Anyone who has ever applied for Social Security disability knows that it takes a very long time to get a hearing before an Administrative Law judge. These are difficult times for people because they are without income because they can’t work and often without health insurance. So, clients will often ask me what they can do to help. One easy answer is go to your doctor’s appointments.
I know that money is tight in these circumstances, but money will be even tighter if you lose your disability case. And one way to drastically hurt your case is to not see your doctor for extended periods of time. If you have a condition or illness that is so great that it prevents you from working, you need medical treatment. Getting this medical treatment does two things for you. 1. It keeps your condition or illness under control as best as possible with the help of expert medical treatment. 2. It builds a medical record for the administrative law judge (ALJ) to review at your hearing.
Judges want to be able to see the history of your illness and the best way for them to do that is through your medical records. If you go long periods of time without medical treatment, judges cannot do that. Plus, some judges will assume that the condition/illness is not that devastating if it is not important enough to you to set aside time and money for it. So you really need to make sure you get consistent treatment for your illness while awaiting your disability hearing.
Many doctors will work with you on payments while you’re awaiting disability treatment. Therefore, do not be afraid to call and ask about this. Any treatment is better than none. And having a solid medical history for the ALJ to review will greatly increase your chances of receiving a fully favorable decision for your disability. So it’s worth getting the treatment and spending the money.
