Your Social Security Questions, Answered

Confused about Social Security? You’re not alone. Tom Margenau writes in his new “Social Security And You” column:

Q: I’ve filed for Social Security disability benefits five times. I’ve had five separate hearings — three of them before the same judge — and my claims still get denied, even though my condition continues to worsen. Do you have any advice for me?

A: My advice would be to accept the inevitable, give up filing for disability benefits, and channel those energies into looking for a job.

If you had filed for Social Security disability benefits once and been turned down, I would have told you to file an appeal, or perhaps start a whole new claim. If you had been turned down twice, I would have suggested you seek help from a lawyer who specializes in Social Security disability cases. (You’ll find them listed in the Yellow Pages of any phone directory or by simply doing a Google search.)

But if you’ve filed five separate claims for Social Security disability benefits; been turned down five times; taken each of those claims all the way through the appeals process to hearings before a judge; and had all five appeals rejected, then I think it’s about time you realize your impairment obviously does not meet the legal definition of a disability for Social Security purposes.