How to Get Approved for Disability for the First Time in Georgia

Applying for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits can be an intimidating and confusing process, especially when you are suffering from a painful injury or illness, and are under financial stress. The Keener Law Firm understands how important it is to get your SSD claim prepared, filed, and approved as quickly and as expertly as possible. And we understand that you and your family are depending on us.

Part of our commitment to disabled clients and their families includes ensuring that they know how the Social Security Disability system works, how the claims are processed, and what we do to maximize your chance of approval the first time.

How Does the Social Security Administration Define “Disability?”

The government handles millions of open and new disability benefit claims every year. To distinguish which of those claims qualifies for SSD benefits and which of the claims will be denied, the Social Security Administration defines the criteria for qualified disability as follows:

A disability is a medically determinable physical or mental impairment that lasts or is expected to last at 12 months (or result in death) and prevents the person from performing substantial gainful activities (SGAs).

How To Be Approved the First Time?

For your SSD disability claim to be approved the first time, your application package must be complete and clearly identify the basis for the claim, including the full medical record of supporting documents, lab results, testing reports, therapy notes, prescription records, and any other material establishing the existence of your physical and/or mental impairments.  

Unfortunately, too many Social Security Disability claims get filed by inexperienced, unprofessional, and uninformed individuals on behalf of disabled claimants who don’t know how poorly their package was prepared. Other claims are filed with the best intentions by good-hearted helpers who don’t know what makes a disability claim pass through the gauntlet of evaluations swiftly and cleanly.

Confirm Your Eligibility for SSD Benefits

Social Security Disability benefits are reserved only for those who have worked and paid taxes on their income for a long enough duration to accumulate the required number of “work credits.” Work credits are awarded to workers for each fiscal quarter in which they earn a minimum amount of taxable income. When collecting as many as 4 work credits each year (one per quarter), the required number of work credits (40) can be obtained in ten years. At least half of those credits must have been earned in the ten years prior to filing for SSD benefits.

The government uses an adjusted scale when younger workers become disabled before they earn the full number of work credits.

Use Complete, Clear, Supportive Medical Evidence (Reports, Records, Notes, Test Results, etc.)

One of the most common reasons for delays and initial denials of SSD claims is that essential medical records are missing from the claim package submitted by or on behalf of the claimant.

Often, inexperienced claims preparers neglect to obtain the complete medical record. Instead, they submit only the medical records reflecting the most recent medical findings. The Social Security Disability process requires the complete record, including those generated by treating physicians and specialists earlier in the claimant’s treatment history and earlier test results and lab reports.

By reviewing the entire record, the SSD case assessors can track the progression of an illness and recognize its persistent duration and the consistency of the symptoms reported by the claimant.

Clarity is another important requirement for a successful SSD claim’s approval. As talented and devoted as many doctors and other health professionals may be, they are not always great communicators. Some doctors use ambiguous language in reports or even write notes by hand that may be misread or transcribed incorrectly.

When a skilled and experienced Social Security Disability lawyer works with a disability claim from the beginning, the resulting claim package shows a level of professionalism that is immediately recognized by the SSD case assessors.

At The Keener Law Firm, we ensure all the necessary records get collected, collated, and organized into an easy-to-read, comprehensive presentation that highlights the key points the SSA employees want to find. Disorganized packages invite errors and create avoidable delays that can stall a valid application for months.

Maximize Your Chances of Disability Approval the First Time, But Prepare to Press On

Even the finest SSD benefits claim lawyer cannot guarantee 100% success the first time every claim package is filed. This is the reality, especially when a person’s disability claim is based on a borderline claim where we believe our client is qualified but the physicians’ reports don’t supply the strongest support. In those cases, we continue to press on, we file an appeal, and thoroughly prepare to persuade an administrative law judge (ALJ) that an earlier denial was incorrect and that our client deserves full Social Security Disability benefits. Most initial denials are overturned on appeal, and disability benefits are approved.