Clovis Social Security Attorney
If we lived in a perfect world, no one would ever become ill or injured. There would be no need for disability benefits and no need for Social Security Disability. In a perfect world, everyone would be healthy and could keep their jobs indefinitely. Unfortunately, we do not live in such a world. In the real world, millions of hard-working American taxpayers find themselves facing permanent or long-term disabilities that interfere with their ability to maintain substantial gainful employment. This lack of employment results in a loss of income and desperately-needed medical benefits. It is in cases such as these that Social Security Disability benefits are intended to help. Unfortunately, many disabled workers in the Clovis, California area find that actually obtaining these benefits is not an easy task. If you are applying for Social Security Disability benefits in the Clovis area, you need to consider retaining the services of a qualified Clovis Social Security Disability attorney.
Clovis is a smaller city located approximately six-and-a-half miles northeast of downtown Fresno. Manufacturing and agriculture play the main roles in the economic well-being of city. The educational, retail and social service sectors are also contributors to the economic climate of the area. Some of the top employers in Clovis include Home Depot, Kaiser Permanente, Taco Bell and Aerotek. The median household income in the city is just over $42,000, which is slightly below the national average. The cost of living index, however, is approximately 21 percent higher than the rest of the nation.
Applying for Clovis Social Security Disability Benefits
The City of Clovis is home to nearly 100,000 residents. In the State of California, 2.9 percent of the population receives Social Security Disability payments with an average monthly benefit amount of $1,083.80. Unfortunately, most Clovis Social Security Disability applicants will be denied disability benefits during the initial stage of the application process, resulting in the need for a disability appeal. This appeal will likely consist of two stages, including a Request for Reconsideration and a disability hearing. It is this process that will result in a wait of nearly two years before the average Clovis Social Security Disability applicant receives their first disability payment.
The office that is in charge of scheduling the disability hearing for Clovis Social Security Disability applicants is the ODAR office located in Fresno, California. It takes this office an average of 440 days to schedule a disability hearing for a Clovis Social Security Disability applicant. Why does it take so long for a disability hearing to be scheduled by this office?
Hiring a Clovis Disability Attorney
There are literally hundreds of thousands of disability claims backlogged in the Social Security system and only 1,500 administrative law judges handling the disability cases that are waiting to be heard. Because each applicant must wait his or her turn before seeing the administrative law judge that will be hearing their case, it means a wait of more than a year for Clovis disability applicants.
If you want to increase your chances of avoiding the hearing and appeal process altogether or, if necessary, increasing the chance of a favorable hearing outcome, it is crucial that you seek out the services of a qualified Clovis Social Security Disability lawyer. When you hire a Clovis Social Security attorney, the professional you hire will work with you in the preparation of your disability claim. He or she will assist you in preparing the application paperwork properly and obtaining the medical evidence that will be necessary to prove your disability to the Social Security Administration. Once all of the paperwork has been completed and your evidence has been gathered, your Clovis Social Security lawyer can help you ensure that your claim is submitted to the SSA in the best light possible.
If, for some reason, your claim for Social Security Disability benefits is still denied, your Clovis disability attorney will help you through the lengthy and complicated disability appeal process. The first stage of appeals is called a Request for Reconsideration. Your attorney will file this request, but chances are that you will not be awarded benefits as a result of it. More than 80 percent of reconsideration requests are denied by the Social Security Administration. The stage of appeals that you and your attorney will have to work your hardest on will be at the disability hearing.
As stated above, it will take approximately 440 days before you are even scheduled for a hearing before an administrative law judge. It is crucial that everything go as smoothly as possible if you want to receive benefits as a result of this hearing. Your Clovis disability lawyer will work with you to ensure that you have the best possible chance of a favorable hearing outcome.
When preparing for your hearing, your Clovis Social Security Disability attorney may begin to gather additional medical evidence to present to the administrative law judge. He or she may also ask you to undergo additional medical testing in order to support your disability case. It is very important that you heed the advice your attorney gives to you. Their interest is in winning your case and any advice provided will be aimed toward that outcome.
Click here if you would like to request a free evaluation of your Social Security Disability case and to learn more about hiring a Clovis Social Security Disability lawyer to represent you in your Social Security Disability claim.
