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You can claim Social Security Disability for a traumatic brain injury, but to win benefits you need to show Social Security that the aftermath of your injury leaves you unable to work a substantial amount for 12 months or longer.
Disability claims for a TBI are challenging. Symptoms aren’t always consistent in severity, and a claims examiner could assume you’ll recover over time.
To meet Social Security’s impairment listing for traumatic brain injury, your limitations generally have to persist for at least three months after the trauma. Social Security expects many people to improve and return to work in that time.
These are all possible reasons you might have been denied disability benefits for a traumatic brain injury.
The Binghamton disability attorneys of Lachman & Gorton are ready to fight for you. We’ll take the time to understand your unique situation and what you need for a better chance of winning Social Security Disability benefits.
Our law firm has been assisting people with disability appeals for decades across Upstate New York, including Elmira, Oneonta, Rochester, Syracuse, Albany and Buffalo. We also help people in Pennsylvania.
Disability lawyer Peter Gorton takes more than 75 appeals to Federal District Court each year.
Even if you think you can tell from your denial letter what you need to do to win benefits on appeal, there’s no reason to go through this on your own.
Work with an experienced Upstate New York disability appeal attorney.
You won’t pay an attorney fee unless you win benefits, but there may be filing fees for higher levels of appeal.
Many traumatic brain injury disability claims get denied because a claims examiner doesn’t think the applicant’s symptoms are severe enough to block them from gainful employment for the long term.
You need to be clear about what symptoms you suffer from and show that you can’t soon get over the effects of your TBI and start working again.
Three months after your injury, Social Security will want to see:
You don’t just need to list your symptoms. You need to draw a direct connection between these health issues caused by your TBI and your inability to work.
If you have balance and mobility problems, working most physical jobs would be out of the question. Issues with concentration and memory can make working at a desk or staying on any task impossible.
If you have issues interacting with others due to speech problems or sudden mood swings, that stifles your ability to work.
The team at Lachman & Gorton can take the time to listen to your story and understand how your symptoms affect you every day.
Then we’ll help you build a more convincing TBI disability claim when you appeal.
Get started with a FREE, no-obligation disability appeal consultation.
Be prepared to talk about your symptoms and how they make working impossible, but also be ready to back up your TBI disability claim with plenty of evidence.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is not in the habit of awarding disability benefits to people just because they say they can’t work.
You likely won’t qualify for disability without evidence like this:
At Lachman & Gorton Law Office, we take an approach to gathering medical evidence that is highly tailored to your individual case. We build a questionnaire for your doctor to complete that covers information about your specific health limitations and information needed under Social Security law.
This way, when your doctor assesses your ability to function, they will provide the kinds of information that are helpful to your disability claim.
Treatment records over time are also important for a traumatic brain injury disability claim. Remember, Social Security generally looks for limitations that have persisted for at least three months after your injury.
Continuing to get treatment and showing that you still have not recovered from your injury despite your best efforts is essential to winning benefits.
The more objective evidence you have for a claims examiner to look at, the easier it will be to make a convincing case for benefits.
If Social Security denied your traumatic brain injury claim for lack of evidence, our Upstate New York disability attorneys can help you fill in gaps and seek out anything else that could make your claim stronger on appeal.
Disability appeals are complicated. You also need to act quickly because Social Security gives you just 60 days to respond after you get denied.
Whether you applied for benefits on your own or had help from a lawyer, the Binghamton disability lawyers of Lachman & Gorton are here to assist with your appeal.
We’ll walk you through this, step by step:
Step 1: Review your denial letter.
Social Security’s denial letter should tell you why you were denied disability benefits. Knowing why your application wasn’t successful can help you make your claim stronger on appeal.
Sometimes the SSA isn’t so clear in its reasoning. Having an experienced Binghamton disability appeals lawyer to interpret your denial letter helps you start a strong appeal.
Step 2: Request reconsideration.
The first step of your appeal is asking another claims examiner at Social Security to look at your TBI disability claim.
Chances of approval are low at this stage—about 14% in one recent year, according to SSA data—but this step keeps your claim alive.
Step 3: Schedule a disability hearing.
If you get denied at reconsideration, your disability hearing gives you the chance to tell your story to a judge and make it clear how your health limits you.
This could be your best chance to secure TBI disability benefits.
Lately it has taken around 10 months to get a disability hearing scheduled in New York State. Our team will make sure you’re properly prepared for this moment.
Step 4: Identify legal errors for the Social Security Appeals Council.
If you get denied after your hearing, you can appeal to the Social Security Appeals Council. You need to identify a legally appealable error, something the hearing judge did wrong, to get another shot at winning benefits.
Step 5: Take your appeal to Federal District Court.
The last step takes you out of the Social Security Disability system entirely, where you argue to a federal judge that Social Security made a legal error.
Not all disability lawyers handle these last two steps. Some law firms refer their clients to Lachman & Gorton for Appeals Council or federal court appeals.
Our firm has been helping people in Binghamton, Elmira and the rest of the region fight for disability benefits for more than 35 years.
After a traumatic brain injury, monthly payments and medical coverage can make a major difference in your life. Let us help you fight for financial stability.