Doctor Letters and Common Mistakes
In the initial application for Social Security disability benefits, you are not required to submit full medical documentation. The SSA will initially direct the gathering of your medical records so as to enable the New York agency charged with providing the basis for the disability determination to do its work.
You might wonder if it would be best have your doctor write a letter or statement vouching for you. Some people do win their cases on the initial level thanks to a doctor’s letter, but the complex medical and legal issues that surround disability cases present the danger that even your doctor’s well-intentioned statements will inadvertently hurt your case. It is therefore better for most claimants to apply without such documents.
However, as your claim progresses, in the light of a more complete development of data and opinion, your New York disability attorney may decide that it would benefit your case to obtain and submit additional data,, statements of opinion, or clarifying assessments from your treating doctors.
Two major mistakes are very often made during the course of the attempts bo obtain Social Security disability benefits. One is failing to seek and obtain proper medical care. Some people with chronic medical problems, stop going to see doctors because they feel that medical treatment has not helped them very much. This is likely to cause significant harm since treatment records are important evidence of disability, and since. although some chronic impairments cannot be cured, treatment may alleviate suffering, and/or slow progression.
Ofcourse, the most common mistake is the simple failure to appeal the initial denial of benefits.
If your application for Social Security disability benefits has been denied and you are facing a hearing, New York disability attorney Herbert Forsmith can help. Call (212) 809-1772 or (845) 278-2896, or fill out the case evaluation form on this website.