Most recipients of Social Security Disability benefits continue to receive payments without any issue, but it’s important to remember that disability payments continue so long as you meet the requirements. SSDI and SSI are never guaranteed to last forever and there are several ways for them to be suspended or terminated indefinitely. 

Before applying for social security disability benefits, it’s important to be aware of how they can be canceled. 

Medical Improvements SSI/DI

Social security disability beneficiaries are often approved due to a debilitating injury or a medical condition that prevents them from working, including psychiatric conditions. The Social Security Administration reviews medical beneficiaries every three to seven years to ensure their condition still entitles them to benefits, but if they determine you’re no longer disabled as defined by the SSA and have made enough of a medical improvement, you can lose your benefits. 

Returning to Work & SGA

When a beneficiary begins working again, the income derived from the job can cost them benefits if it exceeds “substantial gainful activity” (SGA). The SGA is determined by the Social Security Administration but follows certain guidelines. Essentially, SGA describes a level of work activity and earnings, considered substantial if it involves significant physical or mental activities. Gainful work activity is defined as work that is performed for pay or profit, the nature of the work is generally performed for work or profit, or is intended for profit. 

If returning to work, a beneficiary can lose their benefits by engaging in SGA. If you’re concerned about losing your benefits in this way, it’s important to talk with an SSI / SSDI attorney. 

Retirement Age & Disability Benefits

For SSDI beneficiaries that reach their full retirement age, they will likely see their disability benefits stop. Social Security retirement benefits and SSDI benefits cannot be issued together and once a person is eligible for retirement they are no longer eligible for their disability. Once retirement age is reached, the SSA will switch over from SSDI payments to your retirement benefits. 

Social Security Disability Benefits & Incarceration

If a person has been incarcerated at either a prison or other penal institution after being convicted of a crime, disability payments will cease until you’re released. It’s important to note that you’ll be eligible again after being incarcerated unless convicted of a felony. Some felony convictions will include a cessation of benefits and/or eligibility as well. 

SSI Asset Limits

If your income or assets rise above the limit for SSI or SSDI eligibility, your payments will cease and you’ll no longer be eligible whole earning too much income. How your income is earned isn’t relevant, unless already crossing the SGA threshold, but earning above the income limit will cost you your benefits. Some acquired assets and income types that count towards these limits include private pensions, spousal income, parental income, inherited assets, and alimony payments. It can be complicated and a complex issue to navigate as a number of factors can go towards crossing the asset limit. If you fear that you may lose your benefits for this reason, consult an experienced SSI or SSDI attorney to help you. 

Protecting Your Social Security Disability Payments

It’s important to know what can trigger your Social security disability benefits to cease, especially as some of the reasons for their stopping can be a mistake and are avoidable. As mentioned a few times before, it’s important to consult with an SSI / SSDI attorney who has extensive experiencing protecting people from the cessation of benefits and the SSA itself. 

Here at Marken Law Group, we have a comprehensive understanding of social security benefits. We understand how stressful benefits can be and don’t want to add to your plate during this potentially stressful time. We have represented hundreds of claimants in Washington, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and California to obtain what is rightfully theirs. We focus on your individual needs and bring our extensive Experience to help guide you through. Partner with an experienced ally that is by your side from start to finish and have a qualified social security lawyer to help you.

Marken Law Group

The goal of an SSA analyst is to determine if you fall under their definition of disability so that you can claim long-term disability benefits. As a claimant, you’re responsible for providing medical evidence of your impairments and their severity. While SSA can gather the evidence based on your list of resources, having proof ready makes processing your benefits faster.

Submitting Medical Evidence Scenarios

The SSA analyst will need medical evidence such as copies of your medical records, health worker reports, and recent test results. However, there are some misconceptions people may have that they unintentionally delay filing their claims. Here are some scenarios we hope to clear up:

Scenario 1: You have your copies of medical evidence

Submit them immediately. When you have it ready, it makes filing your claims faster.

Scenario 2: You have incomplete copies of medical evidence

Submit the ones you have immediately. Applying early may help you retain your disability benefits. SSA will do the rest by contacting your medical source(s) to send your other evidence to them. Or you can gather the rest to make the process faster. 

Scenario 3: The obtained evidence from you and your medical source(s) is insufficient 

The SSA analyst will ask you to undergo a Consultative Examination (CE) paid from their pocket. However, SSA may prefer an independent medical source to your hospital or clinic to conduct the CE.

The Three Keys for a Strong Medical Evidence

Ideally, CE is a convenient way for claimants to get a complete and detailed medical record sufficient for SSA. But to save time and energy, you can build robust medical evidence to make your process faster without requiring CE or making several trips to the SSA.

Admissible evidence must have the following:

1. Severity of impairment(s),
2. Duration of the impairment(s), and 
3. Limited functions that the impairments cause (walking, lifting, going to the bathroom, etc.)

We can use SSA CE’s objective and subjective evidence requirements to show the severity and duration of impairment(s) and how it limits the claimant. 

How to Strengthen a Disability Case with Objective Evidence

Objective evidence is measurable or clear signs of abnormalities that cannot be faked or exaggerated:

• Get all recommended diagnostic and laboratory testing.
• Have additional testing to provide more accurate proof of your symptoms and limitations.
• Create a detailed list of your medical appointments. 

How to Strengthen a Disability Case with Subjective Evidence

Subjective evidence is documented symptoms experienced by the claimant. The more consistent the subjective evidence is, the stronger it is as evidence:

• Reporting all your symptoms to your doctors at every appointment for proper documentation
• Following your doctors’ prescriptions and recommended treatments (non-compliance can be seen as disinterest in getting better)
• Keep a detailed record of your medications and their side effects to give SSA an understanding of how your meds can impact your daily living

How to Strengthen a Disability Case with Medical Expert Opinion

Your healthcare provider’s assessment of your condition can provide insightful information on how it impacts your life. A signed evaluation or narrative letter of your chief complaint(s) can strengthen your case.

Getting treated frequently helps your doctor be familiar with your conditions and their consistency within your medical record.

How Marken Law Can Help You

Consistency among the objective and subjective evidence and medical consultation strengthens your disability case. At Marken Law, we review your disability case for inconsistencies and missing requirements. Then, we add more supportive medical opinions to create your extensive medical evidence. 

Depending on the case, here are our methods to make explicit disability claims for you:

• Interview your doctor through a questionnaire. The questionnaire we provide is relevant to your specific conditions. The results are drafted so the SSA analyst understands how your condition limits your daily activities.
• Collect clarifying answers for you. We contact your healthcare providers on conflicting data, unexplained findings, and complicated conditions so the SSA analyst does not have to.
• Get medical opinions from our medical Network. As lawyers licensed in Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and California, our medical connections objectively review your medical evidence, and we record their evaluations. Their evaluations can support the expert opinions of your healthcare providers.

Glaring medical evidence cannot be ignored. To get approval for your disability claims fast, you’ll need to get everything right. 

To learn more about this, please check out disability cases