Social Security Disability

What happens if my consultative examination does not go well? (continued from Consultative Examinations (Part 3)) You may be asked to undergo a consultative medical or psychological examination while your claim or appeal for disability benefits is pending. The purpose of the exam is to provide the Social Security disability decision maker with medical evidence about your impairment. Of course, you hope that the doctor will perform a thorough examination and his or her report will support your claim. Unfortunately, sometimes the examination is unsatisfactory and sometimes the results are unfavorable. If the consultative examiner delivers an unfavorable report, there are some things that both you and your Ocala disability attorney can do to counter it. One possible reason for…Read More

What will happen at my consultative examination? (continued from Consultative Examinations (Part 2)) The nature and extent of your consultative examination depends on your impairment and what information Social Security decision makers need to decide your claim. You may need to undergo a complete physical examination and battery of tests or you may only need to undergo certain tests, like breathing tests, blood tests, or a stress test, for example. If you have a mental impairment, you may need to undergo an examination and a battery of tests administered by a psychiatrist or psychologist. The Social Security Administration will pay for your consultative exam and testing. You will not be charged. There is no charge to you even if your…Read More

A vocational expert (VE) may be scheduled to testify at your disability hearing. In most cases, the expert is appointed by the administrative law judge, although an Ocala disability lawyer may, in some cases, be able to have a vocational expert testify for the claimant or provide a written opinion. Vocational experts are actually more common at disability hearings than medical experts. Unlike medical experts, VEs vary widely in their experience, knowledge, and prejudices. The primary purpose of the vocational expert is to provide evidence that will enable the administrative law judge to deny the claim, although this may not be the motivation of every judge who appoints a vocational expert. In general, the presence of a vocational expert means…Read More

Social Security Administration regulations play an important role in determining whether a claimant is disabled. One group of disability regulations is called the Listing of Impairments (the Listings). The Listings are organized by body systems (e.g., musculoskeletal, respiratory, endocrine) and then by impairments specific to those systems. For example, the Musculoskeletal Listing covers impairments such as spinal disorders, joint dysfunction, amputations, and fractures. The Listing for each impairment consists of specific medical findings characteristic of that impairment. When a claimant has the medical findings provided in the listing, the SSA says that the claimant “meets the Listings.” A claimant who meets the Listings will be found disabled. The SSA will not even look at whether the claimant can do a…Read More

Who will perform my consultative examination? (continued from Consultative Examinations (Part 1)) If you are asked to undergo a consultative examination, the state disability determination agency will arrange for you to be examined by a practitioner with the appropriate experience and credentials. The consultative examiner is typically a doctor or psychologist in private practice who signs a contract to do the exam and provide a report for your disability file. The state agency will normally try to arrange for you to be examined near your home, but that’s not always possible if the right kind of specialist is not available in your area. It is possible to arrange for your own doctor to perform your consultative exam. However, your doctor…Read More

What is a consultation examination and why do I have to have one? If Social Security decision makers review your file and decide that they need more information about your medical condition before making a decision, they may send you for a consultative examination. A consultative exam is a physical or mental exam that the state disability determination agency arranges for you to undergo. You may be asked to submit to a consultative examination before the initial determination on your claim is made or after you appeal a denial. Here are some common reasons why you might be asked to undergo a consultative examination: • Social Security decision makers need an expert opinion about your condition, but your doctor is…Read More

Pain is subjective so it is difficult to prove to the ALJ how bad your pain really is. If pain is a significant reason why you are unable to work, your Ocala disability lawyer may ask your spouse, or other witness who knows you very well, to testify about your pain at your Social Security disability hearing. In testifying about your pain, your spouse or other witness must describe in detail his or her observations of how your pain has affected your life.  Testimony that: “My wife can’t work because she has a lot of pain,” won’t do much to help the judge understand how severe your pain is.  Instead, your spouse or other witness should try to describe any…Read More

Your Ocala disability lawyer may ask lay witnesses to testify on your behalf at your Social Security disability hearing. A lay witness is a witness who is not an expert in the medical field. While not an expert, a lay witness can still provide strong testimony on a claimant’s behalf by describing any observations the lay witness has noticed regarding the claimant’s condition. Therefore, strong lay witness testimony recounts the witness’s observations, and does not simply offer a conclusion regarding the claimant’s medical condition. The strongest lay witness testimony will provide the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) with a detailed account of a specific incident the witness observed. For example, suppose the claimant suffers from a breathing problem like asthma, emphysema,…Read More

You can appeal the denial of your application for Social Security disability benefits at an Administrative Hearing. During the Administrative Hearing, you will testify under oath before an Administrative Law Judge, or ALJ. Both the ALJ and your Ocala disability lawyer can ask you questions about you medical condition. For example, to determine what type of work, if any, you can engage in, you will answer questions about your Residual Functional Capacity, or RFC. RFC is the ability you retain to work despite your medical impairment.  Your RFC helps the ALJ can gain an understanding about what physical activities you can engage in on a daily basis. If sitting throughout an 8-hour workday is a problem for you, the ALJ…Read More

If you received a Social Security disability claim denial, you can appeal the denial at a disability hearing. During a Social Security disability hearing, you will testify before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) about your medical condition. The ALJ and your Ocala disability lawyer can ask you questions about your condition, including how the condition affects your ability to engage in substantial gainful activity. If you suffer from fatigue and it affects your ability to maintain a job and complete routine tasks, describe the fatigue so that the ALJ can gain a better understanding of why the fatigue makes you eligible to receive Social Security disability benefits. Both the ALJ and your Ocala disability lawyer can question you during the…Read More