MEDICAL EVIDENCE FOR SSD CLAIMS
What Medical Evidence Do I Need for a Disability Claim?
If you’re applying for disability benefits, you’re going to need a considerable amount of medical evidence.
Your medical records need to show that you meet Social Security’s definition of “disability,” meaning that:
- Your health issues severely limit your ability to function.
- You can’t switch jobs due to age, skillset, education or other factors.
- Your inability to work will last 12 months or longer
It’s work to gather the medical evidence needed to make your disability claim convincing, but you don’t have to do it on your own.
Let the Detroit disability lawyers of the Levine Benjamin Law Firm help you. We know what Social Security looks for in a disability claim.
We’ve helped more than 100,000 people in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana win benefits and better lives.
Whether you’re applying for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, it’s a big undertaking.
Our Social Security Disability attorneys can tell you what kind of medical evidence will strengthen your claim and give you a better chance of getting approved for benefits.
And no matter how long this process takes, you won’t pay an attorney’s fee until you win benefits.
From applying to appealing, we help you every step of the way.
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO DO?
Types of Medical Evidence That Help You Win Disability Benefits in Michigan, Ohio & Indiana
Even if it seems like it would be obvious to anyone that your health issues prevent you from working, Social Security won’t make this process easy.
You need to have plenty of medical evidence to back up your disability claim.
Items like these can help:
- Lab test results
- Imaging results (MRIs, CT scans, X-rays, etc.)
- Results of cognitive testing
- Results of psychological evaluations
- Your doctor’s assessment of your everyday capabilities
- Medical records showing how your condition has progressed over time
- A list of prescribed medications, their dosages, and their effects and side effects
- Records of surgeries or procedures you’ve undergone
- Records showing your ongoing efforts to address your medical issues
- Information about any accommodations you need in your daily life
Around 60-65% of initial disability claims get denied, and one of the most common reasons for denials is a lack of medical evidence.
Your medical evidence helps you tell your story.
But it’s a challenge to gather and keep track of everything and quickly respond to Social Security when they ask for more information. Let our Detroit disability attorneys help.
How Do I Talk to My Doctor About My Social Security Disability Claim?
One thing many people don’t realize when they’re trying to claim disability benefits is that their doctor may not be used to presenting medical records in a way that’s effective with the Social Security Administration (SSA).
Your doctor and the SSA employee evaluating your claim might not think of “disability” the same way.
You need to make sure that when you’re talking about your health issues with your doctor, you’re focusing on how they affect your ability to hold a job and support yourself.
You’ll need to discuss highly specific details of how your symptoms interfere with routine tasks, and make sure your doctor takes notes on what you say.
When you and your doctor work together, you can ensure your medical record reflects that you have a work-stopping health issue.
The challenge is that you may forget to talk about certain symptoms because you’ve gotten used to them or don’t think they’re important. You may struggle to put into words some of what you’re suffering from.
This is when working with an experienced Michigan disability lawyer can be helpful.
We can ask you questions you might not think about. We can give you tips on what to tell your doctor. We can help you and your doctor paint a full picture for anyone who reviews your disability claim.
Do I Really Need Help from a Detroit Social Security Disability Lawyer?
You may think you have all the medical evidence you need and that filling out a few forms is something you can easily handle.
We still recommend working with an experienced Michigan or Ohio disability lawyer.
You’ll encounter roadblock after roadblock when you apply for SSDI or SSI. Seeking out disability benefits is a personal thing, but this process often feels cold and impersonal.
Our disability lawyers can guide you. We know what kinds of medical evidence show the Social Security Administration that you qualify for disability benefits.
Our team can help you:
- Gather and organize your medical evidence
- Identify additional evidence that can strengthen your claim and tell you how to get it
- Communicate with medical professionals
- Reach out to health care providers who have the records that you need
- Make sure you’re getting ongoing treatment, which creates more evidence
- Update your records if your medical condition changes
- Present your medical records to Social Security in a way that makes it clear you meet the definition of disability
Levine Benjamin will do everything we can to help with your case, from assisting with paperwork to answering questions you have about the Social Security Disability system.
The disability lawyers at Levine Benjamin help you from the very beginning of this process, and we help if you have already applied on your own and gotten denied.
We can take a look at your claim, see if there were any gaps in your medical record, and address any issues Social Security had with your original claim.
Winning disability benefits is difficult, so you shouldn’t go to just anyone with your SSDI or SSI claim.
Our Michigan disability firm is the top in the state when it comes to how much in benefits we’ve won for our clients, according to Social Security reports on disability representatives.
We’ve helped thousands of people in Detroit, Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, Lansing, Flint, Toledo, Elkhart, and across the states of Ohio, Michigan and Indiana when they needed a financial lifeline.
Give yourself the best possible chance of getting approved for Social Security Disability benefits.