DISABILITY SURVIVAL GUIDE: NORTH ALABAMA EDITION

You might think that you can fill out a few forms and Social Security will find you to be disabled and start your check.  After all, you've paid into Social Security through the FICA payroll deduction for years.  You feel that the benefits are "yours."  However, the Social Security Administration does not think that way. Instead of "common sense," they use the  20 Code of Federal Regulations . They make it far more complicated, time consuming and just plain difficult. That's why it's not uncommon for a disability claim to take 12 to 24 months or longer to be decided.  Why is SSDI so difficult? 1.  SSDI is very specific and covers a very limited group of claimants. The terms for receiving disability are very narrow and must be proven down to the letter.  This requires complete and thorough medical evidence from your doctors, counselors, hospitals or other providers. 2.  Just the forms are a nightmare.       There are over 450 qu...

I write this post in September of 2026.  Within the last 30 minutes I have received 3 scam calls from the same person (different phone numbers), telling me I may qualify for an extra $250 from Medicare this month.  Totally phony, 100 percent scam.  Hang up immediately if you get one of these calls (and you probably will)! These are computer generated random calls where a computer calls virtually every telephone number.   These scammers do not know your name, address, phone number of anything else until you tell them.  Don't. Here is how the scam goes :   You receive a call from what looks like a local number (It is not).   A recorded female voice says:  "You may be eligible to receive a $250 bonus from Medicare this month.  Do you have Medicare parts A and B?" If you answer, Yes, the voice says:  "That's all I need.  My colleague will now take your enrollment." Then, a male voice with a heavy foreign accent comes on the phone. ...

About 7 out of 10 Social Security disability claims are marked    DENIED. Here are reasons why your disability claim may be denied: 1)     You are still working.  You cannot work and earn $1,690 per month or more when applying for or receiving Social Security disability. 2)  Your paperwork is incomplete, missing or incorrect. 3)  You don't provide sufficient written medical evidence to prove your case. 4) You think Social Security will get all the evidence you need; they don't. 5)  You don't have a severe, medically determinable impairment / condition. 6)   Your severe impairment has not lasted or will not last 12 months or more. 7)  You fail to appeal your denials within the deadline. Most claims are won by appeal, not in the first application. 8)  You appear at a hearing without representation. The Forsythe Firm in Huntsville has helped thousands of claimants obtain Social Security disability benefits, back pay and Medicare insura...

Receiving Social Security disability payments depend on one thing:  Proving that you are not able to work. The one and only thing that SSDI pays for is the physical and/or mental inability to work for a period of at least 12 months.  Who decides if you are able to work?  The Social Security Administration (SSA) will decide.--according to their own strict rules and regulations. In reaching that important decision, are you disabled or not, Social Security must use a 5-step examination process.  It's important to understand these 5 sequential steps. STEP 1:  The work Test .  Is the claimant now engaged in Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA)?  If yes, the claim is denied at Step 1.  They look no further.  You cannot be eligible for SSDI benefits if you are working at SGA, regardles of your medical condition.  (In 2026 you are working at SGA if you earn at least $1,690 per month from work or self-employment). STEP 2.  The Medical Requirem...

In Social Security disability cases, the term "Past Relevant Work" or PRW is used to mean:  Work you have performed within the past 5 years Work you performed at Substantial Gainful Activity (substantial earnings) Work you did long enough to be proficient. Social Security once "looked back" 15 years at past work.  Now they only consider jobs you held within the past 5 years prior to disability. Why is 5 years better than 15 years?  Most claimants will have fewer jobs in the last 5 years than in the last 15.  Each past job is an opportunity for Social Security to deny your claim--by saying you are still able to perform one or more of the past jobs.  (We call this a "Step 4 denial"). In the mandatory five-step decision making process, Social Security must determine whether the claimant can perform any past relevant work. If they can, the claim will be denied. They will consider Age Education Residual Functional Capacity (How much function you still retain). ...

WHAT IS "FULL RETIREMENT AGE"? By Charles W. Forsythe, The Forsythe Firm, Huntsville, AL      When dealing with Social Security matters, you hear the term "Full Retirement Age" (FRA) kicked around a lot. But what is Full Retirement Age ? Under Social Security regulations, FRA is the age at which you can receive a full old age pension (retirement benefit).  It is also the age at which you can work while receiving Social Security and earn as much as you want with no Social Security penalty. Your FRA depends on your birthday.  The following chart gives Full Retirement Age based on when you were born.  This is what Social Security uses. YR. OF BIRTH / YOUR FRA 1938 – 65 years and 2 months ·   1939 – 65 years and 4 months ·   1940 – 65 years and 6 months ·   1941 – 65 years and 8 months ·   1942 – 65 years and 10 months ·   1943 through 1954 – 66 years ·   1955 – 66 years and 2 months ·   1956 – 66 years a...