What does the Social Security Administration look for when Evaluating SSD claims?

When the SSA or Social Security Administration begins a review of a claimant’s case, they are not really looking at the exact diagnosis of the claimant’s condition. Instead, they are looking for the effect of this diagnosis of disability on the ability to earn income and work. This is a single, fundamental aspect many claimants are not aware of. It is important to know this because it helps position the case in a better light. This is where the services of a social security disability lawyer can prove to be invaluable.

To evaluate SSD claims associated with disability, the examiner for DDS will review the past employment of the claimant to assess if he or she can resume to the earlier employment or transfer skills from this employment to other gainful employment. If the DDS reviewer finds that the claimant is not in a position to resume his or her earlier employment the examiner will proceed to the next phase of evaluation. This process involves ascertaining if the claimant can work on other kinds of jobs. These types of jobs are more suited to disabled persons and take into consideration previous experience and current physical condition of the individual.

When reviewing claims based on disability benefits, the evaluation process assumes more complex proportions. Other aspects like the candidate’s ability to perform finger movements or overhead reaching activities, ability raise an arm to shoulder height in cases of severe degenerative diseases, assumes more importance. As you can well imagine, there are subtle nuances in such a review. If you stay near South Carolina, it would be in your best interests to hire the services of a South Carolina disability lawyer to help understand these aspects.

Divorce is Contagious

Divorce cases seems to cluster but I have never been able to figure it out why. I wondered if it was the weather or when children are in school or something else. I was therefore intrigued to see articles recently about a study by Dr. Rose McDermott of Brown University of 12,000 Americans living in the town of Framingham, Massachusetts. The study found that divorce is contagious and can spread like a virus. The bad feelings and heated emotions that surround a marital split spreads like a disease, infecting couples with up to two degrees of separation from the rift, psychologists and sociologists report. The researchers have called it ‘divorce clustering’ and found that a split up between immediate friends increases a person’s own chances of getting divorced by 75 per cent. I assume this applies as well to high profile divorces reported in the media. This might explain why I see clusters of divorce cases. All of a sudden some celebrity is reported to get a divorce and couples start thinking maybe they should get divorced too. This may also affect how people get divorced. Adversary divorces get lots of publicity and divorce mediation gets very little if any publicity. Adversary divorce maybe contagious but mediated divorces are less so.

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM(185) 8/14/10

Divorcing the Wedding Gown

I loved the recent article in Arizona Daily Star by Phil Villarreal about what a former husband does with his former Wife’s wedding gown. See entire article and picture at http://tiny.cc/cdm7710 I have previously blogged about former spouse’s wedding rings and jewelry but this was a new angle. What is even more interesting is the former husband has created a blog and may get a book deal. I wonder if the former Wife will want part of the money he makes? Also, why did she not take her wedding gown? The former Husband’s final line is perfect. “ I don’t see it as a symbol of my failed marriage, he said, “I see it as a symbol of recovery.” He has treated his former Wife and children very well during the project. Too bad more people don’t feel this way. I wonder if he mediated his divorce.

As always, you can post any comment about this blog or Divorce Mediation, or just Mediation by following the directions at the right in the green column or at the bottom of this website. Learn more about mediation at http://www.center-divorce-mediation.com/ WM(184) 8/7/10