Lott, Jr. v. Colvin, an appeal from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, involved claimant who was claiming disability due to insulin-dependent diabetes, high blood pressure, and a mental disorder. A clinical psychologist, Dr. Nichols, diagnosed claimant with psychotic disorder, not otherwise specified (NOS). However he…
When political arguments arise about the future of the Social Security Disability Insurance benefits system, it is far too easy to look at statistics and forget there are real people involved. A Boston disability benefits lawyer knows the benefits program provided by the Social Security Administration serves as an important…
Disabled individuals applying for Social Security Disability benefits face myriad problems if their initial benefits claim is denied. Appealing becomes necessary, and it can take a year or so to even get a hearing. Once you finally get before an administrative law judge (ALJ), many claims are denied. Having a…
In 2011 as part of a cost-saving measure, the Social Security Administration (SSA) discontinued mailing out annual benefits statements letting people know what they were entitled to receive from the SSA. Instead of mailing out the hard copies of the statements, the SSA would instead email copies. However, this decision…
Many people attack the Social Security Disability Insurance benefits program because they claim too many people get benefits or take advantage of the program because they don’t want to work. A Boston disability lawyer knows this is untrue and those who seek benefits do so because they cannot have jobs…
Ponder v. Colvin, an appeal from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, involved a claimant who alleged she had been disabled since January of 2005. Her claim for total disability was based upon depression, anxiety, swelling in her hands and feet, joint deterioration, obesity, chronic obstructive…
Gieseke v. Colvin, an appeal from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, involved a claimant who had a long history of low back pain that was aggravated by a workplace injury. The injury occurred in 2006. After completing physical therapy, claimant returned to work with certain…
Channell v. Colvin, a case from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, involved claimant who was seeking Supplemental Security Income (SSI) from the Social Security Administration (SSA). Claimant was a 24-year-old at the time the administrative law judge (ALJ) rendered a decision on her application for…
Despite the impending budgetary problems facing the Social Security Administration’s Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), current claimants are in need of an increase in disability benefits, due to a general rise in consumer prices. As discussed in a recent news article by The Wall Street Journal, the level of benefits…
The Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program run by the Social Security Administration (SSA) will be out of money for benefits in 2016 unless Congress finds a way to fund the program. There is no shortage of articles discussing how the program is about to go over a budgetary cliff,…