know the amount of heavy lifting involved. I was denied the first time and appealed and they dragged it out forever, I think they hope you can not survive so just give up and work so you can eat. I finally ended up getting a lawyer (who got a 5000 and only wrote one letter) and the week before my case went to court the judge reading it decided that I didn't need to go to court based on the doctors letter from the very beginning.
It was very frustrating, and takes alot of patience, actually since i applied for SS for Justin he has had 2 heart surgeries and it is still in the middle of the system, was denied and is at the appeal stage
we live in NJ and I know some states are better than others, I called my congressman and was told NJ is one of the worst states.
as for working, you can only earn a very little bit. the amount you get depends on how much you put into the system and how many quarters you worked. I was lucky since the majority of my time working was at a higher paying job, actually when I finally started getting disability I was bringing home more money than when I worked 36 hours at the grocery store.
I don't know if you would be allowed be be declared disabled and then teach martial arts, I think they would say if you can do that you could work.
Hopefully you live in one of the better states.
PLEASE If you apply make copies of EVERYTHING (it might even be worth your time to buy a cheaper copier scanner if you don't have one) and if at all possible, deliever all papers by hand and get something signed and dated, I was 2 years into my case and they tried to drop it telling me I didn't get one of the appeals in by the deadline, luckily I had the signed copy of the papers ANd at the time I was already sending copies of everything to my congressman, so when they said I didn't turn them in, he made some calls.
If you can't hand deliver everything then send it w/ a return reciept so they can't "lose" things, I was told by one of my congressman's aids that SS offices and mine in particular are known as Black holes since so many things just seem to disapear,
Good luck and if I can help w/ any specifi questions feel free to email me

 

[Ross]

Disability is a snake. Some people get it first time around, others such as myself, had to fight tooth and nail for 3 years to get it.

First things first. You must have something wrong with you that meets their qualifactions as a disabling impairment. Grab ALL of your medical records and I do mean ALL of them. I applied for a lung disease, but wasn't disabled enough with it, so I got it for a hip replacement instead. Don't ask me, I'm never going to understand how the hip was of more consequence then the lung disease is.

Here is a list of impairments. See if you qualify under anything in here:

http://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/404/404-ap10.htm

If you do find something, then next is to check to see if you can do any work in anything else under their vocational guidelines:

http://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/404/404-ap11.htm

The rest of your questions can be answered by checking the CFR404 rules. They are many and long, but it's better you know the game as it's played then to let them tell you how it's played.

http://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/404/404-0000.htm

Bottom line, if your Doctors say to apply, APPLY NOW, get an attorney that specializes in Social Security Disablility cases and get ready for a long ride.