How Long -- an Update

The statistics have been recently updated by NOSSCR. The average waiting time for a Social Security Disability hearing case at the Social Security Office of Hearings and Appeals in Knoxville, Tennessee is 490 days.

Unemployment Benefits or Disability Benefits?

With losses of jobs, many people file for Unemployment Benefits, while others turn to Social Security Disability benefits. A few do both. Here are some tips:

1. To receive unemployment in Tennessee, you must certify that you are READY to work, ABLE to work and LOOKING for work.

2. To receive Social Security Disability benefits, you must certify that you are UNABLE to work.

A person cannot have it both ways. If you elect to receive unemployment, you cannot claim to be disabled at the same time. In my experience, the Social Security judges take a dim view of people who take unemployment benefits, then ask for disability benefits at the same time. The Judges believe someone who does that is either lying to the State, or lying to the Federal government.

Get a free consultation and talk to us before filing for any benefit if you think you cannot work.

I have a new condition, do I get more in disability?

From time to time, a client whose case we have already won will call and tell me that their doctor has diagnosed them with a new condition that they did not have before and things are worse. They want to know, "Can I get more Social Security Disability benefits?"

The answer is "No." Think of Social Security disability benefits like a light switch. It is either on or off. There is no dimmer. The benefits you receive are tied to the amount of work and taxes you have paid over the years. Generally, the more you work, the more you earn, and the more taxes you pay over the years, the more you will receive in Social Security disability benefits.

Here is an article from the Asbury Park Press that gives a good explanation.