Oshkosh Social Security Attorney
Wisconsin is filled with millions of hard-working residents. The Wisconsin residents in Oshkosh understand what it means to work for a living and they don’t accept charity easily. When these hard-working Oshkosh residents are faced with a disability that prevents them from working, however, they must come to terms with the fact that the financial situation can quickly spiral out of control and that they may need (and are entitled to) Social Security Disability benefits.
Social Security Disability Insurance payments (SSDI) are not “charity” payments. These disabled Oshkosh workers have paid for these benefits through Social Security taxes. SSDI payments are, to an extent, payments from an insurance policy and a disabled Oshkosh worker is entitled to these “insurance” payments if they should ever suffer from a long-term or permanent disability because they have paid the insurance premiums in the form of Social Security taxes. The only problem is, the Social Security Administration isn’t always willing to easily part with the money they have collected and a disabled Oshkosh worker may find themselves fighting for the benefits they are entitled to.
The fact of the matter is that nearly 70 percent of the disability claims that are received each year are denied by the SSA. This means that your chances of being denied benefits during your initial application are greater than your chances of being approved. Because of this, when applying for Social Security Disability benefits in the Oshkosh area, it is best to enlist the services of a Oshkosh Social Security Disability attorney.
Compared to the rest of the nation and many parts of Wisconsin, Oshkosh’s economy has weathered the recent crisis intact for the most part. The unemployment rate in Oshkosh is 7.8 percent, as opposed to the national average of 9.1 percent. Future job growth over the next ten years is expected to be more than 30 percent. While the farming industry is prevalent in many areas of the state, only 0.13 percent of the jobs in Oshkosh are generated from farming. The majority of Oshkosh jobs are in the management, business, financial, professional and related occupations.
Applying for Oshkosh Social Security Disability Benefits
Oshkosh is home to more than 66,000 Wisconsin residents. In the State of Wisconsin, approximately 100,000 residents receive disability benefits from the SSA. The average payment that a Social Security Disability recipient receives is approximately $1,000 per month, although this can be higher or lower depending on the number of dependents that a recipient has and how much money they had earned during their work history. These monthly benefit payments can significantly offset some of the financial hardships that can be caused by a long-term or permanent disability. It is important to note, however, that it can take two years or more before an Oshkosh disability applicant receives their first Social Security Disability payment.
Why does it take so long for an Oshkosh Social Security Disability applicant to begin receiving disability benefits when the initial application process should only take three to six months to complete? The two-year (or more) waiting period is due to the fact that the SSA denies approximately 70 percent of the claims it receives during the initial application process. In nearly 90 percent of cases, this results in the need for a disability hearing before an administrative law judge. Because there is such a large backlog of disability appeals in the Social Security system, getting this hearing scheduled can take quite some time.
The office that is in charge of scheduling the disability hearings for Oshkosh applicants is located in Milwaukee. It takes this office an average of 512 days to schedule a hearing for an Oshkosh disability applicant. Once the hearing has been conducted, it takes an Oshkosh applicant another two to three months to be notified regarding the outcome of that hearing.
Hiring an Oshkosh Disability Attorney
If you hope to avoid the need for a disability appeal, and thereby avoid the lengthy waiting periods associated with a disability hearing, your best bet is to retain the services of an Oshkosh Social Security attorney during the initial stage of the application process. Your attorney can go over your claim with you, pointing out any weak spots that may need to be strengthened and helping you gather the medical evidence that will be necessary to support your claim. If, for some reason, your claim is (or has been) denied by the SSA, your Oshkosh Social Security lawyer can help you appeal the SSA’s decision to deny your disability benefits.
If you are interested in obtaining a free evaluation of your Social Security Disability case or you would like to get more information about hiring an Oshkosh Social Security Disability attorney to assist you in your disability claim, click here.
