Obtaining Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is a difficult and complex process. Two out of every three applicants initially are denied. Gordon Adamson was losing his sight and enduring nerve damage when he experienced initial denial. In spite of his physical ailments, he persevered in his fight for the benefits he deserved. He shares his story here.

This is a true story as told to Allsup.
 

 

 

Thornton, Colorado—Gordon Adamson’s eyes were his lifeline. For more than nine years, the Thornton resident peered down the road, driving from house to house, examining properties to write appraisals.

 

He never really could see well on his own. “I had bad eyesight since the seventh grade,” he said. “But I could always correct my vision with glasses.”

 

His spectacles started to fail him in spring 2003. He first noticed a problem when he could no longer read address numbers from the street. “I hadn’t really seen anybody for my eyes,” he said. Having served in the military, his doctors were whoever was on call at the Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital.

 

“I called, and they told me I’d have to wait a year for an appointment,” he said. “I didn’t think I could wait that long. I went to see another eye doctor, and he said something was wrong.”

 

He referred Mr. Adamson to a specialist in Lafayette, Colo. “She examined me and told me I was in real trouble,” he said. The doctor performed laser treatments on his eyes, “and the treatment saved them,” Mr. Adamson said. “They actually improved.”

 

The improvement was only temporary. During treatment, the doctor diagnosed diabetic retinopathy, the most common diabetic eye disease and a leading cause of blindness in American adults. It is caused by changes in the blood vessels of the retina. Usually affecting both eyes, over time, diabetic retinopathy can get worse and cause vision loss.

 

A more somber diagnosis would also emerge. Mr. Adamson also had diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Diabetic neuropathy is nerve damage caused by diabetes. The type of neuropathy occurring in the arms, hands, legs and feet is known as diabetic peripheral neuropathy. The ailment usually develops slowly and worsens over time. Some patients have this condition long before they are diagnosed with diabetes.

 

Mr. Adamson’s appraisal days—and even casual times behind the steering wheel—were over, even if he did not know it at first.

 

“I didn’t realize I shouldn’t be driving,” he said, “until I was in a parking garage and my wife asked, ‘Didn’t you see that other car?’ I didn’t. She said I just missed him by inches. That’s when I knew something was wrong with my right eye and not correctable. I had to concentrate and couldn’t see instantaneously. The laser treatments helped but not totally.”

 

By February 2004, he could no longer drive to houses to appraise them. Some days he could see his computer screen but not on other days. “It was kind of funny,” he said. “I couldn’t do my job or any other job because my eyes were fluctuating.”

 

Physically unable to work, Mr. Adamson eventually decided to apply for disability. “My sister’s a nurse,” he said, “and she supported my decision. She also said I should get help. She was afraid I’d go to Social Security, they’d say no, and that would be it.”

 

So, on one of his good-vision days in July 2007, he prowled the Internet to research disability and saw an ad for Allsup, a company that helps people qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits.

 

“My sister and the doctor at the VA hospital said if I tried to get disability on my own, the answer would be no,” Mr. Adamson said. “So, I thought Allsup could do it because they don’t get paid if I don’t get awarded.”

 

He called and became one of thousands of people throughout the country helped by Allsup, the nation’s leading SSDI representation company. Allsup CEO and founder Jim Allsup started his company in 1984, after working for the Social Security Administration (SSA), to help people just like Gordon Adamson collect SSDI benefits. A nationwide company with headquarters in Belleville, Ill., near St. Louis, Allsup’s success rate is a staggering 97 percent. The company is so highly regarded that the Better Business Bureau has presented Allsup its Torch Award for excellence in customer service. Since 1984, the disability advocacy company has helped more than 100,000 people nationwide obtain more than $1.5 billion in SSDI and Medicare benefits.

 

The wait time just to process a case can be daunting. At the Denver office, as of June 2008, a claimant will wait an average of 452 days for a favorable or unfavorable initial decision. Across the nation, the waiting lines are getting even longer.

 

 

“The disability backlog challenge is so immense that it will take an all-hands-on-deck approach to resolve,” Mr. Allsup said. “Government and industry must work together to meet the demands of the disabled today and in the future. We see the impact of the problem every day as we work with tens of thousands of disabled individuals and their families.

 

“There is no question the Social Security Administration needs more resources to meet this challenge,” the CEO said. “Companies like Allsup contribute by providing solutions in the marketplace—helping disabled Americans navigate—and reduce the time spent in—the SSDI process. It is important that citizens with disabilities know they have options available to assist them in their time of need.”

 

Even with Allsup’s help, first- or even second-time SSDI approvals are far from certain. State employees without medical training in Disability Determination Services units routinely decide which SSDI applications are initially accepted or declined.

 

Allsup representatives had warned Mr. Adamson about the possibility of being initially declined before he started the disability application process. According to SSA’s own statistics, SSDI applications are denied 65 percent of the time at the first application level and 87 percent at the second level. Allsup clients fare a bit better with 47 percent and 79 percent denials at Levels 1 and 2 respectively.

 

The vast difference is evident at Level 3 where administrate law judges hear SSDI appeals. Here, the typical applicant is approved 62 percent of the time, while 92 percent of Allsup-aided clients are awarded benefits.

 

So it was with Mr. Adamson. “The first time I got turned down, I called Allsup,” he said. “They said, ‘That’s normal. Don’t worry about it. We’ll reapply.’ I was pretty discouraged but thought, ‘That’s the way it is.’ Allsup was very nice and gave me progress reports as we went along.”

 

He remained confident in Allsup. Yet, with no income, his medical bills were building up. He considered asking for early Social Security retirement, which would permanently reduce his benefits. His only hope was a change of heart from SSA.

 

The next step was Level 3, a hearing before an administrative law judge. This is where Allsup representative Elizabeth Minton came in. She is among many Allsup people who specialize in filing appeals. Many times the company can attain on-the-record hearings in which the court decides cases based on written briefs. Clients never have to leave their homes.

 

Even with her experience preparing for more than 10 court hearings per month, Ms. Minton knew Mr. Adamson presented a tough case. “It’s very hard to get approval based on diabetic peripheral neuropathy,” she said. “We knew the case would likely be awarded because of restrictions due to a combination of impairments.”

 

Allsup obtained documents from Mr. Adamson’s doctors that verified their patient’s condition and showed there was no other job he could do. Allsup specialists also dug deep into his medical records and treatment history to add details to previous information.

 

“VA medical records are not as detailed as required for court presentations,” Ms. Minton said. Her brief filled in the blanks, also asking that the court agree that the onset of Mr. Adamson’s disability occurred before he turned age 60. The combination of sickness and age, Ms. Minton hoped, would trigger a judgment in her client’s favor.

 

She was correct, as Mr. Adamson learned in August 2008. “Allsup called and said, ‘It looks like you’re going to get something,’” he said. “I heard from Social Security right after that.” He would receive not only monthly SSDI benefits but also a lump-sum back payment dating from the onset of his disability.

 

“I was all excited. I was able to take care of some financial worries and stuff,” he said. He also would not have to apply for Social Security retirement until he qualified for full benefits.

 

SSDI benefits will help him financially even as he continues his physical battles. “Some days I can see really well,” he said. “Some days I really can’t. I still can’t drive.”

 

He said he has no special plans, but the money coming in “freed me up to take care of financial stuff because I couldn’t contribute for such a long time.”

 

As for Allsup, he added, “I’m really pleased with their service. Those guys were really, really good.”