As a disability lawyer, there are many conversations I hate having with prospective clients. One of my least favorites is telling someone that their case is not very good. In effect saying “Maybe you are not disabled”.
A lady contacted the office and was upset that she had recently lost her 5th(!) disability hearing and was “looking for new representation” as “everyone was screwing up her case”.
My staff alerted me to the call and I visited with her.
Quickly I saw why this lady was denied multiple times. She wasn’t remotely disabled. This is not to say that she didn’t honestly believe that she was disabled.
I inquired about what she believed made her unable to work.
“I can’t drive”, “I can’t get a job that pays enough to cover my bills” and “I can’t afford a childcare” were the first 3 things that she responded. At that point, I realized, even the best disability lawyer in the world had no chance of winning her case.
As I’ve written before not being able to drive in and of itself doesn’t make you disabled.
Second, don’t confuse “needing the money” with having a winning disability case.
Like it or not, YOU have to prove you are disabled. SSA literally deals with thousands of people every day who need the money just as bad as you do (or worse).
Don’t fall into the cycle of convincing yourself that you have a good case because of your financial need and never looking closely enough at your actual medical record. You need medical evidence and lots of it. Going to the doctor once or twice a year is not enough in 99% of cases before the Springfield Missouri ODAR hearing office.
Find ANSWERS to your problems. You don’t have health insurance? As unfair as it is, SSA does not care if you have taken no action to find any. Frankly, it proves to them you are not hurting too badly.
Can’t find a doctor. Have you looked everywhere?
Have you applied for Missouri Health Net or contacted your local health department? Have you looked for free clinics or sliding scale treaters? Have you applied for OBAMACARE?
You can’t afford medications. Have you asked about medication plans available through the pharmacy company or local health care providers and pharmacies?
Your friend, cousin, neighbor’s successful disability case is irrelevant to yours. Even though you may believe “there is nothing wrong with them” I can assure you that they had significant medical evidence of their limitations.
The reality is that disability lawyers are not miracle workers. Even the best disability lawyer can only work with medical evidence. If you don’t have medical evidence your disability lawyer has nothing to work with.
If you are looking to find disability lawyers in Springfield Missouri, evaluate the hard reality that “maybe you are not disabled” before reaching out.