How to Prepare for a Disability Review Process

Every Social Security claimant who has been approved to receive benefits and who is receiving benefits will at some point be subjected to a disability review process to determine if an adult claimant remains unable to engage in gainful employment due to his disability, or if a child, remains unable to function doing daily tasks on a level equal with non-disabled children of his age.  If medical improvement of the disabling condition was expected the case will be reviewed within six to eighteen months.  If medical improvement is only possible but not expected then the case review would take place no sooner than three years from the date benefits began.  If no medical improvement is expected at all then the case would be reviewed no sooner than seven years after original approval for benefits.

Consultative Examination

When the Social Security conducts a continuing disability review of a case it will first examine the original medical condition that resulted in the approval of disability benefits.  They will compare the original medical condition to the claimant’s current medical status or condition to decide if there has been significant medical improvement affecting the ability to engage in gainful employment.  If there is no course of medical treatment of the condition in place, the Social Security will probably order a consultative examination to assess the current status of the claimant’s disabling condition.   The claimant is allowed to ask that the consultative examination be conducted by his own doctor instead of a physician named by Social Security who does not know the claimant and is not familiar with the disabling condition over a period of years.

Child Claimant becomes an Adult Claimant

Whenever a claimant began receiving benefits from a Social Security program as a child, as an “under age eighteen” claimant and that individual subsequently reaches age eighteen or older and is still disabled then Social Security will conduct a disability review of his case to determine if that now adult claimant’s disability now functions to impair his ability to engage in gainful employment.  The case is treated as a completely new disability determination review and the original disability record is not compared to the present disability condition in determining if benefits should continue.

Getting Legal Help

If you or a member of your family is receiving disability benefits from a Social Security program and you expect that you will be scheduled for a review process of your record to determine if continuation of benefits is indicted it may be helpful to discuss the circumstances of the disability and the review process with a disability lawyer.