If you file for Social Security disability benefits and are denied, then you have the option to appeal that decision. Succeeding on appeal means that you might be awarded the compensation you need to find financial stability while you cope with your condition, but your success on appeal may turn on your knowledge of the process and how to use it to your advantage.
Therefore, you might find it helpful to know that the Social Security Administration often turns to medical experts to provide testimony at evidentiary hearings. These medical professionals are supposed to provide impartial expert opinions on claimants’ medical conditions, but this does not guarantee that their opinion is justified. Therefore, if you want to preserve your claim on appeal, you need to make a strong record that challenges positions contrary to your own.
One way to do this, of course, is to have your own medical evidence that supports your disability claim. Medical records documenting your diagnoses and treatments, as well as medical professional testimony, can prove extremely valuable to your claim. Another important step is to make your objections known. If you think that the SSA’s medical expert is relying on questionable information or that his or her opinion is unjustified for some reason, you need to make sure you make an objection that is based on a strong legal basis.
This is where having the assistance of a qualified legal professional can prove beneficial. A skilled, experienced attorney will know how to create a record that can support your claim during reconsideration or appeal. This is critical, as failing to do so could result in not only a denied initial claim, but also denials on appeal, meaning that you are left without the SSD benefits you desperately need and deserve.
Source: Social Security Administration, “Becoming A Medical Expert,” accessed on Jan. 13, 2017
