I have just completed all the forms for long term disability from my husband's employer. Is it true because of my husband's age(58) he will get long term disability until he retires at age 70. I was told not file for Social Security until he reaches 67. Is this the right information? Or does long term disability stop after a certain time or does it continue until he retires

I believe that long term disability depends on the insurance policy. Ask the human resource department, and please talk to an elder lawyer to see what you should do next.

angelb,

The answer is it depends on the Company's LTD plan. You should contact the HR department to request a summary plan desacription (SPD) on the plan. The SPD will spell out eligibiliy requirements,how long the LTD will be in effect (several plans limit LTD coverage to 24 months, typically for mental health illnesses), conditions on when the plan will stop paying, etc. Please note, if he qualifies, most plans will deduct certain types of income from the monthly payment. For example, if your husband qualifies for an LTD payment of $1800/mo. and he receives a monthly SSDI payment of $1000/mo., typically the plan will reduce the $1800 by the ssdi PAYMENT OF $1000 ($1800-$1000 = $800) and he will receive a monthly $receives the monthly LTD of $800. Beware, if he receives the LTD payments before he qualifies for SSDI, once he quaifies for SSDI, the total back amount will be applied against the LTD payments already paid and you could end up owing the Company money due to the LTD "over payments". Please contact the HR department to help you understand the options.

Please call the HR dept. ASAP and get everything in writing. What everyone has said is true. I had received LTD from my company. The LTD Co. required that I apply for social security disability (they did help me fill out the forms). I, also, had to see a SSD MD. I did receive LTD and the SSD which was deducted from my LTD. I had to pay back the LTD because I received retro SSD. Please seek some assistance from an elder attorney if possible.

Good Luck.

Keep us posted.

Peace and Hope,

Angelb,
How are you doing? Did you receive disability?

Please, let me know.

Peace and Hope,

Have not received disability as of yet. I can't believe how long it takes. I just heard from a rep the other day saying they are reviewing the claim now. My hubby has been out of work 1 full year.

I applied for long term disability from my job, it didn't take long at all, I had short term for awhile, also. I had to apply for SSD & that took about three months to be approved. That was this past June I was sent the first check, them long term disability takes out what SS pays and sends me the rest. Does that make sense? I have trouble at times trying to make sense. I think it is terrible we have to go through and this waiting when we work all our life and this happens. Sometimes I wonder about our government. I also can keep my cobra until my medicare kicks in Dec. this year. I was also told my Cobra it could go up 500% it all depends on my prior emplorer. So, I hate to see what it will be. I now pay $370.00 a month. I don't understand why we have to wait two years.So many things these days don't make sense.

Sharon

LISA 428,
My hubby just got approved the other day......finally I can't believe how long it takes. They are requiring that we file for SSDI now as well. I don't get how this all makes sense and noone explains it.
It is true that my hubby can collect LTD until age 70 and then he must retire. Is this what everyone else is told?
How is everyone handling deductions from the long term disability? Do you suppose to have anything taken out of it or do you wait until the end of the year?

Our plan does pay my mom until she is 70, but that is not a given with every plan. You have to check with the company paying him. Mom's case is to be reviewed every 2 years (coming up this June). You may not have seen another post I did about this, but when Prudential made mom apply for Social Security Disability they denied (????) her on the first attempt. Prudential has to continue paying the full amount, I expect they will make us apply for SSD again after this review of her case. There is no question she will be approved for another 2 years.

We are having taxes taken out of mom's disability payments, she also gets Social Security (regular retirement she took at age 65) and we want to make sure she does not owe taxes. It's up to you, though.

I have seen social security disability claims that took 20 years to resolve! That case was won after two appeals and the individual received $95,000 in past benefits as did his minor children. However, I think social security's delay, delay, and hopefully they will die policy really sucks. I have heard that the AZ association is trying to get this policy overruled and certainly that should happen! Feel like going postal and arriving at the social securty office with my shotgun.

I've been trying for 2 years and won't get my day in court until at least March of next year. It will be 3 years by then. Sure am getting tired of waiting. At this rate I will be collecting my social security retirement before I can get disability.

whitewater you haven't posted since June. How are you doing? Can you tell us more about yourself?

Cheri, why is it taking so long?

Iris L.

angel,

There is a big value to getting SSDI approved. Even though it will likely be deducted from the LTD payment, it will continue after retirement.

If he does not work up to retirement, his payments will be lower than they could be because of his reduced earning in his last years before retirement.

SSA has a benefits calculator that can be used to try some hypothetical situations. Since LTD is usually not a FICA income, his wages will be nil.

The SSDI payment will continue after the LTD ends and if it is a larger amount that SS retirement, it will continue at the higher amount.

Also, SSDI is based on the FICA earning from the previous years. If you delay filing, his FICA earning will be less.

The issue of filing for SS retirement can be tricky. If his health is declining, take it at the earliest date possible.

There is a way to reapply for SS retirement at a later date. It is above board and legal. You pay back the previous years of the lesser amount and reapply for the higher benefit. Then, you/he gets the higher amount based on the older retirement age. This only works if you have the cash reserves to pay back and a good idea of long life expectancy. Probably not for AD types.

CheriB,

I got my SSDI approval on March 20, 2009 after first applying in June 2006. Three years is the average wait until the SSDI gets more Administrative law judges hired and trained. There is an expectation of a new crop of judges being ready next year.

I've just read every thread on SSDI i could find here. Although it was very overwhelming, it was also very helpful. I wonder if anyone knows if I can apply for SSDI being that I am currently receiving unemployment benefits? I have been on unemployment for the past 5 months since I lost my job. Each time I have to claim my weeks it asks if I am able to accept work and I have to answer yes to receive the benefit. What a dillemna! I can't let go of the Unemployment Benefit because I will have nothing, but want to start the SSDI process. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Gina, It's vital that your doctor states that your medical condition makes you unable to work according to SSA criteria.

Here is a link that will give you more information.
http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify5.htm

Iris L.

Actually, the SSA does not consider what a SSDI applicant's doctor says. They make their own decisions.

It is beneficial if the doctor lists the things that she can not do. Things like stand for a prolonged period, recall information, tolerate a noisy work environment, be able to control emotions in a stressful situation.

His diagnosis of disabled or unable to work will be meaningless. Get a broad list of the symptoms. The SSA has a Blue Book of neurological and mental conditions available online.

Download it and read the neuro and mental illness parts. Find the symptoms that relate to your condition and ask the doctor to confirm those symptoms.

The mental illness symptoms will hold more weight. Only intractable epilepsy works for a disabling neurological problem. Dementia is listed as more of a mental illness. Remember, this is our government at work. Logic is not a requirement.

I have very little short term and immediate visual and auditory memory and a slowed ability to process information.

The SSA psychologist approved me for SSDI because I also have difficulties tolerating most work environments. My approval was psychological based, not based any my organic dysfunction of my brain.

My neuro had reported me as "whole man disabled", a AMA medical term used in disability cases with insurance companies. His report was meaningless to the SSA.

Good luck with this.

Thank you both. I have copied and pasted all your suggestions and will begin looking into the rules and requirements. It seems this will be a full time job for a while. I also have an appointment at the Mayo Clinic on Dec 7th for a second opinion for what ever that is worth.

I'm finding myself really anxious these past few days. A delayed reaction to my diagnosis of EOAD. That is usually how I operate, I am strong and feel fine for a while, take care of everyone else and then feel the feelings. I wake up crying most mornings ( I suppose this is when my defenses are down), but then get up and "function" for the rest of the day with an anxious stomache.

Tomorrow I am going to NY for a visit with my brother and many friends up there (NY is my real home). I will tell my brother about the situation then, he has no idea. I am concerned about his reaction, I hate making people feel sad. I think he will be more concerned for his own memory problems. My father had pretty bad dementia by his late 60's.
It will be good to be with everyone for a week though. Thanks again.

P.S. Is there spell check on this?

Hi Gina, and may I say I'm impressed at your work ethic? Feel the feelings, and keep doing what you need to do - - we don't function any better than that, so keep hanging in there.

Re: SSDI, my wife and I both are overwhelmed at all the intricacies and timelines and stuff. That's why I've gone with a service that helps get SSDI, called Allsup. They do an initial screening interview, before accepting someone. Once accepted, if you hang in there with them, they have a 98% success rate. I'm very happy with their customer service. I have my administrative law judge hearing in a couple of weeks, and they're sending someone to represent me.

There are laws re: what a SSDI service can charge. I consider it cheap, as I couldn't have done this alone.

http://www.allsup.com/

Alan,
I have seen that a number of people have mentioned Allsup. Good to hear that you are satisfied with them, that helps making the decision to call them easier. I will absolutely look them up.
Thanks

The SSDI attorneys have a conflict that you need to understand. They get a percentage of your back pay award. 25% up to $5300. Mine could have prepared and filed a request for "On the Record Review." This is a hearing by paper only. No in-person hearing. They can be much quicker that an ALJ Hearing.

My attorney, who is highly regarded, would not pursue the On The Record review. If she had done it at the earliest, it would have decreased her fee by about $1000. She was non-committal when I asked her to file it.

It currently takes 18 months to get an ALJ Hearing in most areas.

If Alsup can get you approved at the first application or even at reconsideration, you could end up with a lower fee than the full $5300. There appear to be some insider communications that the attorneys have access to. I could not get the people at Disability Determination Service to explain anything that was going on.

My first denial was just standard procedure. My second denial at Reconsideration was after a SSA paid psych test that reported that I was disabled. The reviewer at DDS was math dead and did not know how to read my income statement so he denied me for making above Substantial Gainful Activity income. I did not learn this reason until my attorney saw it in the SSA records.

So, as Alan has said, the paperwork can be a struggle. Not as much for those who are employees and have paychecks to show being below Substantial Gainful Activity.

We need SSA to establish some better standards for dementia. The Blue Book sets them well but the reviewers seem to ignore them. I think they are swimming in a river in Egypt.

Have you had a recent neuro-psych assessment? My Neuro-psych report was getting old by the time I had my ALJ Hearing and I had to get a current one to show at the hearing. I did not trust the SSA report since it had been denied before.

Oddly enough, both neuro-psych reports said the same at 5 years apart. And they agreed with the SSA psych report. Go figure.

quote:

The SSDI attorneys have a conflict that you need to understand. They get a percentage of your back pay award. 25% up to $5300. Mine could have prepared and filed a request for "On the Record Review." This is a hearing by paper only. No in-person hearing. They can be much quicker that an ALJ Hearing.

Allsup tried to get me approved On the Record. I'm pretty sure that trying to get that approval is standard for them. The thing to remember about the money is, any service will have to send an advocate with you to your hearing. That expense has to be deducted from their percentage, so there would be a break-even point where it made sense to get us approved earlier.

My hearing is week after next Tuesday. The hearing judge has called in two expert witnesses to testify as to my various doctors' reports, but I'm told they'll not take much time.

Nervous? Wait, let me check . . . is there an elephant sitting on my chest? If not, then I'm stressed.

Alan, Good to hear that Alsup tried the On The Record Review.

The two witnesses are usually a vocational specialist who makes vocational recommendations and a doctor, either Ph.D Psych or M.D.

At my hearing, it appeared that the voc specialist is almost a fixture at hearings.

Too bad they do not appear to use a voc specialist at the earlier reviews.

Good luck, and relax.

My judge was fabulous. She was very low key.

I had prepared a written statement about my need to keep stress levels and fast speaking to a minimum. She was very accommodating.

So, chill, or maybe I should say, stay warm.

Due to the limit of testimony time allowed at the hearings, the preparation by the attorneys is not extensive. It is more about "knowing the ropes" than a fancy legal presentation.

From the documentation I saw, my attorney spent no more than a few hours (2 to 3) preparing and one hour at the hearing. They like to schedule multiple hearings on the same day for the same Applicants attorney since the attorneys often travel a ways to the hearing location.

My judge came down from Bozeman Montana to Boise. Judge Pugrud, nice lady.

I did not use a legal service. I was approved the first time based on my doctors' medical reports.

Iris L.

Mark, thank you, it seems clearer now.

Iris, I'm so happy for you, not having to go through the longer process. I sure wish I'd been approved right off. But, I can accept now. Well, not now, but however many months after the hearing, that the SSDI and Medicare process takes.

I just want it (SSDI application process) to be over, while I can still appreciate it.

Alan, I did not realize you are going through the primary process. I thought you were awaiting a review. About every five to seven years I get called in for a medical exam by SSA's consultants. In 2003 SSA said that my doctor said I was improved. I was dropped from SSDI, but I appealed and was re-instated.

I'm sorry you have come to this point but I wish that SSA will accept your claim and grant your disability insurance.

Iris L.

The hearing judge may rule at your hearing. If so, your SSDI letter will come in 10 to 45 days. Your first check will follow within a few weeks.

My hearing was March 20. I got approved at the hearing. I deposited my back pay check on April 24. I have heard of faster and slower situations.

Medicare will start the first month after your approval. For me, it started on April 1. I had already paid $432 for my private health insurance so I was double covered.

I suspect you have already gone past the two year waiting period since the start of your disability. If so, Medicare starts immediately.

If I had known that Medicare would start so fast, I would have withheld my premium payment. I have a month grace period before they cancel my health insurance. Once paid, they did not allow a refund even though I received no health care benefits.

If you can, you might want to delay your November premium if it does not cause problems. At our age, health insurance premiums can be steep.

I haven't been tested or diagnosed, YET. But with my family history and showing some signs, it's most likely I will have it at some point. Hopefully much later than sooner.

Reading this thread, I just feel so bad for most of you, who are not only struggling with a disability, but having to deal with all the bureaucracy and financial burden of getting what you have paid into and need immediately.

I didn't have to deal with SSDI for my mom or dad, but I may have to with me.

I've been unemployed since moving in to care for both my mom and dad, since 1998. Before that I was self-employed. I don't know how all this will work for me, if need be. But with everything else, I'll just wait and cross that bridge when I have too.

All y'all have to go through just really URKS me.

Just wanted to jump in and say, y'all are very brave and have become my heroes and mentors.

You've become very near and dear to my mind and heart.

quote:

I suspect you have already gone past the two year waiting period since the start of your disability. If so, Medicare starts immediately.

Yeah, it's been a while since I started down this path. When I first thought I might really be in trouble, I told myself I wouldn't even think about SSDI, until a doctor brought it up. So, I applied about 20 months ago. Turned down on first try. Colorado doesn't have an appeal level other states have, so I went straight to the hearing level. My hearing is November 10.

Becky, if you ever decide to proceed with testing, I suggest you go for the neuropsychological testing first. Early on, the various imaging tests can rule out lots of things, but it's unusual to be able to see Alzheimer's on scans until well into the disease. My MRI showed just a little damage, but my neuropsych testing found loads of stuff.

Becky,

You should check with SSA and see if you have the FICA credits for SSDI. If you don't, or if you do not have enough, you might want to see if you can find a way to claim income for 'working' for your parents. If it has been 10 years since you had FICA income, you may be in a dilemma.

You can earn up to four credits each year and you usually need up to forty credits with twenty credits earned in the last ten years ending with the year you become disabled.

Claiming wages from your parents would just be filing a 1040 for the max income you can show without having to pay income taxes. Then, you would pay FICA taxes and maintain your eligibility for SSDI.

You may have the annual SSA statement of benefits earned that will tell you where you stand.

They make things difficult for those who take responsibility, like stopping work to care for family, or like me. I continued working at a very reduced level after onset and diagnosis of dementia in 2001.

My wife HAD to assist me with all of my work. When I finally applied for SSDI in 2006, my FICA wage history was much lower than it was up to 2001. Cost me about $200 per month in reduced benefit. I did not apply for SSDI until we realized that my wife was getting physically impacted from helping me.

As Alan noted, his neuro-psych assessment showed more serious dementia than imaging will show, especially early on. SSDI will use the neuro-psych but not the imaging. They award on symptoms that limit, not images that represent those symptoms, unless you have a bad back or the like.

quote:

Originally posted by angelb:
I have just completed all the forms for long term disability from my husband's employer. Is it true because of my husband's age(58) he will get long term disability until he retires at age 70. I was told not file for Social Security until he reaches 67. Is this the right information? Or does long term disability stop after a certain time or does it continue until he retires

I never gave any thought to how other companies handled their long term disability. The company I worked for made it mandetory for me to apply for Social Security disability in order to qualify for their long term disability and they reduce their pay-out by the amount I initial received from SSA disability. Still the result is more money than SSA alone. However my disability is physical, not a mental issue. Now I am caretaker for my wife with early onset dementia and believe me it's not easy in my condition. She has an ALZ-like dementia, but the symptoms, though mostly like ALZ all came in an order, severety and rate of progression that defies the norm of EOAD. After five years, I am finding it necessary to arrange for long-term care for her, as she is now acting out with some spontaneous violent behavior in addition to all the rest of the symptoms. For the 26 years that we have been married, she has been the most kind, loving and gentle person I have ever known and her parents tell me she has been of that personality from a young child. She is now only 56 years old.