Tampa social security lawyer

Q: How long before I am covered for Medicare?

A: A social security lawyer will tell you that, if you’re retired, Medicare is fairly simple. If you are 65 years old or older, and worked for at least ten years in a Medicare covered job, you will generally be eligible for Medicare even if you’re working. If you are under 65 and suffering from a disability, you may also be eligible for Medicare. But for these applicants, it may be a good idea to speak to a social security lawyer or advocate about several complications involved with receiving coverage for a disability.

If you don’t talk to a social security lawyer or advocate when your disability first presents itself, you may not know that you will have to wait 24 months for Medicare coverage. This is a two year waiting period that starts when your disability begins. In order to receive Medicare coverage for your disability, you are also required to be eligible for social security disability. Unfortunately, the combination of the waiting periods for both social security disability and Medicare coverage can make for a very long Medicare wait. It’s generally a good idea to speak with a social security lawyer at the beginning of the process to gauge how long your wait may be.

Q: The SSA says I am short one credit to apply for disability insurance. What, exactly, do they mean?

A: Social Security Disability eligibility is a complex system (which is why it’s a good idea to work with a social security lawyer). In order to qualify as “insured” under SSD, most adults need to have earned 20 credits during the last ten years (counting towards your total number of working credits). This is a rolling ten year period that is supposed to end on the day that your disability is judged to have begun.

Unfortunately, due to the combination of rules requiring a certain number of credits for people of a certain age, and a certain number of those credits earned in the last 10 years, not meeting the credit requirements is easy. A social security lawyer will tell you that this often happens when an applicant simply hasn’t worked enough. Unfortuantely, though, it can also happen when you’ve waited too long to apply for SSD, or when a judge has decided to change your disability’s official onset date. In this case, you should speak to a social security lawyer to better understand you options for appeals, etc.

Q: If I have an SSD claim pending, can I still work?

A: Your social security lawyer will describe disability that is eligible for benefits as any that keeps you from earning a substantial income. This doesn’t necessarily mean, though, that you cannot work at all. If the amount you earn falls below the income limit for “substantial gainful activity,” it may not affect your claim. You may want to speak with a social security lawyer to learn more.