My SS attorney has told me to call my congressperson.

[OldBaldy1701E]

That is how f**ked up this entire thing is. They have gotten my application for supplementary income wrong for fourth time. They have put that we own the home. We don't. This is going to make the people assessing my request to believe that we own this place. They are going to tell me to f**k off for the second time in ten years. It is as if they are trying to make sure I cannot get any help from the federal government at all.

And people wonder why I am such a cynic...

(Yes, I am going to do it. Appealing to the same government that is denying me aid is an interesting proposition, but I guess I have no choice.)

[JohnSJ]

1. I might want to interview another attorney. If you are saying that the information in your

application is wrong, and your attorney is telling to call your congressperson, that isn't right.

If the information in your application is wrong, why isn't your attorney doing something about it to correct it?

[OldBaldy1701E]

2. She is.

I am about done with all of it. I cannot afford a real attorney and this constant shifting around means I am eventually going to sign something that I do not want to sign. I am about to be considered for SSI and this is the fourth time I have had to go through the exact same information with the same office. This is beyond insane. All I can do now is hope my congressperson's staff will give it the time of day. Because I doubt even a Congressperson can help me at this point.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

8. You can't afford a real attorney?

What exactly do you mean here? You're using a paralegal? Some random non attorney?

Attorneys who handle SS claims are as real attorneys as any others. I know. I used to work for an attorney who did SS disability denial claims. They are not paid up front. They get a percentage of what the client finally gets in back benefits, up to some certain specific amounts. She only took on those she was confident had been wrongly denied, and that she could actually help.

I do know that the reason most people are denied at first is NOT because they always deny the first request, but that people doing this on their own simply don't have a clue how much documentation is actually needed. A simple note from your doctor won't suffice. You need to give them copies of every procedure, every doctor visit, every medication, fill out a lengthy and detailed account of how you manage day to day. I spent most of my time at a local SS office photocopying piles and piles of documents.

[OldBaldy1701E]

9. You are correct. Please allow me to clarify my statement.

I cannot afford an attorney who will actually put in the time needed to handle this case. However, I found the statement from my latest attorney that I should contact my representative without even filing an appeal over the denial of the SSDI (this latest one was SSI, and the lawyer has not said a word about appealing that either) to be rather.... lazy?

I am aware of all the horror stories of being denied five times and so on. I am aware of all the tales of document hunting and so on. What I am not aware of is how I am suppose to survive while all this is going on. That is what I am not fucking aware of. And, no one seems to have any answers that don't translate into



So... yeah... feeling a bit anally penetrated these days...

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

10. When I was working for that attorney,

I couldn't comprehend how her clients survived while waiting to get SSI or SSDI.

The attorneys who handle these things do not require payment up front. And they are very limited in what they are allowed to eventually take from your benefit. So, not being able to afford an attorney? That should not be a thing.

And I really do want to tell you that being denied 5 times absolutely tells me the claimant was truly bad at understanding exactly the documentation needed. Yes, a lot is needed, but Social Security's website is extremely explicit about that.

[OldBaldy1701E]

11. Thanks for the input.

But, my point is that the type of attorneys you mention are not going to do enough to take care of this. That has been the result so far. It will take the kind of attorney that I cannot afford to make this happen.

Let me give you an example of what I mean. I have been in a few situations where I went to my doctor to see about dealing with some pain issues. They referred me to a 'pain clinic', all the while telling me that they cannot prescribe any pain medications. The pain clinic will always refuse me because I use cannabis. So, no pain meds for anything ever. Yet, the guy who owns our house goes to his doctor... his primary care physician... and he can get a script for opioid meds with no problem. Why? Well I go to a clinic... he goes to some expensive private doctor. That is why. Money talks and nothing else walks. Because he spent somewhere around $300,000 on his health last year (he is a hypochondriac and will run to the emergency room because he has the sniffles), they love him and want to keep him 'happy'. There is nothing in this country that isn't two-tiered. There is the country that the rich live in and there is the one that the rest of us live in. The fact that the rich want us to believe that we live in the same country is a testament to the human ability to be deluded. But, when one lives in a bubble, one only sees what is inside.

So, I am wasting my time because they are not going to give me squat. Ever. They want me to disappear so that they can make a grab for that nice SS pot of billions. But it won't be billions if they keep on giving it away to lowly peons like me. So, they won't.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

12. I think you are saying the attorneys aren't going to change the entire system.

That's correct. But case by case, they get SSI or SSDI for their clients. At the risk of repeating myself, most people haven't a clue just what they really need to document to get approval. It takes a whole lot more than a simple note from a doctor that you can't work anymore.

There's a presumption that someone under 50 can retrain for another job. Over 50, not so much. Also, going blind (as happened to my brother at age 50) will generally result in immediate granting of SSI, SSDI.

Again, Social Security's website contains all the information needed.

[OldBaldy1701E]

13. Both of my attorney's knew what documents I needed. It did not help.

And, if they did not know... well...

[Farmer-Rick]

3. Weaponized incompetence

It's how all benefits are distributed in the US to the middle class and poor.

This way when they tell you "no" by accident, they are not held responsible, (the stupid, ignorant clerks who make the mistakes keeps their jobs and continues to mess up.) they can make you wait years and they ensure a portion of people who actually qualify give up and never get their benefits.

If you are stupid Republicon you are more likely to get hired to these positions and if you are rude with no people skills, you get extra pay.

I tried to apply for Obama's homeowner mortgage assistance, which I qualified for, the clerk was so rude and condescending, I gave up. Luckily, I was able to increase farm sales and was able to catch up on my mortgage.

This must have happened to a lot of Americans because the money set aside for homeowners assistance, during the crash, was never used.

[OldBaldy1701E]

4. Bingo!

[CousinIT]

5. I've heard of many getting their SSI after contacting their congressional reps...

....I'd do that and work on getting that ownership issue corrected. I'm sorry you're going through this crap. Old and/or disabled people don't need to have to deal with this shit.

[1WorldHope]

6. Chuck Hagel helped a deaf blind refugee I was advocating for to get his citizenship accepted.

He was a Republican. A good Republican. You can't find one like him anymore. Also, find your local CIL, center for independent living, to advocate for you. It's a federally funded program and every state has one.

[OldBaldy1701E]

7. They turned me down for everything. It is over. (n/t)