What Is the Five-step Process That Social Security Uses to Decide Disability Claims? (Part 2: Severity & Duration)

May 22, 2010
Step 2 of the sequential evaluation process

This is the second installment of our explanation of the 5-step process that Social Security uses to determine if your are disabled. Please keep in mind that a lot of the terms used by Social Security to determine disability have specific legal meanings and probably don’t mean what you think they do. After Social Security [...]

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Who Can Apply for Social Security Disability?

May 11, 2010
People of any age can apply for Social Security disability

Anyone who is under retirement age and disabled can apply for and receive Social Security disability. Children under the age of 18 can apply and receive children’s SSI benefits. If you are over 50, but have not reached retirement age, there are some rules in the Social Security system that may make it easier for [...]

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How Much is SSDI Increased Every Year?

April 20, 2010
COLA, increase

SSDI is increased each year according to the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for that year. Social Security law states that benefits will increase automatically each year if there is an increase in inflation. (In general, the COLA is equal to the increase in the Consumer Price Index. If there is no increase in the Consumer [...]

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What Is the Five-step Process That Social Security Uses to Decide Disability Claims? (Part 1: SGA)

April 13, 2010
Step 1 of the sequential evaluation process

Social Security uses what it calls a “sequential five-step process” to decide disability claims. As you work your way through the steps, if you do not meet the requirement of a step, Social Security can deny you. We will discuss each step in a separate post. Please keep in mind that alot of the terms used by Social [...]

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I Have Applied for Both SSDI and SSI Benefits, How Will My Benefits Be Calculated?

April 8, 2010
Calculation of past-due Social Security benefits

If you have applied for both SSDI and SSI benefits, and get approved by Social Security, you will probably wait longer to get your past-due benefits than someone who is getting only SSDI or only SSI. Here are some things to keep in mind while SSA calculates your past-due benefits: Both programs will calculate the [...]

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