Proving Disability When Evidence Is Hard To Find
Whether you're looking at Social Security, Veterans Affairs (VA), or a workers compensation claim that doesn't seem to be enough, proving disability can be a challenge filled with heavy requirements. Every disability system requires evidence showing not only how severe your injury, illness, or other conditions are, but why the condition falls under the responsibility of that system. To understand proof requirements and to possibly find a better fit for your compensation needs, here are a few disability claim and appeal details.
Proving Medical Severity
The core of any disability system is getting proof from a medical professional. Unfortunately, even obvious, physical wounds aren't evidence enough for legal systems that control a lot of taxpayer spending.
Sufficient disability means not only getting a document showing that your condition exists, but that it's severe enough to require disability. Showing that you have a specific condition is a good start, although it isn't always easy to show problems that aren't visible. Many forms of physical pain lack physical signs that can be found even with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or X-ray scans, and psychological issues are difficult to identify even in the most severe cases.
You need to be paired with the right doctors who can find evidence of your problem and create documentation that speaks to the disability system in its legal language. You could waste a lot of money visiting random doctors or going on a friend's advice alone, so look for a lawyer specializing in disability cases.
Disability lawyers have more interaction with medical evidence who can get the evidence that their clients need. You may be in a situation where your condition is rare and in need of a specialist that the lawyer may not know personally or professionally, but they will still have a network of medical professionals who can look for the specialists for you.
With specific documentation about your condition in hand, along with a written statement from medical professionals about how it could be disabling to the point of affecting your work, it's time to prove that it's a specific system's problem.
Proving Relationship To The System
Many disability systems and claim types are directed towards a specific group of disability situations. Social security probably covers the widest population, but the restrictions are enough to warrant keeping other options open.
If you can prove your disability, your only other proof points are that you're an American citizen (or a legal alien qualified for social security as a tax payer) and that you need the income. The main issue with social security as a sole source of assistance is that it is tied to your income. For people with spontaneous or periodic disabilities that can work in short periods of time, you have to work carefully with social security to avoid earning too much money.
In middle class and poor earnings brackets, this usually means having to plan a work schedule around disability payments. It also assumes that you have a job willing to keep you on board despite the possibility of being missing for constant health problems--an issue that dealt differently from state to state. If you're not careful, earning too much without reporting your income properly can disqualify you.
Veterans Affairs disability is better for military veterans who can prove service connection because the compensation is not tied to working ability, but what ability was lost. Personal injury suits compensate for incidents, but may require court challenges. Contact a disability lawyer to figure out which systems work best for you. For more information, contact a business such as Iler and Iler.