Oh my gosh, this is absolutely terrifying!!!!! I have heard it's about impossible for a disabled person to get SSI and is pretty much required to have a lawyer. It's really pathetic when so many people have to die, while waiting to get their SSI...........something is VERY, VERY wrong here. Thanks so much for sharing this very eye opening video.
I watched this, how disgusting they treat people like that. I'm sorry you have had to wait so long. Have you tried to get a lawyer? Do you have legal assistance there?
I'm not sure how long the video says that LJ took to get hers, but too long, and that's when she started the Social Security Disability Coalition.
Yes, I have an attorney. My denials have gone through state courts, though, and now I need another attorney who can take my case to federal court. I've been in front of a judge. What a joke. The hearing was July 15, 2007 and it took the administrative law judge until March, 2008 to decide against me. But now, anything that happened in that period - July through March - is not admissable anywhere, and that's when I discovered how badly my knee was injured in 2002 (and the worker's comp people lied to me!).
It's a mess.
I will say this. Don't ever move from one state to another in the middle of trying to get Social Security Disability. They blame that on why mine has been so long. I was in TX when I filed, moved to Michigan for a year and now live in Ohio. Had to keep transferring the file.
Marilyn: Agreed, NEVER move when trying for SSI, it goes through the whole process all over again and goes through so many hands before it gets looked at again! It is a nightmare and I am sorry that you have lived it waiting on them. They are not fun to work with, I used to receive SSI when I was younger and long story short when they were not supposed to bill me any longer you know what they did? Take it out of my tax return for THREE years!!! I had to wait in line and fill the same darn paperwork out THREE times because people were dropping the ball AND on top of that wait for my tax return refund WAY longer than anyone else because I had to wait for SSI to refund it back to me, imagine that! I am just glad to be done with them for now. Best wishes with getting that to go through Marilyn! Good Day!
Every state varies too. Family and friends must have helped support her because a 1 1/2 years is long time. She had a lot of saving to live off it that long. The benefits don't pay much. HUD isn't easy to get into either and if can't work can't afford shelter, then they want address and you have none or phone number to give them.
After yo get it good luck finding a Doctor that accepts it. Around here there's only one doctor who takes Medicaid/SSI and he's nothing but a pill pusher.
I think that comment is a bit off the mark, my dear Darren, this really is a serious problem. Incidently, Obama really is trying his hardest to fix it, but the GOP and the lobbysts keep saying 'no'. He needs our help and support on this whether you like him or not.
Darren, this has nothing to do with universal healthcare. People who are not able to work and who have paid into the system for years need to know that they will receive regular disability income. That's what this is about.
do you see Joyce Lynn? thats my wife she is completely disabled she worked hard all her life then got dumped. my comments are good universe health care dose not mean a free ride.
the system needs a good overhaul. i try to stay on the side of states rights, but this is a good example of why a single payer system would be more helpful to the sick. on the other hand if republicans just say "No" the the system we end up with may not be as good. one party rule is not healthy.
when it comes to medical insurance is the big bully in the room. once you get your disability you will still have to pay for medications. and the insurance company dose not care if you need that medicine it may or may not cover a prescription. and some of the pills are hundreds of dollars.
Social Security Disability is part of the problem in government spending. waste is one part, but did you listen to what that lady said? and even your self? each state has its own layout. a universal system would fix that.
Social Security is a SOCIAL PROGRAM. It is not a savings account for individuals in case of disability. Everyone pools together to help pay for those who will need it. When it was first implemented, people were not expected to live as long as we do today.
SS is broken. The government "borrowed" that money years ago, and anyone receiving benefits is borrowing against a promissory note. THERE IS NO MONEY IN SS. We have been paying off the debt, and our grandchildren will continue to pay that debt, never seeing an ounce of benefits.
I love it when Republicans scream about government spending, (while spending it), whine and rant about socialism, (welfare, etc) and then yell "Where's MINE?" when it isn't given quickly over to them.
There isn't a soul in America that could live on SS! She would have done better on Welfare.
Welfare will also help with health care. No one in America goes completely without bare essentials unless they choose to. As I recall, on the last thread with Marilyn, she suggested that there are organizations out there (religion based?) that can assist people.
My worst nightmare has come to fruition. My husband can no longer afford Health insurance for us. I was diagnosed with P.A.D. and thyroid problems (possibly cancer)... I haven't seen a doctor in three years! We aren't poor enough for government assistance, just so I can have tests ( I need a biopsy to determine cancer, in the meantime, nodes are growing large) and I can't get the meds I need.
It will be a painful death when it progresses. P.A.D was moderately severe three years ago.
Medicare and universal health care and welfare and SSI/SSDI really are different words for the same thing. Each has different qualifications and each has differing degrees of difficulty to become eligible for benefits. They are all broken. They all need reworking. This is one task where both Fed and State reps need to come together and work at an entirely new system. Who cares what it is called. We need to get in touch with our elected critters, tell them to get to work on this, and stay in their faces until it is done. Stop bitching and grumbling about spending; ever hear of the Golden Rule? Stop bitching about who or which party is in power; get over it. Learn to work with whomever is there. I guarantee you all one thing: on SSI/SSDI and welfare you will not be able to afford cheese with your whine! Pun intended.
Debra, it is a social program. You're right. It was intended to be a help to those ready to retire, never to be their entire income or support. I get that. The government WAS supposed to secure the money, or at least that's the way they were able to sell it to the general public. Instead, they've "borrowed" from it for years. I know all of that.
I also know that they SAY there is a SS disability program for ALL Americans, even those who never worked and who are disabled from birth.
I worked from 1970 until 2002 and then suddenly could no longer work full time and soon after that could not work part time either. It will be a long time before I can retire. And we're SUPPOSED to have a government program to help with that. I didn't make it up.
Welfare is not an option for many, Debra. In many states, you can't get welfare if you don't have minor kids. Or if you have a working spouse. And it's not better than the SS disability. In my case if it's ever approved, it will be about $1200 per month at this point.
Debra, Republicans rant and rave about spending for pork projects. Here in Cincinnati, for instance, we're ranting about the stupid streetcar that will cost millions to build and millions to maintain - for something that goes all of 4 blocks. Those are the kinds of things we get angry about, Debra.
And we also get angry if the government has sort of a "contract" with every American about taking care of them in disability. Do you know how many people just give up? How many end up homeless? Or who try to go back to work and then ruin their health even more? How many lose their homes waiting for disability to come through?
And why should any American have to get an attorney to help get a program that is supposed to be there for him/her? It makes no sense at all.
BTW, I knew plenty of retired people in FL who lived on nothing but SS. Back when I first moved there, there was a woman who lived on $400 per month. She owned her mobile hom and her rent was $175 for the lot (including water). Her electric bill was $35. She didn't have a phone. And the rest she used for food. She was worse off than most. My folks had no problem living off SS, with both of them collecting. Frankly, it was never meant to be enough to live on. But most people who have worked and earned good livings could live on it if they didn't try to have a champaigne lifestyle with a beer budget.
We are not in disagreement on most of what you've stated, Marilyn.
What year did you know these retired people on SS in Florida... because none of that would apply today. You couldn't find a card board box to live in for $175. ha!
I could give up my car (which is paid in full), give up the property I plan to live the rest of my life on, (paid in full), give up my internet connection, tv, never run the heat during winter, and it still wouldn't make a bit of difference. I will still fall between the cracks with no health insurance, or government assistance. It is the middle class, hard working, making enough to live on pay check to pay check, that can't afford the luxury of health care.
Good for you if you get your SS check. I hope it sustains you well.
And, yes, I am one against universal healthcare. Why? Take a look at the programs we already mentioned - Social Security, Welfare, Medicare, Medicaid. Until the government can prove to me that they can do ONE of these right, I would not trust them with another program they can mess up, especially when it has to do with my health.
I read Obama's proposed healthcare plan during the campaign and again during the transition. I've read the analysis done by various web sites about the proposal. Personally, I don't see how any plan can be put forth quickly, nor would I ever want it to be put forth quickly. If and when there is to be universal healthcare, there needs to be input from voters, and our stupid politicians need to be able to read everything before they ever cast a vote.
Debra, that was lot rent. The mobile home my folks lived in was one of the least expensive ones in St. Pete. When they moved from there in 2003, they were paying just over $200 per month. Other parks nearby - but with lots of amenities - were paying as much as $400 per month just for lot rent.
I never considered health care a luxuary. I considered it a necessity, right behind shelter and food. When I was a single mother, I didn't have insurance and couldn't get Medicaid, but I made sure my son and I both saw the doctor regularly. We were able to see one who charged less if we made appointments with his medical assistant, and he always gave away prescriptions to anyone without insurance. And if we needed tests, we got them at the hospital, where I could make payments.
My son was on SSI and then when he turned 19, he ws denied everything...they said he had a childhood problem, but now that he was 19, he should quit school and go to work...what?
He is now without SSI, stopped taking meds and ended up graduating with honors this week...but he can never get the help for his mental disabilty because they factor it out to be a chldhood problem...bi-polar and OCD and rage disorder didn't disappear when he turned 19...he just end up learning how to live with it without meds.
ah, I see. Unless the mobile home was paid in full, with no mortgage, no required home owner's insurance, lot rent would be cheap in a run down trashy mobile home park.
I owned a mobile home in 1986, no amenities.. such as a club house, pool, etc.. the lot rent went up every year. I paid over $200. then. I was a single mom, living on $200. a week. struggling to make ends meet.
And, yes, I am one against universal healthcare. Why? Take a look at the programs we already mentioned - Social Security, Welfare, Medicare, Medicaid. Until the government can prove to me that they can do ONE of these right, I would not trust them with another program they can mess up, especially when it has to do with my health.
But you trust Health Insurance companies, who line their pockets and deny patients critical coverage when it's going to cost that insurance company a loss in profit?
You won't support minimal care by the government for those who can't afford the high premiums of Insurance... and feel nothing for those who won't get the "right" to health care either way.
I do trust companies far more than the government, Debra. I have choices with companies, with insurance plans, and with doctors that I don't have with the government.
Frankly, I think that doctor in NY who offered his patients family care for $80 per month and $10 per visit had it right. We have to learn to do for ourselves, not always think the government has the answers.
Like I've said here and elsewhere, first insurance is not a requirement to see doctors. Secondly, young people need to be taught that the first things they budget for are shelter, food, insurance and doctor visits. Those are necessities, not computers or cars or TVs or cell phones.
Debra, most communities have free clinics. Many states have what is called "medically needy" for those who don't qualify for Medicaid but don't have or can't afford insurance. I've looked that one up for people before, but I forget how many states offer it. Even some social workers don't know about it. I found out when my son's dad had a stroke when he was in his late 50s and our son was 3 years old. My $12,000 income back then was too much for Medicaid, but with the medically needy program any year where we had more than $4000 in medical bills, the state paid anything over the $4000.
The problem is that most people have no idea what is available in the way of help from counties and states and even from local businesses. In one town where I lived, one of the biggest employers paid the hospital bills for anyone who was uninsured and made at or below poverty level but was not qualified for government assistance. It wasn't something they advertised, but the bills were taken care of after a person filled out an application when they were working with the hospital billing people.
When I worked as a church secretary, I was able to get a copy of the book that United Way gives to all non-profits that shows every non-profit in the area and what they offer in the way of assistance. In the county where I lived, there were over 500 groups that offered some help - and lots of that was in paying for medical bills or for prescriptions for people who could not afford them.
I guess what frustrates me most is that people think everything is hopeless, that there is nothing they can do, that they will just have to forego going to a doctor. In most cases, there is help somewhere. One just has to look for it.
But...back to this issue of SSD, it is a horrible system. They count on people giving up. And, I truly believe in some cases, they count on people dying...so they don't have to pay out.
The longer my case goes, the more they will owe me if it's ever approved. Back when I first applied, I would have received $800 per month. Now it's almost $1200. If you even take that $800 and mulitiply it times the almost 72 months since I applied, that's over $57,000 in back payments that would be owed. If it's ever approved, I've been warned that they now negotiate about that rather than paying huge back payments.
You know what the judge decided that I should be able to do? 1) Find an employer who will let me take afternoon naps 2) wear a diaper to work so my IBS shouldn't be a problem 3) make sure that my pain meds are taken after I get to work, so I'm not impaired for driving, then make sure I don't operate machinery and make sure I don't take more pain meds in the afternoon so I'm not impared in the afternoon 4) find an employer that is understanding to my having to take time off unexpectedly for illness or tests
There was more, but you get the idea. The SS people can tell you these things, but they don't have to prove that there are actual jobs that would match those requirements. :)
And Debra...that mobile home park in FL was not a trashy trailer park. The duck ponds were awesome. I probably have pictures somewhere. Sadly, it was torn down so they could put up expensive condos...or I would have considered moving there myself now that I'm past 55.
I've been told that it's pretty much mandatory for SSA to turn you down at least four times. I tried briefly for this and haven't pursued it recently. I did try calling Binder & Binder attorneys, but they never got back to my emails or telephone messages.
Marilyn, I believe that if approved they will only go back one year (12 mos.) in back payments; that's what they told me with no negotiation involved at all. I guess I was lucky but was approved the first try, though it did take well over a year to get approved and with an attorney. Anyway, the back payments for me were limited to one year. If I hadn't been diligent in saving money when I could work, I would have lost everything waiting for an approval. I did spend all my savings, but at least was able to keep my house etc. I really feel for people that have to wait so long and can't work... you're on your own with no income the whole time and stressed to the very max. I sure was... not the way to live. Frankly, I'm still scared they might cancel it or something and make me start over; I'm not sure how it all works with that and have no money left for back-up. I guess I shouldn't be, but the whole process of suddenly being disabled and broke really shook me up to the core. Take care.
John, I'm not sure why they told you back pay would only go back one year. I've known people who fought for 10 years and got 10 years of back pay.
As my claim stands now, the onset date of my disability is March of 2002, and I applied for SS disability after worker's comp dumped me a year later.
As my attorney explained, the judge can decide that you're disabled, but he can also decide when. With me, he could use the original onset date, the date I filed, the date I turned 50 or the date I turned 55. Those are all choices he has. If I disagree with any of those dates, I can take the monthly payments and then continue to argue about the onset date.
I just wish it would be settled - in my favor, of course. :) My hubby still works full time, but he also has fibromyalgia, mild cerebral palsy, and diabetes II. He's also 60, and who knows how long he'll be able to hold out at work. As it is now, he has to take pain pills and muscle relaxers at work. Thank goodness he's in a carpool and doesn't always have to drive.
We have good insurance with his company, but they changed it this year and it's not as good as it was. And last year we had so many medical expenses between the two of us - just for "maintenance". :)
The system is so unfair. I know one woman who experienced pains for about 6 months, finally was diagnosed as having fibromyalgia, quit her job, applied for SSD and was awarded on the first try.
Because there are cases like that, then people look at those of us who fight for years and they think 1) we're lying about being disabled or 2) we've just filled out all the paperwork wrong and probably don't have an attorney.
In some states, the judges look at fibromyalgia as a viable disability. In others, like here, you have to specifically document each and every symptom of fibro, not the syndrome as a whole. So I have to show that I have seen doctors for the pain, fatigue, foggy brain, depression, dry eye, IBS, everything. I have...and my medical file is about 4 inches thick at this point. But still it's not approved.
Even here, there are 11 judges, I think, and they don't all agree. I was supposedly lucky that I didn't get one that automatically denies fibro cases. Of the 11, I think there are 3 that do that, 3 that automatically approve (wish I had gotten one of them!) and the others supposedly weigh everything "fairly". Not in my opinion.
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Comments: 49 ( 5 removed by Marilyn M. )
Thanks for posting this. Very informative! I hope it helps to accomplish reform!!
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Thanks so much for sharing this very eye opening video.
Yes, I have an attorney. My denials have gone through state courts, though, and now I need another attorney who can take my case to federal court. I've been in front of a judge. What a joke. The hearing was July 15, 2007 and it took the administrative law judge until March, 2008 to decide against me. But now, anything that happened in that period - July through March - is not admissable anywhere, and that's when I discovered how badly my knee was injured in 2002 (and the worker's comp people lied to me!).
It's a mess.
I will say this. Don't ever move from one state to another in the middle of trying to get Social Security Disability. They blame that on why mine has been so long. I was in TX when I filed, moved to Michigan for a year and now live in Ohio. Had to keep transferring the file.
I've signed the petition.
After yo get it good luck finding a Doctor that accepts it.
Around here there's only one doctor who takes Medicaid/SSI and he's nothing but a pill pusher.
Why do you always insist on making MY posts something other than what they were intended. It really does get tiring.
i never have accept when you delete me...;} your subjects are bigger than you think.
i have grand kids and their world has been undermined by greedy politics.
SS is broken. The government "borrowed" that money years ago, and anyone receiving benefits is borrowing against a promissory note. THERE IS NO MONEY IN SS. We have been paying off the debt, and our grandchildren will continue to pay that debt, never seeing an ounce of benefits.
I love it when Republicans scream about government spending, (while spending it), whine and rant about socialism, (welfare, etc) and then yell "Where's MINE?" when it isn't given quickly over to them.
There isn't a soul in America that could live on SS! She would have done better on Welfare.
that is truth. Welfare will help with rent, food and utility SSI is a check if its not enough to bad.
My worst nightmare has come to fruition. My husband can no longer afford Health insurance for us. I was diagnosed with P.A.D. and thyroid problems (possibly cancer)... I haven't seen a doctor in three years! We aren't poor enough for government assistance, just so I can have tests ( I need a biopsy to determine cancer, in the meantime, nodes are growing large) and I can't get the meds I need.
It will be a painful death when it progresses. P.A.D was moderately severe three years ago.
http://www.petitiononline.com/SSDC/petition.html
I also know that they SAY there is a SS disability program for ALL Americans, even those who never worked and who are disabled from birth.
I worked from 1970 until 2002 and then suddenly could no longer work full time and soon after that could not work part time either. It will be a long time before I can retire. And we're SUPPOSED to have a government program to help with that. I didn't make it up.
Welfare is not an option for many, Debra. In many states, you can't get welfare if you don't have minor kids. Or if you have a working spouse. And it's not better than the SS disability. In my case if it's ever approved, it will be about $1200 per month at this point.
Debra, Republicans rant and rave about spending for pork projects. Here in Cincinnati, for instance, we're ranting about the stupid streetcar that will cost millions to build and millions to maintain - for something that goes all of 4 blocks. Those are the kinds of things we get angry about, Debra.
And we also get angry if the government has sort of a "contract" with every American about taking care of them in disability. Do you know how many people just give up? How many end up homeless? Or who try to go back to work and then ruin their health even more? How many lose their homes waiting for disability to come through?
And why should any American have to get an attorney to help get a program that is supposed to be there for him/her? It makes no sense at all.
BTW, I knew plenty of retired people in FL who lived on nothing but SS. Back when I first moved there, there was a woman who lived on $400 per month. She owned her mobile hom and her rent was $175 for the lot (including water). Her electric bill was $35. She didn't have a phone. And the rest she used for food. She was worse off than most. My folks had no problem living off SS, with both of them collecting. Frankly, it was never meant to be enough to live on. But most people who have worked and earned good livings could live on it if they didn't try to have a champaigne lifestyle with a beer budget.
What year did you know these retired people on SS in Florida... because none of that would apply today. You couldn't find a card board box to live in for $175. ha!
I could give up my car (which is paid in full), give up the property I plan to live the rest of my life on, (paid in full), give up my internet connection, tv, never run the heat during winter, and it still wouldn't make a bit of difference. I will still fall between the cracks with no health insurance, or government assistance. It is the middle class, hard working, making enough to live on pay check to pay check, that can't afford the luxury of health care.
Good for you if you get your SS check. I hope it sustains you well.
I read Obama's proposed healthcare plan during the campaign and again during the transition. I've read the analysis done by various web sites about the proposal. Personally, I don't see how any plan can be put forth quickly, nor would I ever want it to be put forth quickly. If and when there is to be universal healthcare, there needs to be input from voters, and our stupid politicians need to be able to read everything before they ever cast a vote.
He is now without SSI, stopped taking meds and ended up graduating with honors this week...but he can never get the help for his mental disabilty because they factor it out to be a chldhood problem...bi-polar and OCD and rage disorder didn't disappear when he turned 19...he just end up learning how to live with it without meds.
I owned a mobile home in 1986, no amenities.. such as a club house, pool, etc.. the lot rent went up every year. I paid over $200. then. I was a single mom, living on $200. a week. struggling to make ends meet.
But you trust Health Insurance companies, who line their pockets and deny patients critical coverage when it's going to cost that insurance company a loss in profit?
You won't support minimal care by the government for those who can't afford the high premiums of Insurance... and feel nothing for those who won't get the "right" to health care either way.
Frankly, I think that doctor in NY who offered his patients family care for $80 per month and $10 per visit had it right. We have to learn to do for ourselves, not always think the government has the answers.
Like I've said here and elsewhere, first insurance is not a requirement to see doctors. Secondly, young people need to be taught that the first things they budget for are shelter, food, insurance and doctor visits. Those are necessities, not computers or cars or TVs or cell phones.
The problem is that most people have no idea what is available in the way of help from counties and states and even from local businesses. In one town where I lived, one of the biggest employers paid the hospital bills for anyone who was uninsured and made at or below poverty level but was not qualified for government assistance. It wasn't something they advertised, but the bills were taken care of after a person filled out an application when they were working with the hospital billing people.
I guess what frustrates me most is that people think everything is hopeless, that there is nothing they can do, that they will just have to forego going to a doctor. In most cases, there is help somewhere. One just has to look for it.
The longer my case goes, the more they will owe me if it's ever approved. Back when I first applied, I would have received $800 per month. Now it's almost $1200. If you even take that $800 and mulitiply it times the almost 72 months since I applied, that's over $57,000 in back payments that would be owed. If it's ever approved, I've been warned that they now negotiate about that rather than paying huge back payments.
There was more, but you get the idea. The SS people can tell you these things, but they don't have to prove that there are actual jobs that would match those requirements. :)
If I hadn't been diligent in saving money when I could work, I would have lost everything waiting for an approval. I did spend all my savings, but at least was able to keep my house etc. I really feel for people that have to wait so long and can't work... you're on your own with no income the whole time and stressed to the very max. I sure was... not the way to live. Frankly, I'm still scared they might cancel it or something and make me start over; I'm not sure how it all works with that and have no money left for back-up. I guess I shouldn't be, but the whole process of suddenly being disabled and broke really shook me up to the core.
Take care.
As my claim stands now, the onset date of my disability is March of 2002, and I applied for SS disability after worker's comp dumped me a year later.
As my attorney explained, the judge can decide that you're disabled, but he can also decide when. With me, he could use the original onset date, the date I filed, the date I turned 50 or the date I turned 55. Those are all choices he has. If I disagree with any of those dates, I can take the monthly payments and then continue to argue about the onset date.
I just wish it would be settled - in my favor, of course. :) My hubby still works full time, but he also has fibromyalgia, mild cerebral palsy, and diabetes II. He's also 60, and who knows how long he'll be able to hold out at work. As it is now, he has to take pain pills and muscle relaxers at work. Thank goodness he's in a carpool and doesn't always have to drive.
We have good insurance with his company, but they changed it this year and it's not as good as it was. And last year we had so many medical expenses between the two of us - just for "maintenance". :)
The system is so unfair. I know one woman who experienced pains for about 6 months, finally was diagnosed as having fibromyalgia, quit her job, applied for SSD and was awarded on the first try.
Because there are cases like that, then people look at those of us who fight for years and they think 1) we're lying about being disabled or 2) we've just filled out all the paperwork wrong and probably don't have an attorney.
In some states, the judges look at fibromyalgia as a viable disability. In others, like here, you have to specifically document each and every symptom of fibro, not the syndrome as a whole. So I have to show that I have seen doctors for the pain, fatigue, foggy brain, depression, dry eye, IBS, everything. I have...and my medical file is about 4 inches thick at this point. But still it's not approved.
Even here, there are 11 judges, I think, and they don't all agree. I was supposedly lucky that I didn't get one that automatically denies fibro cases. Of the 11, I think there are 3 that do that, 3 that automatically approve (wish I had gotten one of them!) and the others supposedly weigh everything "fairly". Not in my opinion.