Preparing to file for disability

[ammowoman]

We are finally going to apply for disability. On 10/15 it will be a year since injury. When my husband was first injured and still in the hospital I had called and they said he needed to be unable to work for a year for me to apply for him. He reached MMI on April 6 and was released April 8th. Since then he has had no income. Employer fighting his unemployment but we are appealing. We wanted to make sure we had enough medical evidence before filing. Before his injury he never went to the dr except for allergies or poison ivy. He didn't even have a set primary dr. We have since got him a primary but he's only been once. All dr's are from his accident. The ER dr's from when he was taken by ambulance, the on call dr's who did his surgeries and the rehab unit dr's who treated him before they would release him from the hospital. Since he went thru ER and treatment was done on a emergency basis WC never assigned his dr's so I believe this will help, although his injuries speak for themselves. His psychologist he had seen before his injury and resumed seeing after. The only dr WC has assigned him is the pain dr for his meds. He's seen him once. All refills have been done by phone since his initial visit.

I went to the site online to see what is needed so I could get a idea of what information I needed to have ready. Its unavailable from 1am-5am which is the time I have before work when I get things done. Will they just ask for all dr's names and dates of treatment? We also have his latest dr report with his 65% whole body rating. His lawyer is also sending him to another psychologist and a work histroy dr of some sort in the next couple months but I don't think we need to wait for those reports to at least start the process.

Any information on what to have ready would be appreciated. I like to be prepared. Sorry for such a long post.

Missouri..husband crushed at work when fork truck knocked a 2700 lb pallet over on him. 7 broken ribs, broken leg/ankle with hardware, several pelvic fractures with hardware, broken collar bone permanent shoulder injuries, depression. 65% whole body rating.

[LeglEgl]

You need to have as much medical information as possible to accompany the application, bearing in mind that it will likely be rejected on the first go-around.

Also, keep in mind that the 65% whole body impairment rating means NOTHING to SSDI. Social Security has their own means of determining disability. With SSDI you are either disabled or you are not disabled. There is no gray area.

In some catastrophic injury situations, the applicant gets lucky and is found to be disabled "on the record", i.e., based on the extensive medical records supporting such findings. This is why it would be imperative to have EVERY medical record available at the time of application. You'll save yourself a LOT of time and frustration.

You will still have to undergo an examination by a physician of the SSDI's choosing.

[Bummer Knees]

Try for an intake interview at the local SSA office if your area allows them. I find a visual helps when applying.

I was fortunate as I was approved for SSDI in 6 weeks without an attorney the first time I applied.

Good luck!

[Manley2]

From what I was told all you have to do to apply is that you will be out of work for more then a year and not wait a year to apply. Wish you luck it took me over 2 years to get approved after filing

[ammowoman]

I will have my husband contact the attorney Monday and let him know were applying and need copies of all his medical records. We don't have anything other than the hospital records from his stay and the rehab unit records. When we were at his IME the dr doing the exam had three huge folders a couple inches thick he would refer to and flip through to verify dates, treatment and restictions or that my husbands answers matched what info was in them. Could he request them from WC and have them sent to the house or should we just go thru the attorney?

I was also told he would have to be off work at least a yr to apply. I had called shortly after his accident and couldn't say definitely that he would. We both actually didn't realized how life changing for him it would be. We thought fix injuries and back to normal. Soooooo not the case. The plus side is he survived. We're still learning as we go.

[Cervical_Fusion]

Whnd I applied I had an interview at my local SS Office. I got my SSDI but it took nine months. I also requested a copy off all my medical applications and medical records from SS. They sent me a CD it cost like 9.00, but my point is after reviewing the cd from SS, there was a copy of my face to face interview on it that was done at the local office, and boy the person who did the interview noted all my physical disabilities that she could see that day, like my sitting and haveing to stand after x number minutes, she noted me having to adjust my spinal cord stimulator, she even noted that my face and skin was red in color after sitting for awhile. She was very through and I think this helped in their decision. SO try to get a face to face interview, i would recommend it to all trying for ssdi.

[bronco54501]

If you try to request the records from wc they may say have your attorney request them... My attorney requested all medical evidence from them (wc) and gave a 15 day limit.. He had all records within a week... You can also request all records from your hubbys drs, this way you know you have them all... They may ask for $$$$$, but like mine they just sent me a bill afterwards.... Please keep us updated how your process works out, there will be others including my self that will bennifit from it...........

[ammowoman]

Thanks everyone. He'll call the attorney Monday and let him know we are finally going to file. We will see what to do about how to best go about getting his records. I'm sure the attorney has them at this point but he may want to request our own copies from the IC.

I had called disability in April when my husband was "laid off" 2 days after his pelvic surgeon put him at MMI. At that time the person on the phone said they should of taken the application back in Oct when I first called. I told them at the time I could not say he would be off work at least a yr. He siad they could of adjusted benefits if approved. I told him he couldn't work due to injuries and the amount of meds he is on. He told us to apply for the unemployment and we could still apply for disability. I'm not sure if they keep notes but he seemed to have something he was referring to showing I had inquired. I am just going to expect to be denied the first time. The attorney said they would help as well if we would like once it is denied.

I will keep you updated on the progress. It will be a slow progression, as I don't want to put too much on my husbands to do list. Just the unemployment fight he has now is mentally draining him.

[LeglEgl]

(10-01-2011 07:06 AM)ammowoman Wrote:  Thanks everyone. He'll call the attorney Monday and let him know we are finally going to file. We will see what to do about how to best go about getting his records. I'm sure the attorney has them at this point but he may want to request our own copies from the IC.

It's not likely that the WC IC will provide YOU with copies, since you're represented. Their contact with you is restricted through your attorney.

By the way, it is true that SSDI can be applied for if one has been out of work for at least 12 months or is "expected" to be out of work for at least 12 months due to illness / injury.

[ammowoman]

We couldn't truthfully say he would be out of work for a yr. He has alway been healthy with no problems. Thought he would just bounce back. This first yr is has been a wake up call. With the weather change also playing a huge factor. Our home has the master bedroom upstairs. This will not work for much longer. We can switch rooms with my son again, as we did when he was in the wheel chair. But this house doesn't even work for him. We will need to move in the very near future.