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Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky lawyers explain the Social Security disability application process

The Social Security Administration is a federal agency that deals with several programs, including the program for disability benefits. The sheer quantity of regulations regarding the Social Security disability program can be overwhelming. And to make the process even more confusing, the Social Security Administration hires out the work for the initial determination on disability applications to state agencies.

The Social Security Administration is a large and awkward bureaucracy

The part of the Social Security Administration that deals with the disability program is called the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR). This office includes about 150 hearing offices scattered around the country, with about 8,000 employees, including well over 1,000 administrative law judges and administrative appeals judges.

This is large and unwieldy enough, but the bureaucracy gets much larger when you consider that the Social Security Administration has many other employees outside of the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review, and that the Social Security Administration has contracts with state agencies to process initial claims.

Like any large bureaucracy, the Social Security Administration tries to simplify things by making standard rules for people to follow. However, for complex decisions like disability determinations the result tends to be confusion through an overabundance of rules.

The difference between state agency decisions and appeal hearings

After the Social Security Administration gets your application it sends the application to a state agency. This agency gives the application to a claims examiner who (with some assistance from a medical doctor) decides whether to grant or deny your application. You do not get to talk to the claims examiner or present any more evidence or argument than is in your application. Even if the claims examiner has a question about something, he does not talk to you, but instead makes the decision based on what is written in the application and in the medical records.

Unfortunately, most of the time the claims examiner decides to deny the application.

This can be discouraging, but because it is common you should not give up. The results are much better at the appeal stage.

The appeal after the denial of a disability benefits application is to a Social Security Administrative Law Judge, and, unlike the state claims examiner, the Administrative Law Judge holds a hearing with you and your attorney.

The appeal hearing procedure

The Social Security Administration regulations do not prescribe many details for how an appeal hearing should be conducted. Therefore, the Administrative Law Judge has a lot of discretion about how to hold the hearing, and each one does it somewhat differently. However, there are some similarities in the way all disability appeal hearings are handled.

The basic atmosphere is that appeal hearings are informal meetings between you, your attorney, and the Administrative Law Judge.

Generally:

  • The room is small and informal, with a conference table.
  • The hearing is private. The main people in the room are the judge, an assistant to the judge, your attorney, and you. There may also be some witnesses, or the witnesses may be kept waiting in another room.
  • The judge will try to make you feel comfortable, and talk to you in an informal way.
  • There is no “other side” so no one is arguing against granting disability benefits to you.

Have an experienced Cincinnati or Indiana Social Security disability lawyer help you through the process

The regulations that apply to Social Security disability benefit applications are complex and can be impossibly confusing to someone who is not used to dealing with them. Not only will you have a better chance of success if you have a Social Security disability lawyer helping you, but you will also be relieved to have someone looking out for you through this difficult time.

If you are not already represented by an Indiana, Ohio, or Kentucky Social Security disability lawyer, consider asking for our evaluation of your claim. Give us a brief description of your claim using the form to the right, or you may e-mail or call any of our five offices.

Zerbe Garner Miller & Blondell LLP
Cincinnati Social Security disability attorneys

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Five convenient office locations:

15 West Center Street; Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
312 Walnut St., Suite 1600; Cincinnati, OH 45202
4555 Lake Forest Drive, Suite 650; Cincinnati, OH 45242
9277 Centre Pointe Drive; Suite 350; West Chester, OH 45069
3940 Olympic Blvd., Suite 400; Erlanger, KY 41018