Being disabled and unable to work can be very stressful in many ways, including financially. If you live in Florida and find yourself in this situation, you may be considering whether or not you should pursue disability benefits. That’s an understandable question, as these benefits can make a tremendous difference in relieving financial stress during a difficult time. Let’s take a closer look at the law together.
What Types of Benefits Are Available
If you are struggling with a disability, you may qualify for a variety of types of disability benefits, depending upon your particular circumstances. If you are a veteran who was injured during the course of your military service, you may qualify for disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. If you were injured at work, you might qualify for workers’ compensation benefits.
If you worked for an employer who offered short-term or long-term disability benefits in conjunction with your employment, you may qualify for those types of benefits as well, depending upon the nature of your disability. In other cases, you may have a private insurance policy that provides short or long-term disability benefits.
If you don’t qualify for any of the foregoing types of benefits, however, you shouldn’t panic. Depending upon your particular situation, you may be eligible for disability benefits from the Social Security Administration. The Social Security Administration offers two types of disability benefits, and eligibility will depend upon particular circumstances. The two types of benefits offered include:
- Social Security Disability Insurance: SSDI benefits are benefits offered by the Social Security Administration to individuals with a qualifying medical condition that has lasted for at least one continuous calendar year or more, and who are “insured.” To the Social Security Administration, being “insured” means that you’ve worked a qualifying job for a sufficient length of time and regularly paid taxes from your salary into the Social Security system.
- Supplemental Security Income: As with SSDI, in order to receive SSI benefits, an applicant must have a qualifying medical condition that has rendered them disabled for one continuous calendar year or more. Unlike the case with SSDI benefits, however, an applicant need not be “insured” in order to receive SSI benefits. Instead, they must have income and resources below a specific limit established annually by the Social Security Administration.
Understandably, it may feel overwhelming to consider all of the different types of benefits available and wonder which ones you might qualify for. The good news is that you don’t have to worry and wonder alone. Consulting with a knowledgeable and experienced attorney regarding your situation is always a wise decision.
How to File a Disability Claim
How to file a claim will depend in large part upon the type of disability benefit that you are pursuing. If you have a privately held short-term or long-term disability policy, or if your employer provides such coverage, you will generally have to follow the terms of that particular policy regarding when a claim should be filed and what evidence should be presented along with your claim.
For those who are seeking workers’ compensation benefits, veterans’ benefits, or benefits from the Social Security Administration, the process will vary slightly for each type of benefit, but generally, the first step is filing a claim. You will be required to present medical evidence substantiating your condition, its cause, and its impact on your daily life. While other requirements will vary depending upon the type of benefit you’re pursuing, this is generally the first step.
How Long Will It Take to Receive a Decision?
Often, people want to know how long it will take to receive a decision on a particular claim. That’s a normal question to ask. As with so many legal matters, the answer is that it depends. If you’re pursuing benefits from a federal organization like the Social Security Administration or the Department of Veterans Affairs, or from a state agency administering workers’ compensation benefits, the amount of time it will take for a claim to be approved will typically depend on how busy the particular agency is at the time. As a general rule, benefits under a privately held policy may be provided more quickly, although this is not always the case.
DISABILITY EXPERTS – Here For You
If you live in Florida and you need disability benefits, you probably want to do everything you can to ensure you pursue those benefits as effectively and efficiently as possible. At Disability Experts, we understand that, and it’s why we’re here to help. We know what a tremendous difference these benefits can make, and we’ll do all we can to help you move your claim forward. We know and understand every aspect of the law pertaining to disability benefits, and we’ll always use the best legal strategies for your case. If you’re ready to get started, give us a call today. We look forward to helping you soon.