How do you get an SSI disability application and Claim started?Your SSI disability claim cannot be filed online unlike an application for Social Security Disability. However, even when a title II Social Security Disability application is started online, the individual who is filing the disability claim nearly always has to be contacted later. Why? So that the field office claims representative can get additional information, or clarify information that was provided by the claimant but was not quite clear, or to ask additional questions (such as about the claimant's work history, or medical treatment, or when they stopped working). This, being the case, one has to wonder just how effective starting a claim online really is. If you question the claims representatives that work in social security offices, they will readily tell you that, at present, the online process does not offer much advantage to the claimant or the individuals who are filing for disability. Ideally, the best way to get an SSI disability claim started, or to get a social security disability application started, is to contact a local social security office and request that an appointment be made. The actual disability interview can be done over the phone, or in person at the social security office. If it is done over the phone, then the paperwork can be submitted after the phone interview is completed. Of course, another way of getting an SSI or SSD disability application started is to simply file as a "walk-in". Yes, you can simply walk into a social security office and be seen. However, do not expect that you will be seen immediately as the office may be full of individuals who are being seen for scheduled appointments. If you visit a social security office in person to start your disability claim, you may wish to bring the following: A picture ID; a certified birth certificate (not just a photocopy) and a DD214 if you served in the military. Since the social security claims rep who will be taking your claim will be asking for your medical treatment history (including names of doctors and hospitals, names of diagnosed conditions, and dates of treatment) and your work history (names of jobs, descriptions of work performed, and dates of employment with specific jobs), it would be both helpful if you wrote this information down and brought it with you at the time of application. What happens after you get your SSI claim or SSD claim filed? Contrary to what some believe, the disability application is only "taken" at the social security office. It is not worked on there. After the claim is taken, it is sent to a state agency where it is assigned to a disability examiner. This individual will begin to process the claim by sending letters of request for medical records. These letters will be sent to every doctor and hospital listed by the claimant on the disability report form. Of course, the more information provided, the easier it will be to process the claim, and the more likely it will be that the claim will be approved; therefore, applicants, at this point, should endeavor to provide full and detailed information about their medical history. The disability examiner will also rely on the work history information provided by the claimant. This information will allow the disability examiner to identify the jobs that were held by the claimant in the last fifteen years. By identifying these jobs, the disability examiner will be able to compare the mental and physical demands of these jobs to the physical and mental abilities which the claimant still retains, and this will help point the way toward an approval of the disability claim, or a denial of the disability claim. About the Author: Tim Moore is a former Social Security Disability Examiner in North Carolina, has been interviewed by the NY Times and the LA Times on the disability system, and is an Accredited Disability Representative (ADR) in North Carolina. For assistance on a disability application or Appeal in NC, click here. Most popular topics on SSDRC.com Social Security Disability in North Carolina Common Mistakes to avoid after being denied for Disability Tips to Prepare for Filing for Social Security Disability or SSI Advice to Win SSD and SSI Benefit Claims Social Security Disability SSI Questions What is the difference between Social Security Disability and SSI? How to get disability for depression Getting disability for fibromyalgia SSI disability for children with ADHD What is the Application Process for Social Security Disability and SSI? 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