Social Security Disability Insurance For People With Cancer
Social Security Disability Insurance is a federal disability insurance benefit earned by people who have worked and paid into Social Security. Its only available to people who have disabilities that keep them from working. If you have cancer, you may be able to have your SSDI application processed more quickly
How Do You Apply For Disability In Texas
How To Apply for Disability in Texas
Disability Homestead Exemptions Information And Requirements
In Texas, a disabled adult has a right to a special homestead exemption. If you qualify, this exemption can reduce your taxes substantially. By law, school districts must provide a $10,000 disability exemption. Other taxing entities have the option to offer disability exemptions of at least $3,000. If you qualify, you will receive this exemption in addition to the general homestead exemption. However, you can’t receive both a disability exemption and an over-65 exemption.
An Application for Disability Homestead Exemption can be found at the Forms Page under the Residential Exemption Section .
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What Are Social Security Disability Benefits
Social Security disability benefits come from payroll deductions required by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act to cover the cost of Social Security benefits such as retirement, as well as spousal and survivor benefits. Some of this funding goes into the Disability Insurance Trust Fund and pays for disability benefits.
According to the Social Security website, to qualify for Social Security disability benefits, you must have worked a certain length of time in jobs covered by Social Security. Generally, you need 40 credits, 20 of which were earned in the last 10 years, ending with the year when you became disabled. You must also have a medical condition that meets Social Securitys definition of disability.
Social Security Disability Insurance should not be confused with Supplemental Security Income , which pays benefits to those who have financial needs regardless of their work history. Although these two names sound similar, the qualifications to get the payments and what you might receive are very different.
What Kind Of Documents Should I Include
The appraisal district requires that you provide documentation to avoid the possibility of erroneously granting an exemption, and then later removing it because information received indicates that the exemption was inappropriate. Should this occur, you might be subject to additional penalties and interest on property taxes that could have been avoided.
Once you have completed the application and secured appropriate documentation, you need to file your application with the chief appraiser. You can mail or file your request directly with the appraisal district at the address on the form.
Action on your application usually will occur within four to six weeks from the date it is received. If the district needs additional documentation, you will be notified by letter.
In such cases, the law requires that you provide the requested information within 30 days from the date of the letter or your application must be denied.In the event the appraisal district disagrees with your request, youll be notified and offered an opportunity to protest this decision before the appraisal review board.
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What Are The Elimination Periods For Long
The most common elimination period for long-term disability is 90 days, but the exact terms of the elimination period will be specified in the policy. If short-term disability coverage is available, the effective waiting period before receiving benefits will be relatively short. When a short-term policy is not available, however, employees may have to wait several months with no income before qualifying for long-term benefits. Due to the longer elimination periods, many employees opt for a combination of short-term and long-term disability coverage.
Social Security Administration Ssi And Ssdi Texas Hearing Offices
Texas is part of Region 6 of the SSA. The Region 6 headquarters is in Dallas, and there are 7 additional hearing offices throughout the state.
When applying for SSDI in Texas, it is important to know which hearing office you will use and how long you can expect to wait for your hearing. Below are a list of SSDI Texas hearing offices for your convenience.
Dallas Office of Disability Adjudication and Review
Plaza of the Americas, North Tower
700 North Pearl Street, Suite 600
Dallas, TX 75201
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Can You Work Any Other Job
If youre unable to complete work done previously, the DDS will determine if there are any other jobs you could work despite your condition.
The DDS considers your medical condition and age, education, past work experience, and any transferable skills you may possess. If you are unable to work, the DDS will decide that youre eligible for disability. If you can do other work, you will not be considered disabled and your disability claim will be denied.
How To Accelerate Your Claim Application
Continue getting consistent medical treatment and care even during the period of your claim. This will help you to justify your claim with complete medical records and doctors opinions. Where necessary, you will have to exhaust all available mainstream medical options. The evidence to show that you tried your best, but still failed to get better helps to validate your case.
Confirm with your doctor and any other medical specialists that your claims are correct according to their opinion. Keep a close relationship with your case examiner and furnish them with all the details of your case as well as any other medical condition that arises after your claim application.
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Is Your Condition Recognized By The Social Security Administration
For every major body system, the SSA maintains a list of medical conditions that are considered severe enough that it prevents someone from earning substantial gainful activity. If your condition is not on the list, the SSA will need to decide if it is as severe as a medical condition that is already on the list. If it is, the DDS will determine that you are disabled. If not, the DDS proceeds to step 4.
The DDS have two methods that are designed to speed up the processing of new disability claims:
- Compassionate Allowances: Specific cases that typically qualify for disability can be permitted as soon as the diagnosis is confirmed. An example of this would be acute leukemia, Lou Gehrigs disease , and pancreatic cancer.
- Quick Disability Determinations: The DDS uses advanced computer screening to sort cases with a high probability of allowance.
You Earn Too Much Income
For SSDI, which is the benefit program for workers who have paid into the Social Security system over multiple years, one of the most basic reasons you could be denied benefits is that, when you apply, you are working above the limit where it is considered “substantial gainful activity” . This means you earn too much money to be considered disabled. You are allowed to work a small amount when you’re applying for and collecting SSDI, but not over the SGA limit, which is $1,310 per month in 2021 . The figure is adjusted annually. Income from investments does not count toward the SGAonly work income counts, as it shows your ability to work.
As to SSI, which is the disability benefit for low-income people, when you apply for SSI, you can’t be making over the substantial gainful activity level . But there’s a limit on all earned and unearned income for SSI, around $1,600 per month, that applies both when you’re applying for benefits and when you’re collecting benefits. And any time your income is over $85 per month, your SSI payment will start to be reduced, by a somewhat complicated formula. If you make more than about $1,650, your payment would be reduced to zero in other words, you won’t qualify for SSI.
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Local Authorities Or Dads Local Offices
Your Local Authority is under the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services or DADS. For more information, go to
Local authorities serve as the point of entry for publicly funded intellectual and developmental disability programs, whether the program is provided by a public or private entity.
What services are available?
Do You Need Someone To Listen And Help You
Its hard enough explaining what its like to live with lupus to friends and family. How will you get strangers at Social Security to understand that your health condition makes it impossible for you to work?
benefitsincluding monthly checkscan make a major difference in your life when you cant work.
And Baynetta M. Jordan, P.C., Attorney at Law, helps you gather evidence and information to explain your case of lupus to Social Security, so you can win those benefits.
You dont need people that your health problems are serious. You need someone who listens and helps.
Our disability law firm lives by the motto: Nobody Pushes West Texans Around.
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What You Need To Know About Social Security Disability Claims In Texas
SSI and SSDI Texas Disability Advocates:Life is unpredictable, and at times, one may be faced with a chronic illness or condition that may render them unable to work and fend for their families for years. This may leave one depressed without knowing the next step to take. It is here that the social security disability process comes in.
Social security pays benefits to people who are unable to work due to a medical condition that will last at least one year or even result in death. If you are in Texas and want to know all that entails these claims in your state, read on.
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How Much Work Do You Need
In addition to meeting our definition of disability, you must have worked long enough and recently enough under Social Security to qualify for disability benefits.
Social Security work credits are based on your total yearly wages or self-employment income. You can earn up to four credits each year.
The amount needed for a work credit changes from year to year. In 2021, for example, you earn one credit for each $1,470 in wages or self-employment income. When you’ve earned $5,880, you’ve earned your four credits for the year.
The number of work credits you need to qualify for disability benefits depends on your age when you become disabled. Generally, you need 40 credits, 20 of which were earned in the last 10 years ending with the year you become disabled. However, younger workers may qualify with fewer credits.
For more information on whether you qualify, refer to How You Earn Credits.
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How To Get Ssi In Texas
You must meet these eligibility requirements to qualify for disability benefits from SSI:
- Be disabled. The SSA uses the same evaluation criteria for SSI disability determination that it does for SSDI applications. Your physical or mental impairment must meet the standards of the Blue Book and prevent you from working to support yourself.
- Have very limited income and few financial resources. Your assets cannot exceed $2,000 for an individual . Your income will reduce the amount of your monthly benefit. The SSA does not count all types of income or assets when evaluating an applicants eligibility.
The SSI program typically pays far less in monthly cash benefits than the SSDI program does. The SSI program is a safety net for disabled people who do not qualify for SSDI benefits. Usually, not having enough work credits to be eligible for SSDI causes people to apply for SSI.
A Texas disability attorney can help you navigate the application process and handle your appeal if the SSA denies your application. Contact our office today.
How Do I Claim The Exemption
To claim the exemption, you must file an application with the appraisal district. The application must include documentation of your disability. The application form is entitled Application for Residential Homestead Exemption. This form can be obtained from the Information and Assistance Division for the Harris County Appraisal District. In it, you should complete all applicable information. Be especially certain to mark the box that recognizes your claim for the disability exemption. You must also provide medical documents verifying that you meet the definition of disability given above. The most common reason for denial of this exemption is failure to include adequate documentation.
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Southern Disability Law Center
The Southern Disability Law Center is a non-profit dedicated to advancing the rights of individuals with disabilities throughout the southern United States. It represents individuals in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas to challenge systemic barriers that deny individuals with disabilities access to necessary health care and educational services and supports. SDLC is not a part of any state or local government. Reach them by phone at 512-458-5800.
Tax Deferrals For Disabled Persons
If you meet the definition of disabled given above, the law gives you an additional right. Disabled persons can defer, or postpone, paying current and delinquent property taxes on their homestead for as long as they own it and live in it. The tax deferral applies to taxes owed to all taxing units that tax the homestead property. To postpone tax payments, you must file a Tax Deferral Affidavit with the Harris County Appraisal District.
If you are disabled and have already been sued for delinquent taxes owed on your homestead, you can stop the lawsuit by filing the deferral affidavit with the court in which the suit is pending.
If you are disabled and you file the Tax Deferral Affidavit properly, you cannot be displaced from your home and your home cannot be sold for taxes as long as you live in the home and your disability continues. While you need not pay any taxes to maintain the deferral, most taxing units will credit any partial payments you might be able or wish to make toward the total tax liability.
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County Indigent Health Care Program
The County Indigent Health Care Program provides health care services to eligible Texas residents through the counties, hospital districts, and public hospitals in Texas. The website helps a person search for clinics in their home area and provides information on the local county where you must submit applications for the program. To reach CIHCP, call 979-413-7155.
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How Our Lawyer Could Handle Your Disability Benefits Application Process
The process of proving your disability will take time, but you dont have to go through it by yourself. The SSA allows you to assign a representative who can:
- Correspond with the SSA on your behalf
- Access and collect your medical records for the purpose of applying for benefits
- Fill out paperwork on your behalf
- Accompany you to any interviews or hearings required to complete your application
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Signing Up For Medicare With End
If you have ESRD, you can sign up for Medicare before 65 if you need regular dialysis, or have had a kidney transplant, and meet one of the following:
- You worked the required amount of time under Social Security or Railroad Retirement Board.
- You are eligible to receive or already receiving Social Security or Railroad Retirement Benefits.
- You are the spouse or dependent child of a person who meets the requirements above.
If you are eligible for Medicare because of ESRD, enrollment is not automatic and you will need to enroll in Part A and Part B by contacting your local Social Security office. Benefits typically start on the first day of the fourth month of your dialysis treatments. If youre covered by an employer group health plan, your Medicare coverage will still start the fourth month of dialysis treatments. Your employer group may pay the first 3 months of dialysis.
Medicare benefits may start during the first month of dialysis if you meet the following requirements:
- You participate in a Medicare-certified training program to learn how to administer dialysis treatments from home and are expected to be able to do so.
- Dialysis treatments continue through the waiting period.
Medicare benefits will end 12 months after you stop dialysis treatments, or 36 months after you have a kidney transplant. Coverage can be extended if you start dialysis or get a kidney transplant within 12 months of stopping dialysis, or 36 months after receiving a new kidney.
How Long Does A Social Security Disability Review Take
If youre required to complete a Social Security Disability Review, theyll usually send you a short-form or a long-form review application. The process for the long-form usually takes four to six months, though it may a bit shorter or longer depending on the circumstances. The short-form review often takes one to three months, give or take. For both versions of the review youll need to provide some requested documentation about your identity and disability, and information about your work history. In the long-form version, you many need to provide more extensive medical records and will have additional forms to fill out. In both cases, you may be asked to participate in periodic follow ups.
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