Indiana Social Security Disability Attorney

Social Security uses a 5 step sequential evaluation process to decide your claim. Just think of this as five gates you have to get through to get your benefits. It is just like the old cowboy movies where they were driving cattle though the shoot to get on the train. If any gate is closed, it does not matter if the other gates are open-the cows still could not get on the train. The same is true with your claim for benefits with Social Security. Even if you can make it though the latter steps, if you can not get past the first steps, you cannot get to your benefits.

So what are the 5 steps? What are the 5 questions?

Step 1. Are you now participating in Substantial Gainful Activity? Out on the street, we might say “are you now working”? As with everything else with Social Security, there are a lot more if, ands and buts to this, because there are certain circumstances in which you might be doing some work, but it would not be considered Substantial Gainful Activity. If you are doing some work, you will need to discuss all of the facts with someone who knows the law and rules to help you determine if it is Substantial Gainful Activity. If you are not participating in Substantial Gainful Activity, then you go on to Step 2.

Step 2. Do you have a medical impairment that is considered serious under the rules of Social Security and is it going to last at least 12 months? If you are going to die in less than 12 months from the impairment, Social Security will say that is good enough to meet the 12 month duration requirement.

Step 3. Do you meet any Listings? Social Security has a book in which it has listed some medical conditions and has listed certain requirements for those medical conditions. If you meet each of these requirements for the medical conditions, then you do not have to continue on to Step 4 and 5, you are automatically found disabled. Most of these requirements are laboratory tests or other medical tests in which you have to hit certain values dead center like a bulls-eye. Social Security has been revising the listings and adding in specific functional limitations that you must also meet.

The reality is that if you have the values that Social Security sets out in the Listings, no one would really argue that you can not work due to your medical impairment. For example, Social Security requires a creatinine level of 4 to find you disabled for renal failure. My clients who have had a creatinine level of 3 have been on dialysis, on the transplant list, and suffering from severe fatigue, and have not met the listings even though it was impossible for them to work.

The Listings at step 3 do help those that are the most seriously impacted by their medical impairments, but most people do not meet the listings and proceed on to Step 4.

Step 4. Are you able to perform any of your past relevant work? Translated: can you do any of the jobs that you have done in the last 15 years? If you can do the easiest job you have done in the last 15 years, you do not get to proceed on to Step 5.

Step 5. Given you age, education, any transferable skills you might have from your past work, and the medical impairments that Social Security finds that you have (which may be different from what you know you have), can you do any other work that exists in significant numbers in the regional or nationally economy? Social Security usually has a vocational expert at the hearing that will help the Administrative Law Judge decide if you can do other work as the Social Security Administration has the burden of proof on the issue you being able to do other work that exists in the regional or national economy.

As with everything at Social Security, there are a lot of rules, regulations, and laws that apply to each step. You will need someone knowledgeable about the rules, regulations and laws of each step to help you determine what evidence you will need to prove to win your case.