How to Apply for Social Security Disability in Wisconsin
You Can Get Help with Your Social Security Disability Application
If you apply for Social Security Disability benefits—and get approved—you can get real financial help to deal with major health problems and the resulting loss of income.
This is what benefits provide:
- Monthly checks to help with your expenses
- Access to Medicare or Medicaid health care
- A lump sum payment to compensate you for past time that you’ve already been unable to work
- Benefits that continue on a permanent basis
- Support as you attempt to return to the workforce
Most of all, you can get a sense of control and peace back in your life.
But first, you face the Social Security Disability application.
And they don’t make it easy. You have to provide absolute proof that your medical conditions make it impossible to work.
To help you get through the application, so you can reach the point where you receive the financial relief, you can work with a Social Security Disability lawyer.
Becker Law Office and Hawks Quindel have helped thousands of people in Madison and across Wisconsin.
Keep reading for more on how to apply for Social Security Disability. Or, get in touch with us now.
What You Need for Your Social Security Disability Application
Your Social Security Disability application is like a big homework assignment.
You have pages of information to provide, along with documents that support how you describe your medical conditions and limitations on working.
These are some of the basic ingredients that go into an application for Social Security Disability:
- Reports, test results and other records from your medical treatment
- Details of your work history and education
- Information about your past earnings
- Multiple disability application forms, filled out correctly
- Patience and persistence
It doesn’t seem fair to make this process so tiring for people who need help because of health problems and don’t have a lot of stamina for a complicated application.
But patience and persistence have to go into it because it’s almost a built-in part of the process to be denied for disability benefits at first.
When you’re denied, you need to file an appeal of the decision.
At that point, the process becomes much more like a legal case that you might get a lawyer for—with new evidence, legal arguments, and even talking to a judge.
A disability lawyer knows the system and can help you avoid mistakes when you’re appealing a denial.
They can also make the whole experience of applying for disability benefits easier for you by taking over some of the legwork—removing the burden from you.
With disability attorneys, you don’t pay them until they win benefits for you.
You can get started by talking to the Social Security Disability law firm team at the Becker Law Office and Hawks Quindel for a FREE consultation on your disability claim.
What Happens after You Apply for Social Security Disability in Wisconsin
Once you submit your application for Social Security Disability, this is what happens next:
- A Wisconsin claims examiner reviews your information.
- In roughly a few months, they give you a decision.
- If you are approved for benefits, your benefits begin shortly.
- If you’re denied, you can ask for a reconsideration by another examiner.
- If you’re denied again, you can try updating your files and asking for a hearing with a disability judge.
- You can continue appealing a denial, if needed, with a group within Social Security called the Appeals Council.
- You can take your claim for benefits to federal court.
It’s not unusual to be denied. It’s what happens in an overwhelming majority of cases.
It’s discouraging, but don’t let it discourage you from appealing your denial. People find they can often (but not always) win benefits after they get a chance to talk to a Social Security Disability judge.
Once you get into appealing a disability benefits denial, the process takes longer. Each step can be months.
In the end, however, it’s possible to win a lump sum of back benefits to compensate you for the long wait.
Having an experienced disability lawyer by your side can give you confidence knowing that your claim is being handled well by someone who knows what you need.
If you’re in Wisconsin and need help getting approved for Social Security Disability, talk to us about getting the support you need to move forward.