I got denied for Disability

I got my letter today telling me that my application has been denied because I do not have enough credits. They said I need to have worked at least 6 years to have enough credits. The thing is, I began working at 16. I held two jobs from 16 to 21, and had a job when I was 22. Which means I HAVE enough credits. (all jobs were ON the books, which is why I am wildly confused).

This whole thing is hair pulling, head banging against a desk inducing.

If the information they have is not accurate, and it may not be, do get back to them and request a hearing/review of your case. It is not unusual to be denied and then to be able to work it out with the system.

Sounds like a good idea. I went back and everything seems to be right. My worry is that they have mistaken me for my sister, which HAS happened before and we have no idea why our names are vastly different. Not to mention I am nearly 6 years older than her.

So sorry. Hope they reconsider.

Sorry this happened to you.
I was told the same thing and that the credits have to be for consecutive years worked.. This, to me, is silly. I have worked on and off since I was 15. I am 43 now. I applied for a temp. disability status ( like a 6 mo. term till I was on my feet again.) and was denied. All the time that I have worked means nothing. I was told that to insure my future in case something happens and I need to apply again, that I have to be employed for 5 years consecutively, earning an appropriate amount of credits. The system needs to be revised IMO.

mimi, that is absurd! Why does it have to be CONSECUTIVELY? I am literally one year off of being in work for a constructive amount of time. I am so sorry they did that to you. We put money into this the moment we start working, and we never really do see the outcome of it, god-forbid anyone needs it. I am so sorry they are putting you through this, what a load of rubbish.

Check the SSA website for specifics. You must earn above a certain amount in a quarter to earn a credit. This increases each year. For instance, if you earned $1,000 each quarter this year, you would not get any credits for work using this year's amounts. Also, up to age 24 you need 6 credits three of which must been in the last 3 years. As you get older you need more credits to qualify and more of these credits must be earned during the last 10 years.

Finally, the amount of SSDI depends upon how much you earned.

The SS earnings and whether you have sufficient credits to qualify for disability appears on the SS statement that used to be mailed to everyone who contributes to SS but now it is only available online.

Hope this helps.

remember, if you do not qualify for SSDI (the insurance you paid into), there is still SSI (Supplimental Security Income) a State supported disability income paid thru the Social Security Admin, for persons who DO qualify as disabled but not as eligible for SSDI.

DO APPEAL on the grounds that your condition is worsening, and you are certified by at least 2 doctor to be unable to work.

best wishes~
Gus

I don't think that SSI is anymore a creature of the state than is SSDI. It is federal. To get it, you have to have the same eligibility as for Social Security, that is: you have to be either over age 65, or completely disabled from working. (But, as you say, Gus, you don't need any credits. You don't need to have even ever worked at all.) Once you are over age 65, or disabled in the eyes of the SSA, all that counts is your income/financial need. Is it low enough and are you poor enough?

You can have 10 doctors certify you as disabled, and that's great to have, but that does not make anything automatic. You have to go through the same process as you would to get SSDI. You apply in the same way. You have to fill out 13 pages of questions about why does your diagnosis interferes with you working at anything. (And they don't care about weather there are any jobs available in the economy.) You have to convince them that you are not likely to recover anytime soon. It's a hard case to build, when you consider how many people with significant disabilities do manage to work at productive jobs. It's especially hard to make the case when you are young. They will ask what effort you have made to train for something that allows you to work around your disability.

The truth is that, historically, most people do eventually get a lot more out of Social Security than they ever put in. That is particularly true for people who get out on SSDI. (It will likely be true for me.) It will be less true for people younger than me. And it will get less and less true the younger you are. The program is getting stingier.

SSI replaced the old state programs that used to be the main source of support for the impoverished old, blind and disabled. SSI is totally federal. Individual states do supplement SSI for beneficiaries. That is to say, your state may give you something extra once you get SSI. But the state has nothing to do with determining your eligibility for SSI.

There is cash assistance that you might be eligible for. You'ld find out about that by going to your local income support office. That's the place where you apply for food stamps. This is a state administered affair. They look at your household circumstances.

Do look into applying for food stamps and housing assistance. Food stamps is one of the easiest things to get, though not if you live with people who have a good income.

It is not "years", it is amount of money you earned too, you have to make a certain amount (have paid into the Social Security system): http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/EN-05-10072.pdf

Thanks for the link Perna. The document from SS is clearer than my explanation above.

just for general information, SSI and Medicaid are both state funded, and if you get SSI you automatically get Medicaid. if you get Partial SSDI and Partial SSI you get both Medicare and Medicaid, which is the best insurance for poor people, because Medicaid pays the Co-Pay on Medicare.

i have been in both systems for 22 yrs, and have worked advising people who are applying and assisted them to apply. but the best place to get the Exact Info is the SSA site, IF you can make sense of what you Might find there~

as for the years vs contributions, SSA counts the best 20 "Quarters (= 3 months)" of the last 10 consecutive years. that should equal 5 yrs. i don't know why you didn't qualify on the basis of your quarterly earnings, Grey. that is something you might ask them to show you in writing... if you disagree there is grounds for an appeal. remember you only have 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal.

of course, i am not an SSA Adviser, and whatever i say could be mistaken, but this is what i believe to be the case.

If you only get SSDI and don't get SSI, it is still possible that you will get a very limited Medicaid benefit, in that Medicaid may pay for your part B premium. (That could vary by state. I don't know.) In my state, I will not have to pay the part B premium. My state Medicaid system will pay that for me. It is the only thing that Medicaid will do for me. My s/o has the same benefit. My SSDI check is considered too big for me to qualify for any other Medicaid benefits, which is too bad for me.

I'm wondering if that means that I don't get any optical or dental coverage. I'm wondering if Medicaid recipients do get those items covered. ??

Medicaid in each state is jointly funded by the Federal govt and by the individual state government, with the state having a lot of control over how people become eligible for coverage under Medicaid.

Your SSI check comes from funds soley provided by the Federal government. However, many states chose to supplement recipients of SSI with an addition amount that comes from the states coffers. I guess I'm kind of wrong on this. I am looking at Washington State. It looks like they may put their extra benefit in the same check as the SSI. This confuses me. Here is a paste from the State of Washington web page.

1. SSI Background

a. SSI provides federal cash benefits for basic needs to individuals, couples, and children who meet the federal disability criteria as aged, blind, or disabled and have limited income and resources.

2. SSP Background

a. When federal SSI began, the SSI payment was less than the state disability payment. The state supplemented the SSI payment to make up the difference. We call these SSI clients Mandatory Income Level (MIL) SSI clients.

b. The state must guarantee that these SSI recipients never receive less than they received from the state in December 1973.

Another thing confuses me. Obamacare will expand eligibility for Medicaid coverage. Given their new income guidelines, I think I might end up qualifying for it. I guess I'll have to check at Income Support and hope they know what they are doing. I kind of figure they do.