Social Security disability benefits are monthly payments from the Social Security Administration (SSA) to workers and family members who cannot earn a living because of a serious medical condition. If you live in Marietta or anywhere in Georgia and you’re wondering whether you qualify, how to apply, or what to do after a denial, you’re in the right place. At Keener Law Firm, we handle Social Security Disability claims for people across Georgia and the country, and our Marietta office sits at 640 Village Trace NE. We know the Atlanta hearing office. We know how the Georgia DDS reviews medical evidence. And we know what a denial letter looks like when it lands in your mailbox after months of waiting.
Whether you’re filing for the first time, dealing with a denied initial application, or preparing for a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge, we’re here to help. Call (770) 955-3000 or (866) 508-5873 toll free for a free consultation.
Social Security disability benefits come in two programs, SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) and SSI (Supplemental Security Income), and both pay monthly benefits to people who cannot work because of a qualifying medical condition. In Georgia, both programs run through the same federal system, but a state agency called the Disability Determination Services (DDS) handles the medical portion of your claim before it goes back to SSA for a decision.
The program you file under depends on your work history and your financial situation. SSDI is for workers who paid Social Security taxes long enough to earn work credits. SSI is need-based and requires no work history, but it comes with strict income and asset limits.
For Marietta residents, initial applications go through the local SSA field office serving Cobb County, located at 200 Chastain Center Blvd., Suite 250, Kennesaw, GA 30144. The office is open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Monday through Friday. If your claim moves to a hearing, it will be scheduled through the Atlanta Office of Hearing Operations (OHO) That’s a critical detail because Atlanta OHO wait times and Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) approval patterns matter for how your case gets built. We come back to that data in the Georgia approval section below.
SSDI applies to you if you have a strong work history and have paid Social Security taxes for enough years. SSI applies if you have little or no work history and limited income and resources. Some claimants qualify for both, in what’s called a concurrent claim.
Here’s how the two programs compare:
Feature | SSDI | SSI |
Basis | Work history (FICA taxes) | Financial need |
Work credits required | Yes | No |
Monthly payment | Based on your earnings record | Federal maximum $994 plus any state supplement |
Health coverage | Medicare after a 24-month waiting period | Medicaid, typically automatic in Georgia |
Income and asset limits | None | Strict limits |
If you’re unsure which program fits, we sort that out during your free consultation. We look at your work history, your household income, and your medical situation together, because a mistake at the application stage costs you months of back pay.
To qualify for Social Security disability benefits in Georgia, you must have a medical condition that has lasted or is expected to last at least 12 months or result in death, and that prevents you from performing substantial gainful activity (SGA). The SSA uses a five-step sequential evaluation process to decide.
Here are the five steps in plain language:
If you get past step three (Listing) or step five (no other work), you win. If you fail at any earlier step, the claim is denied. This is where representation matters most, because RFC and vocational analysis are the areas where cases get lost.
Almost any severe medical condition may qualify for disability benefits if it prevents you from working for at least 12 months. That includes physical conditions, mental health conditions, and combinations of both.
Some of the conditions we see most often in our Marietta practice include chronic back pain, PTSD, autoimmune disorders like lupus, diabetes with complications, severe depression and anxiety, cardiac and respiratory conditions, and orthopedic issues. For the full picture of what SSA recognizes, see our list of qualifying medical conditions, or reach out to us about a specific condition like PTSD disability claims.
Work credits are how SSA measures whether you’ve paid enough into Social Security to qualify for SSDI. Most workers need 40 credits total, 20 of which were earned in the last 10 years before becoming disabled, though younger workers need fewer.
You earn up to four credits per year based on your wages. Your Date Last Insured (DLI) is the last day you have enough work credits to qualify for SSDI. If your DLI has already passed, you can still file, but you have to prove your disability began before that date. That’s one of the trickiest parts of a claim, and one of the first things we check when we open a file.
The disability claim process in Georgia follows the same federal steps as every other state, but the local field office and hearing office handle the paperwork and hearings. Most Marietta claims go through the Atlanta-area field office and, on appeal, the Atlanta OHO.
Here’s the process from start to finish:
If you’re at the application stage, our page on how to apply for disability in Georgia walks through the paperwork in more detail.
If your Social Security disability claim is denied in Georgia, you have 60 days from the date on the denial letter to file an appeal. Missing that deadline means starting over with a new application, which resets your back pay clock and costs you months of benefits you’d otherwise be entitled to.
Roughly two out of three initial applications are denied nationally which sounds discouraging until you look at what happens on appeal. Most successful claims are won at the ALJ hearing level. Common reasons for denial at the initial stage include insufficient medical evidence, missing treatment records, failure to attend a consultative examination (CE), and errors on the required forms. We work through each of these problems when we take a case.
For the full picture of what happens after a denial, see our Marietta disability appeal process page.
Social Security disability payment amounts depend on which program you qualify for and your earnings record. SSDI benefits in 2026 average around $1,634 per month, with a maximum of about $4,152. SSI’s federal maximum is $994 per month for an individual.
Beyond the monthly check, disability benefits usually come with back pay for the months you waited between your disability onset date and your approval, along with health coverage through Medicare (SSDI, after a 24-month waiting period) or Medicaid (SSI, usually automatic in Georgia).
For the details on each of these, we’ve built dedicated pages: how much does disability pay, disability back pay, working while on disability, and Medicare and disability.
Georgia’s disability approval rates shift sharply from one stage of the process to the next. About 34.9% of initial applications are approved at the DDS level, 19.9% at reconsideration, and roughly 62% at the ALJ hearing before an Atlanta OHO judge.
That last number is the one that matters most. If you’ve been denied at the initial and reconsideration levels, your best chance of approval is at the hearing, and that chance goes up when you have representation.
Atlanta OHO wait times currently sit at roughly 10-11 months from hearing request to decision. That’s a long time to wait, and it’s one of the reasons we recommend reaching out to a representative early. Waiting until the week before your hearing puts your case in a bind.
Keener Law Firm represents Social Security Disability claimants from our Marietta office and across the country. Russell Keener leads our disability practice Holly Roberts is active on our cases.
We built our practice around one job: helping people with disabilities get the benefits they’ve earned. Every member of our team works in disability law every day, not as a side practice alongside personal injury or workers’ compensation. We know the Georgia DDS. We know the Atlanta OHO. And we’ve been through the process enough times to know where cases get stuck.
Our clients have direct access to their case status through our secure client portal, so you always know where things stand without having to call and wait. If you’re outside Georgia, we serve clients in California, Florida, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maine, Vermont, Montana, Arkansas, and beyond.
Our approach starts with a free consultation, where we review your medical situation, your work history, and where your case stands. There’s no cost to talk to us, and there’s no obligation.
If we take your case, we handle the paperwork, the medical evidence collection, the deadlines, and the hearing preparation. You focus on your health. We focus on the process.
Keener Law Firm holds a star rating on Google, based on reviews from clients across the country.
Read more client testimonials or learn more about Keener Law.
Social Security disability attorneys work on a contingency fee basis regulated by the SSA. That means no upfront cost, no fees unless you win, and a fee capped at 25% of your back pay up to a statutory maximum of $9,200.
If your case doesn’t win, you don’t owe us a fee. If it does win, the fee comes out of your back pay before you receive it, so you never write a check. This structure exists specifically so people with disabilities have access to representation without worrying about upfront cost.
Call (770) 955-3000 or (866) 508-5973 toll free, or use our free consultation form. We’ll review your case, tell you honestly where it stands, and let you know how we can help.
Disclaimer: This page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every disability case is different. For advice about your specific situation, contact a qualified Social Security Disability attorney or representative. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Initial decisions usually take 3 to 6 months. If your claim is denied and appealed to a hearing, the total timeline from application to approval stretches to 18 to 24 months or longer, largely because of Atlanta OHO wait times. Our blog on how long disability takes in Georgia covers this in more detail.
Any medical condition that has lasted or is expected to last at least 12 months and prevents you from working qualifies. See our list of qualifying conditions for the specifics.
SSDI payments in 2026 average around $1,634 per month. SSI’s federal maximum is $994. Your specific amount depends on your work history (for SSDI) or your income and resources (for SSI). See our payment amount page for the details.
You don’t have to have a lawyer to apply. SSA data shows that represented claimants win at higher rates than unrepresented claimants, particularly at the hearing level. And because fees are contingent and capped, representation costs nothing upfront.
You have 60 days from the date on your denial letter to appeal. Most successful claims involve at least one denial before approval. See our disability appeal process page for the full appeals ladder.
Yes, within limits. SSA has specific rules on how much you earn without losing benefits, including Trial Work Periods and Substantial Gainful Activity thresholds. See our working while on disability page for the details.
SSDI is for workers who’ve paid into Social Security long enough to earn work credits. SSI is need-based, requires no work history, and comes with strict income and asset limits. Some claimants qualify for both in a concurrent claim. The SSDI vs. SSI comparison table above breaks it down.
Nothing upfront. Fees are contingent (25% of back pay), capped by SSA statute at $9,200, and only owed if we win your case. If we don’t win, you don’t pay.