Why Some Social Security Beneficiaries Aren’t Sold with the Electronic Mode of Payment

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Starting March 1, 2013, the Social Security will stop sending most paper Social Security checks via mail to beneficiaries. What will happen is that recipients will have to switch to the electronic mode of payment, in which they’d either have to sign in for direct deposit using a bank account or through a debit card issued by the Treasury Department.

Said date is not too far from now. In fact, any beneficiary who fails to make the switch to electronic payments before March 1 may force the Department to send the monthly benefits through a Direct Express card program. That way, there would be no interruption on the flow of payments.

For the Social Security Administration (SSA), the transition from the print to the digital form of sending monthly benefits is a way to cut down huge costs, especially with the usage of paper in mailing out checks. Moreover, this switch from paper to electronic payments would lessen the occurrences of lost or stolen checks, therefore protecting the monthly benefits every beneficiary receives.

While millions of Social Security recipients in the U.S. have already switched from paper to electronic payments long before the March 1 deadline, there are still a small number of them who still stick to the paper checks they regularly received on their mailboxes. Many senior citizens, to be specific, are not too impressed with the idea.

According to the Washington, D.C.-based organization Consumers for Paper Options president Paul Runyan, many of the senior citizens who have been content with having their Social Security checks mailed don’t have any access to financial services. He asserted that they must be given due consideration, and that they should not be forced to switch to electronic deposits, which, for seniors, are uncomfortable and may possibly confuse them.

Fortunately for the SSA, it won’t penalize recipients who may miss the March 1 deadline, saying that it won’t stop sending them paper checks. However, the federal agency may have to ask them to have a pre-paid debit card that is credited every month with their monthly payments.

Incidentally, Los Angeles Social Security claim lawyers think that it would be for the best interest of the recipients to sign up for the electronic payments right away before the deadline.

Requirements for Claiming Social Security Disability Benefits (SSDI)

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One of the most difficult procedures involved in applying for a Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is proving disability. Many SSDI applications are rejected each year because the applicants cannot sufficiently prove that they are “disabled”. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is very specific in determining an applicant’s disability; hence, it is necessary for claimants to know beforehand the information involved in proving a disability.

According to SSA’s guidelines, a person may be considered “disabled” if he or she:

•    Cannot do work that he or she did prior to disability
•    Cannot adjust to other types of work due to his or her medical condition

Aside from passing the SSA’s definition of disability, SSDI claimant must also adhere to other requirements. An SSDI applicant must also consider these factors when claiming for disability benefits:

Duration of the disability – The claimant’s disability must last for at least 12 months or may result into death; otherwise, the SSA would not recognize the claim.

Disability evidence – The applicant must provide necessary documents proving his or her disability for the claim to be verified. Documents usually required by the SSA include medical records, tax return documents, and W-2 forms.

Substantial gainful activity (SGA) – Non-blind applicants for SSDI must know that if their monthly SGA income is more than $1,010, their claim may not be accepted. For blind SSDI applicants, their monthly SGA income should be less than $1,690.

In order for SSDI applicants to increase their chances of getting disability benefits, they should seek assistance from a social security disability attorney. An expert legal assistance is a must in claiming for SSDI benefits because the application process involves complex and very specific requirements and procedures.

Although claiming for SSDI is difficult, it can be made easy by properly and carefully adhering to the requirements of the SSA.

Processing of Disability Insurance

California is known to be one of the most highly populated states within the U.S. However, it is also one of the states that has many employment-related issues.  The government fully notes of these and has made specific laws and agencies that cater to the needs of its labor force. This paved the way for the creation of the Social Security Administration (SSA). The SSA handles the cases of those who would like to get disability insurance in California.

Possible claimants or applicants of disability insurance in California are those who happened to be victimized by accidents. These people might be former workers whom had encountered an accident prior to reaching their retirement age. All of these are already predetermined by  a research made by the SSA, which states that there is 3 in 10 chances that a worker will become disabled even before reaching 20 years old. The Social Security Disability (SSD) is a particular program that caters to the aforementioned situation. Upon utilizing SSD, any citizen can get benefits from paying an ample amount of Social Security tax. Of course, like any program that is being offered by other institutions, there must be processes that must be followed.  It includes the following:

•    Taking an application to the Social Security Field Office – a place where the claim can be taken for processing after it comes from the SSA.
•     Returning to the Disability Determination Services, the examiner will be the one to get all the necessary medical records through sending requests from various hospitals and physicians that the applicant has indicated. They will assess the records afterwards and it may take months before a conclusion is released.

It must be known by all applicants that acquiring the services of an adept lawyer specializing in the aforementioned case is imperative. The success of the claim lies on the information that collected. Also, attorneys can get witnesses and detailed interviews from the physicians that can add to the validity of the client’s claim.

How to Receive SSDI Benefits while Working

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 Many Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries think that once they get back to work, their disability benefits are put on hold. However, contrary to this belief, SSDI beneficiaries may still receive their benefits even if they start going back to the workforce.

There are various ways a disability beneficiary can go back to work gradually. The following are the options that the Social Security Administration (SSA) offers to SSDI beneficiaries who want to go back to work:

1. Trial work – With this option, the disabled person may test his or her ability to work for at least nine months. Beneficiaries need not to worry about their benefits because they would still receive their full payment even though they are working again.

2. Extended period of eligibility – Upon completing the trial work period, the SSDI beneficiary may still continue to work for the next 36 months. The worker may still receive disability payments from SSA as long as his or her monthly earnings do not exceed to more than $1,010 or $1,690 (for blind workers) per month.

3. Reinstatement – In case that the employee’s substantial gainful activity (SGA) per month exceeds the SSA’s limit, he or she has five years to request again for payments. Simply put, when an employee suffers again from his or her previous disability and finds it difficult to work, he or she has five years to ask for disability benefits. When this happens, the employee need not to apply again.

In order for disabled employees to know more about the contexts involved in SSDI, they may seek legal help from a disability attorney. By doing this, they may learn the proper steps they need to consider and adhere to so as to avoid any inconvenience. Furthermore, they may not lose their chance to maximize their potentials to work again and to receive deserved disability benefits.

Four Things Social Security Disability Claimants Need to Do During Hearings

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Denials for Social Security disability benefits are unfortunately common – the best way to avoid such scenario is preparation. Applicants for Social Security disability claims are always advised to be prepared beforehand with respect to disability hearings. One way of doing this is to learn the dos and don’ts during disability hearings, this is to ensure that as much as possible, the applicants would avoid getting denied.

Applicants for disability benefits are advised to accomplish the following in order to enhance their chances of getting their claim:

1. Attend the disability hearing on time – Some may think that this is just a menial tip but in reality it is very important. Coming to the hearing late may give an impression to the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) that the applicant does not prioritize his or her claim. The best way to avoid being late in the hearing is to know beforehand the location of the hearing. By doing this, the claimant may arrive ahead of the scheduled hearing.

2. Provide most recent medical records – There are times wherein the ALJ does not have the latest copy of the medical records of the claimant, because of this, it would best for the applicant to have his or her copies handy. If the applicant does not have a social security disability lawyer with him or her, then it is imperative for him or her to secure updated medical records prior to the disability hearing. In case that the ALJ requests for medical records, the “prepared” applicant can conveniently provide copies thus avoiding any inconvenience.

3. Remember all necessary information – Once the ALJ asks the applicant about his or her disability, the latter should confidently and precisely reply. In order to do this, the applicant is advised to bear in mind all necessary information the ALJ may ask. Common questions the ALJ may ask include work history, medical history, the date when the disability occurred, and other related queries.

4. Do not provide fabricated information – It is never a good idea for the claimant to disclose fabricated or false information before the ALJ. Once the ALJ learns that the applicant is coming up with inaccurate information, chances are the claim would be denied. It is also advised for claimants not to resort to exaggeration of disability. Exaggerating the state of the medical condition of the applicant may result in slim chances of getting the claim approved.