It is not exactly news, since it was announced months ago, but it is worth noting at the beginning of the new year that the substantial gainful activity (SGA) amount for 2011 will remain at $1,000 per month for non-blind individuals. Here are the SGA amounts since 1975.
The SGA determination is step 1
When you file a Social Security disability claim, it goes to a state agency for a medical determination. The agency is called Disability Determination Services (DDS) in Maine, but some other states have slightly different names for their agencies. In Maine, the first appeal of a denied disability claim also goes to DDS for Reconsideration.
There is a great expression that you sometimes see in federal court decisions that are reviewing Social Security administrative law judge (ALJ) decisions. It goes like this: “The ALJ failed to build a logical bridge from the evidence to his conclusions.” See, e.g., Gaylor v. Astrue, No. 07-2206 (7th Cir. Sept. 8, 2008)(link opens
Best wishes for a Happy New Year to our clients, our colleagues, and the many Social Security and medical professionals we work with every day.
Every now and then I see a decision that contains a sentence like this: "The evidence on record does not support a finding of total disability." I find the use of the term "total disability" in an ALJ's decision worrisome, because total disability is not necessary to prevail in a Social Security disability claim under
Here are links to a few articles from the past 3 months that are worth reviewing, or reading for the first time if you missed them when originally published.
Our offices will be closed on Friday for the Christmas holiday.
A lawyer's principal task at a disability hearing is to persuade the judge that the claimant can't work due to his or her medical condition. The judge, having reviewed the medical record and the rest of the file, must agree that the claimant cannot work or meets a listed impairent.
This task of persuasion starts
The 2009 Social Security statistics for disability allowances and denials at the various levels of review have been released.
The notable thing about the new 2009 statistics is how close they are to the 2008 statistics. On a percentage basis, the allowance/denial rates are almost identical.
If you receive a denial letter from Social Security regarding your application for Social Security disability benefits, you must appeal that denial of benefits within 60 days.
Initial disability claims get denied for many reasons, and many denials have nothing to do with the merit of your disability claim. A common mistake made by claimants