Articles Posted in Boston SSDI

On the campaign trail, then-candidate Donald  Trump promised to make a lot of cuts to domestic programs. However, one program he promised to shield was the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program.  But now, as discussed in a recent article from the Huffington Post, Mr. Trump’s latest budget plan his administration released to Congress and the American public calls for massive cuts.

Boston SSDI LawyerSpecifically, the new budget calls for $72 billion to be cut from the Social Security disability budget over the next 10 years, and this amounts to around a 4 percent reduction.  This is part of the administration’s stated goal of balancing the federal budget while at the same time, massively increasing military spending. Continue reading

In a recent case from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which is the circuit in which Massachusetts is located, the court held that 20.C.F.R. 422.210(c), and its five-day grace period is not applicable to cases in which the claimant does not file written exceptions to an administrative law judge’s (ALJ’s) denial leaving the appeals council without proper jurisdiction.

Boston SSDI Lawyer In this case, claimant filed for disability benefits.  Her initial application was denied and so was her written request for reconsideration.  After her request for reconsideration was denied, she filed a timely request for a hearing before an administrative law judge.  The ALJ held a hearing and found she was not entitled to benefits. Continue reading

President Donald J. Trump has vowed deep spending cuts across the board, save for the military.  However, Mr. Trump was able to win the election with the support of many working-class voters.SSDI

To garner their support, Trump made promises during the campaign to avoid reductions of certain federal programs on which many supporters relied – one of those being Medicaid, another being the Social Security Old Age and Retirement benefits and the other Social Security Disability Insurance.
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When a child is born with a serious disabling condition, this can impact every aspect of life. While children with disabilities are entitled to a public education, with appropriate accommodations made for their disability, disabled students generally graduate at lower rates than students who are not affected by physical or mental conditions.  SSDI lawyer

When disabled students are unable to get a high school or college education, this adversely impacts their ability to make a living. Many young people with disabilities will not be able to become self-supporting, both because of the limitations imposed by their condition and because of the challenges associated with obtaining a quality education and employment skills. These disabled children may rely on federal benefits both during their childhood and when they reach adulthood.

Parents need to understand the rules for when children may qualify for disability benefits. Children may potentially be eligible for SSI, depending upon income and resource levels when they are young and when they reach adulthood and become independent. Continue reading

A lawmaker in South Boston is arguing in favor of a bill to mandate state contractors hire enough disabled workers to perform contracted services so employees with disabilities make up 10 percent of the workforce. Hiring disabled workers would become a condition for any contract for services, including landscaping contracts, custodial work, mail room work, trash removal, manufacturing, and management of state and local facilities. SSDI

While the Boston Herald reports critics argue the bill would add significant costs to contracts with the state, proponents believe it would help to ensure jobs are made available to disabled people who want to work. Currently, unemployment rates in Massachusetts are very high for people with disabling conditions. With it so difficult to find work, many people who have physical or mental conditions want to try getting jobs but are not actually able to get hired.

This puts disabled workers into difficult positions, especially if they have hard time getting approved for Social Security Disability benefits. Many initial applications for disability benefits are denied, and disabled individuals often must seek help from Boston SSDI lawyers to be able to get benefits. The process can be very stressful, especially when disabled workers know their condition prevents them from having a job and recognize high unemployment rates for the disabled make the likelihood of finding work even worse. Continue reading

In the past few decades, autism has been getting a lot more attention, as the number of cases has grown exponentially. Research and related therapies have followed.

Boston SSDI LawyerWhile there are more services in place now than in years past to help children with autism and their families, including components of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), those attending school will either graduate or age out. For those who are on the severe end of the spectrum and their families, this can raise a host of new challenges.  A recent article from Disability Scoop discusses how the U.S. Department of Education needs to start transitioning students earlier than they do now, with a current start at the age of 16.
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College is more expensive than ever. Undergraduate tuition has risen to seemingly astronomical amounts in the past couple of decades to where most students will have no choice but to borrow huge amounts of money to attend college.  Just to get an idea of the numbers, tuition at Boston College for undergrad is just under $50,000 a year, with the cost of total attendance estimated to be more than $65,000.  People who also go graduate school are incurring around half a million dollars in debt on average, and that trend does not seem to be slowing anytime soon.

Boston SSDI LawyerThis seems okay at the time, because the plan is to go to school and then get a job that allows the borrower to pay back the loan one month at a time for the next thirty years.  However, things don’t always go as planned.  What happens to a person who takes out $250,000 in loans and then becomes disabled? There is no way a person can live on Social Security Disability Income of around $1,200 a month and still make loan payments.  One might think that this would mean you default on your student loans and don’t have to pay until you can, but that is not how it works in many cases. Continue reading

There are currently around 11 million Americans who are receiving Social Security Disability Insurance benefits.  While this may seem like a very large number, it is actually much smaller than the number of Americans who are disabled and should be getting benefits, but there is not enough funding in the budget, and the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) makes it unreasonably difficult to qualify for benefits in many cases.

wheelchair7One thing to keep in mind, however, is that when a person becomes disabled, he or she is not likely the only one affected.  For example, let’s say that mother of two children who is married becomes disabled and can no longer work.  This happens all the time.  If she applies for benefits, she will likely be denied at first and will face a long road ahead if she plans to eventually qualify for much-needed Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. Continue reading

According to a recent news article from Disability Scoop, there is a bipartisan effort among some in Congress to make some changes to the Achieving a Better Life Experience bill more commonly referred to as the ABLE Act, or simply as ABLE.

workABLE was passed into law in 2014, and it was something that had never been done before.  It created a way for disabled Americans who receive government benefits to save a certain amount of money in special accounts without running the risk of losing their disability benefits. This includes Social Security disability as well as other types of benefits provided by the federal government.  This program does apply to Medicaid in certain situations. Continue reading

During the populist candidacy of Donald J. Trump, he promised to make a lot of cuts to so-called big government. At the same time, he promised to leave the Social Security system alone.  This includes both the Social Security disability benefits system and the Social Security Old Age and Retirement system.

cashThe likely reason he made this promise is because many of those in his base survive solely off the Social Security disability benefits system and the Social Security retirement benefits system.  In fact, recent reports have shown that many who are unable able to find jobs in many areas that strongly voted for Mr. Trump have turned to the disability system to make ends meet. Continue reading

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