How Many Stage 4 Girls are getting SS disability..
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Isn't it awful the hoops we have to go through to get something we actually worked for? I will have to look at those booklets they gave me to read and see if they answer any of your questions....oh, and there is a website where you can ask these questions on line and they get back to you pretty fast. My friend used it to to ask something we forgot.....since I am not at all organized she went with me when I went to talk to them.
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It sure is. After reading the site, I got the impression that (unless you're blind, a Senior or mentally retarded) that you are only allowed to try the ticket to work - that's 9 only months.
I agr w/ jjb - it would take my mind off things for a few hrs a week & the extra income would help pay a bill - certainly not enough to support me.
Does anyone know different?
Thanks for answering my questions from earlier. I'm going to provide them w/ all of my records - I don't want anything holding the decision up or risk anything getting lost. I just did the application online yesterday - whew!
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I was approved for SSDI within two weeks of applying, once they saw my Dx of Stage IV IBC. It really helps supplement my DH's salary, as I am not able to work right now due to extreme fatigue.
Bette
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I have a question maybe someone knows the answer- I was diag. with stage 4 soon after my stage 2 surgery. Mets to bone was subtle. Right now, I am on unemployment benefits (was laid-off in Feb 08). Can I qualify for SSD since I am stage 4 or do I have to be off unemployment benefits first for some time. I also own a house that I rent out. Does that make a difference also.
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Breast cancer stage 4 is an automatic approval. I know it may seem overwhelming, but once you get thru it, you will be much happier. Call Social Security or go to www.ssa.gov. I found them to be very easy to work with. The only problem is the long waiting period before you get a check. This thread is really great! Be sure to read through it thoroughly. I am not sure how the unemployment benefits play into the picture, but owning your house will have nothing to do with it.
Good luck and apply today!
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Hi,
I am stage 4 and am in my 2nd month of the application process. I have been coaxing it along hoping to facilitate an expidited claim. Let's keep our collective fingers crossed!!
Debra
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Does any one know if you have to be absolutely not working to go on SS Disab? I am currenntly working full time, I'm planning on going on short term disability which means I will get paid 60% of pay for 90 days, then I can go on long term disability. Now, can I also apply for state disability (in my case NJ)? If so, how long is the waiting period? I just need to supplement the 40% I will no longer get and I am the main provider in my house (hubby and 2-yr old daughter). If I can ride this out, then I will apply for SS disability, If I feel like I want to go back to work, I will do a process called Trial work Program, then possibly return to work part time.
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I was able to draw (NY) state disability along with accumulated sick time through work until my waiting period was completed for SSDI. The two of them provided me with my usual amount of pay I received while working. Now I am receiving the SSDI and long term disability through work for a total of 60% of what I was earning when I stopped working. Once you are on SSDI, you can also apply for any disability benefits you have on any loans that qualify. I had a $400 car payment that is now being paid by their disability plan, and a $350 parent loan for my daughters college that is also being paid. They even sent me a check for the payments I had made from the time I stopped work to the time they started paying. It was a nice surprise!! It requires a lot of paperwork for you and your physician office, but so worth it. I have also applied for a continuation of pay on my term life insurance through work, so I will still have the coverage, but I don't have to pay the premium. So you see, if you take advantage of all of these available savings, even though your only making 60% of your previous pay, it works out to be comparable in the long run. Good luck... for a while, the paper work is practically a full time job but so worth it. Linda
Edited to correct first sentence. Linda
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Hi everyone. I'm considering going on SS disability. We've got some savings, but waiting 6 months for the first SS check will be tough.
Is it possible / legal / ethical, to take FMLA for the first 12 weeks of "disability"? As I understand it, if you are eligible for FMLA, your employer has to continue to pay their part of your health insurance, if you are already covered through them. That way I wouldn't have to start with COBRA until after the FMLA coverage runs out.
Any thoughts about this? Would you do it if it were possible, even if you didn't expect to go back to work?
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One more question~
If you have an individual disablity policy that kicks in after 90 days of unemployment, can you then still apply for SS disability? Or more precisely, would you get any benefits after 5-6 months of not working?
Kelly
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I am in the process of applying...waiting to hear that everything has been approved. When I submitted the application the only thing they really seemed concerned about was the last day that I was physicallly at work. I was told that being out for FMLA made no difference in the date calculation they just count from the last day you showed up to work. SS disability payments are based on what you have payed into the system over your career so eligibility is not determined by other policies or income you may have. (I think it is SSI that some people may qualify for based on total family assets/income...I don't know much about that.)
Mindy
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Nanalinda Thanks for the useful information!
So here is the timeline I am currently looking at:
- Week of August 11- File for FMLA (which has nothing to do with pay, just a protection from job loss)
- August 31 - last day of work
- Sept 1 - 15 - Paid FMLA; currently have only under 1 month of vacation and sick pay due to being on FMLA around the same time last year (this is the part I would hate);
- Sept 1 - Apply for NJ Disability
- Apply for SSDI
- Apply for STD through employer
- October 1 - STD benefits through employer start (60% pay)
- NJ disability benefits start (maybe? I'm still looking into this)
- March 2010 - SSDI benefits start (or sooner)
I think from all the research I've done this is an accurate timeline which means mid-September will be a little tougher on us. There's an earlier post here about going on SSDI then returning to work for a bit, which I would prefer to do so that I will continue to get health benefits, but I have to think about that one because working part time hours means I have to pay more for benefits.
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There is a program called TRIAL WORK PERIOD with SSDI. Here's a very great link about this topic: http://www.apla.org/programs/workservices/ssdi.html.
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Bumping for Connie.
Connie, this thread has been going for a long time and a lot of the information is repeated. At one point Pinehouse had condensed a lot of it and put it on her blog for easy access to metsters. She died last month, unfortunately, but the info is still on her blog, and she did a good job of making it understandable.
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Bump.
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I applied for SSD about 4 weeks ago and was approved in about 2 weeks. I haven't gotten any letter from them yet but I heard that you have to wait 6 months before you get your 1st check. Does anyone know if you get a lump sum for the 6 months you had to wait or do the payments start after the 1st 6 month waiting period?
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No, you do not get paid for the mandatory waiting period. Only if you were off work due to your disability for greater than six months do you get any sort of .lump sum'.
Now I have a question of my own. Brenda (Analemma) you say the 2 year waiting period for Medicare begins the date of your first month you get paid. I understood it to be your first month of eligibility for SSDI. Could you direct me to a link or a quote from the regulations regarding this issue? It is a matter of six months at stake here!
Thanks.
Lisa
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Lisa, I'll look for something on their site, but in the meantime, let me tell you that I was pronounced disabled on May 1, 2007, became eligible for benefits on October 1, 2007 (5 months waiting period). I did not make my application until January of 08, and in late January I received a lump sum for three months in arrears, October, November, and December.
This summer I got my notifications about Medicare, and I had to make some choices because I would be eligible on October 1. And I have my card, and it says October 1. So, yes, two years from when you begin receiving benefits, NOT when you are pronounced disabled. It SUCKS for those that are trying to maintain their own coverage.
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This is a huge link, I tried to paste the text but I couldn't. It says you get Medicare 24 months from when you are eligible to receive benefits, not the month you get your first check.
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i was diagnosed stage iv 11/08, applied for ss/disability and was approved, however, there is a 5 month waiting period before first payment is received.
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no lump payment after the wait
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I just got approved and got my first payment last week. THANK YOU to all of you who contributed all this valuable information to this thread!
Just to clarify about the posts about lump payments - that's true, you don't get anything for the first five months after diagnosis, but if you have allowed more than five months to go by before you apply, you'll get a lump payment for the remaining months. So, for example, if your five-month waiting period was done in October but you didn't actually apply and start getting benefits until December, then your first check would be a lump sum for October, November, and December.
My benefits started in October, but I didn't get the kids' applications completed until today, so next month they will each get a double payment to cover October and November.
If you have kids under 12, you can request dependents' benefits for your kids. If you don't need the money for them immediately, it is okay to save it for their college fund - the use just has to be something that benefits the kids. I am very grateful for this, as I may not be alive to contribute to my kids' support by the time they go off to college.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to everybody who posted to this thread and clued me in about my eligibility for benefits. I would not have known about it otherwise.
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Anne, Congratulations.
I have put mine on hold and am going to continue working since I am feeling good now that I am off the chemo .
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Thanks, Marybe, and congratulations to you that you are feeling well enough to keep working!
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My insurance company through my husband's work just contacted me on getting SS and disability and said they would do all paperwork for free. I am only stage 1, as far as I know, but is my 2nd time with breast cancer. 1st time was 13 years ago. I was just wondering if only stage IV's were eligible? The person I talked to thought I had a good case, especially since I had brain surgery with complications 2 years ago for a benign tumor. Did not feel comfortable going back to my job as a personal trainer after that. Was now thinking of going back, until I got hit with the breast cancer thing again! Do you all think I could or should get the SS and Medicare?
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Jsh,
There are two ways you can qualify for SS disability. The more common way is a lengthy process through which you must prove that you are unable to work. The second way is to have a "listed condition" - a diagnosis that is on the Social Security Administration's list of conditions that are so severe that they qualify you as disabled without having to prove you cannot work.
Stage IV breast cancer is one of the "listed conditions." And since it is also a "condition that is expected to end in death," they can expedite the application process if you're at stage IV.
Since your cancer is only stage I, you don't have a listed condition, so you would have to go through the process to prove that you are unable to work or that your condition is so severe that it's equivalent to a "listed condition."
You could try, but it is a tough standard to meet, and a long process. If your insurer is offering to do all the paperwork for free, you may as well let them try - can't hurt to try.
My understanding of Medicare eligibility is that you have to have been on SS disability for two years before you become eligible for Medicare.
You can find more information on the Social Security website at ssa.gov.
Anne
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I am stage III and get SSDI. It is a combination of health issues that made me eligible. I went from full time employment to part-time with the same employer and didn't make over the allowable $$$ and was approved. I continued to work for 3 years after being approved for SSDI. I had insurance through my employer (20 hours/week ins. is available) I didn't get medicare until after I left my job. I knew when I was leaving and applied for medicare and it went into force when my private insurance lapsed. I also got 1 year back pay when it was approved.
In addition to my SSDI, I get a widow's benefit.
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Well, you know it's sort of a catch 22. I would get more money going on disability now than I would get from SS if I work until I am 62, I would have to work until I am 66 to get what I would on disability now. Something is wrong with that picture. But for me work is therapy. Even my doctors realize that. However, I do not want to work until I am 66. Another year or two and I will be happy and ready to move back to my hometown.
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bumping up
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I was diagnosed with Stage IV in 09/09. I was told about SS disability for "compassion allowance" and went last week to social security and applied. Don't know the answer yet.
Feb 9, 2010: Took a little over four weeks for the process to be "done deal." Received first SSDI check. Jean
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