Sometimes people get in a situation where they want to prove to Social Security that they became disabled at an earlier date. Here area a few common reasons this can happen:
ONE: EXPIRED WORK CREDITS
In order to apply for some forms of Social Security, you need work credits. Unfortunately, sometimes people wait too long to apply and their work credits expire. If you want to find out if your work credits have expired you can check your Date Last Insured. If your credits have expired, don’t panic, you may still have options. One option is to go back in time and prove you became disabled before your work credits expired. Other options can be found here: How To Apply For Disability if You Don’t Have Enough Work Credits
TWO: ADULT DISABLED CHILD BENEFITS
If you first became disabled before the age of 22, you may be eligible for a special benefit called Disabled Adult Child Benefits. If you are now over the age of 22, but still want to try to get Adult Disabled Child benefits, you are going to have to go back in time! Read on.
THREE: EXTRA BENEFITS
Proving an earlier onset date can also have additional financial benefits:
💕It can mean more back pay, in some cases. However, no matter when your onset date is, back pay will never be more than date of application (for SSI) or 12 months before date of application (for SSDI). The only exception would be if you get an earlier claim reopened.
💕 It can mean a higher monthly disability check, in some cases. For SSI, changing onset date will have no impact. However, for SSDI, a check can go up if onset date is earlier. This happens because on the onset date you go into a “disability freeze” and years with $0 of income will no longer lower your check.
HOW TO GO BACK IN TIME
🌸 If your work credits are expired, you will need to prove that your disability began before your Date Last Insured
🌸 If you are trying to get Adult Disabled Child benefits, you will need to prove that your disability began before you turned 22.
🌸 The way to prove this is by collecting and submitting old medical records from the correct time period
🌸 In some cases, it can also be helpful to get written statements from your doctor about when your disability began.
WHAT’S YOUR ONSET DATE
🌸 Your onset date is the date you first became disabled.
🌸 When you first apply, you will tell Social Security what you think your onset date is. This is called your “alleged onset date.”
🌸 After the decision, Social Security will tell you what they think your onset date is. This is called your “established onset date.”
🌸 Obviously, you hope they will pick the date you picked.
🌸 For Disabled Adult Child benefits, you hope they will pick a date before you turned 22.
🌸 For expired work credits, you hope they will pick a date before your Date Last Insured.
GETTING THE RIGHT ONSET DATE
🌸 If you don’t like the date you first wrote down on your application, you or your lawyer can change it later. However, the date you write is usually not that important. What is important is showing evidence that you were disabled at an earlier time.
🌸 Sometimes Social Security picks an onset date that seems somewhat random! Or they will see one thing on a medical record somewhere and decide that is your onset date!
🌸 While you can’t control what onset date they pick, you can try to point out to them any medical documentation that shows you were disabled around the onset date you hope they will pick.
🌸 Onset dates are sometimes set based on the last date you worked.
🌸 Other times they are tied to a specific medical record. For example: the date your doctor wrote a prescription for a wheelchair, the date you had a car accident, the date you had an MRI that showed abnormal results, or the date you had a psychological assessment showing major symptoms.
🌸 Records before and after your onset date will also be considered.
COLLECTING MEDICAL RECORDS
🌸 We would suggest that you to track down and get your past records yourself and give them to Social Security (or to your lawyer.) Your old records will be very important. You cannot rely on Social Security to get all your records from many years ago. How to Collect All Your Medical Records (Keyword: All)
🌸 Many doctors offices do not keep copies of old records. You may need to be persistent in tracking them down, especially if doctor’s office has closed or moved. If you already have copies of your old records, that is great.
🌸 Usually Social Security likes to collect all records themselves directly from the doctor’s office. However, in this situation, it’s possible that the copies you have are the only ones that still exist! They will likely accept them from you if these are the only available copies.
🌸 If you are working with a lawyer, your lawyer can assist you with collecting records. However, it is very very helpful and important if you can double check everything. Make sure you get from your lawyer physical copies of every record they have. If they don’t have records from the time you need, you can get them yourself and give them to your lawyer.
🌸 For new applications and reconsiderations, it’s a good idea to also contact your Disability Examiner to confirm if they received these records.
🌸 Make sure you get all treatment notes. Do not look at visit summaries or online records. Also try to get hospital visits, emergency room reports, lab tests, clinics, and anything else possible.
🌸 Get every record you possibly can from the past. Don’t leave anything out. Hospitals, emergency rooms, clinics, programs. Unfortunately, many doctor’s offices destroy old records. Get whatever is possible.
🌸 It is also important that Social Security gets all your current medical records, so you can show you are still disabled. You need both old and new records to get approved.
READING RECORDS
🌸 Once you have your records, it is great if you can look through them and see if you can find proof that you were disabled in the past.
🌸 Try to look for any medical record or medical test that you believe showed you were disabled at that time. It could be more than one document.
🌸 It is especially helpful if you can find a medical test with a specific outcome, or doctor’s notes that specifically state that your symptoms impaired your ability to walk, sit, stand, lift, or function. If this is not possible, then anything you can find related to your current symptoms may be useful.
🌸 It is helpful if you don’t rely on your lawyer to read all your records for you. Many lawyers wait two years (until just before a hearing) to start reading the medical records. Your lawyer can be very helpful for this process, but they will not have the same type of care and attention and time that you do to comb through every record and find everything important.
PROVING YOUR ONSET DATE
🌸 If you find something in your medical records that you think will be helpful, you can bring this to your lawyer. Or you can send Social Security a brief written note requesting that they consider these records when determining your the onset date of your disability. List the name and date of the record and attach a copy. If you have a lawyer, you can work with your lawyer to do this. If not, you can do this on your own.
🌸 Be sure anything you send Social Security goes to the right person and gets put in your file. Even if you have a lawyer, it is still good to double check as missing or lost records are common. How to Submit
🌸 If you wish, you can also attach a list of specific quotes or statements in your past records that you hope they will consider. For example, lab test outcomes, or specific sentences your doctor wrote, or dates when specific symptoms were listed. Be sure to include the name and date of the records your are quoting.
🌸 It is very common for important information to get overlooked in Social Security cases. There are often hundreds of pages of medical records, and the person who is making the decision is never going to spend as much time as you will combing through them. That is why it will help if you can point out anything important.
DOCTOR’S STATEMENT
🌸 If you are still seeing the same doctor you were in the past, this can be a big help. Ask that doctor to write a letter stating their medical opinion about when you became disabled and noting that they were your treating doctor at that time.
🌸 If you are not still seeing the same doctor, you can try to track down your old doctor and see if they are willing to write you a letter.
🌸 You can also ask your current doctor to review your old records with you (Warning: You may have more success if you do not hand your doctor a huge pile of papers. Start with a short summary outline or a few of the most important pages from your records. Ask if they want more.).
🌸 Even if they were not your doctor at the time, your doctor can still write a letter that the symptoms noted at that time are consistent with your current disability.
🌸 Usually the doctor’s statement is written. However, one of our readers had a great lawyer who arranged for their doctor to testify at their hearing. The doctor did this by phone. It was a brief phone call that did not impose on the doctor and only took 15 minutes. The doctor explained their medical opinion about when the person became disabled. It worked! If your lawyer does not make this arrangement, you can make the arrangement yourself (if your doc is willing)
🌸 You can also collect statements from family, friends and others in the community about your problems and how they affected you during the time period of your onset date.
SUCCESS STORIES
🌸 Ruby was still seeing the same doctor she had when her work credits expired. She worked with her doctor to put together a letter which would show how she was disabled in both past and present: The Dazzling Disability Doctor Letter of Miss Ruby Fierce
🌸 Michelle was no longer seeing the doctor she had when her work credits expired. She worked with her current doctor to review her past medical records and create a letter: Michelle Goes Back in Time
🌸 Sage got approved by getting an old case reopened: How Sage Got Approved by Ignoring Everything He Was Told
LACK OF RECORDS OR LATE DIAGNOSIS
🌸 The Disability Secrets website suggests: “If you didn’t see a doctor or get a diagnosis before your Date Last Insured, ask your doctor to “infer” how long your physical or mental problems likely affected your ability to function based on your history and current findings.”
🌸 If you didn’t have a full diagnosis in the past, you can still try to prove an onset date from the past as long as your medical records show a history of symptoms. That is what Michelle did: Michelle Goes Back in Time
IF YOU WORKED AFTER YOUR ONSET DATE
🌸 If you worked after your onset date, it may be harder to go back in time, but it may be possible if your earnings were low (less than SGA)
🌸 It might also be possible if the work was brief (less than six months). This is possible if the person deciding your case determines that your work was an “unsuccessful work attempt.”
🌸 If possible, this is a form that your employer can fill out. It can be used to show that the value of your work was less than what you are getting paid. It could also be used to show that in the past you tried to work and you could not maintain employment because of your impairments: Work Activity Form
🌸 If you cannot get a form like this from your employer, you could try to get a letter from your doctor stating that you were unable to maintain work at that time due to your disabling condition (be specific about the dates). You could also see if there is anyone else from your workplace who can fill out a form like this for you.
🌸 It may be helpful if you can also submit a Disability Letter from Your Employer
PAST APPLICATIONS AND ONSET DATE
If you applied in the past and got denied, this gets more complicated.
🌸 Option one: Prove you were disabled AFTER your last denial and BEFORE your Date Last Insured. If such a time period exists.
🌸 Option two: Try to get your old case reopened. This is usually only possible if it was denied at an early stage (not a hearing) How to Reopen an Earlier Claim
🌸 Option three: If your denial was within the past 60 days, you can appeal the denial.
🌸 Option four: If you missed the appeal deadline: What To Do If You Miss a Social Security Deadline
TIMING
🌸 The first two rounds of applications are: Initial Application and Request for Reconsideration.
🌸 The third step is a hearing.
🌸 Don’t worry if you get turned down the first two rounds. These decisions are made by a staff member at Disability Determinations. These kinds of decisions tend to be more conservative. Judges at hearings often take more liberties for creative decisions. Your chances will be better with a judge.
LAWYERS
🌸 It may be hard to find a lawyer, but it can be done. You may need to prove to a lawyer that you have a great case. Show them all the proof and everything you’ve collected about the past. Show them doctor’s letters proving when you because disabled.
🌸 Try to find a lawyer who is willing to fight for your onset date. Some lawyers won’t even try, and will just let you get approved for SSI instead. Ask your lawyer about their strategy and experience with remote onset dates. If you get approved for SSI instead, the lawyer may get paid the same either way, but it can be a huge difference for you for the rest of your life: SSDI is Better Than SSI?
🌸 If you are unable to get a lawyer, you can still go forward on your own. Many people apply without a lawyer, and it is still possible to get approved. Sage had expired work credits and no lawyer would take his case. He got approved anyway: How Sage Got Approved for Disability by Ignoring Everything He Was Told
🌸 Some readers report that their lawyer dropped them when they realized that the work credits were expired. If this happens, you can continue the case yourself and/or find a new lawyer.
🌸 If you do find a lawyer who is willing to help you prove an earlier onset date, that is wonderful. How and Where to Find a Good Disability Lawyer
APPEALING
Most of our readers have found that it’s very difficult (nearly impossible) to get approve for an earlier onset date during the initial application – unless the medical records are very clear and the person has done no work after the date of onset.
The people who make initial decisions are administrative staff who have to work within very restrictive guidelines and tend to make more conservative decisions. If you continue appealing, eventually you will get to a judge. Judge’s have more discretion and authority and some of them will be more open to considering earlier onset dates.
SUCCESS STORIES
🌸 Michelle discovered that her work credits expired three years ago, but she still got approved. Michelle took some special steps to help get her application approved. Michelle Goes Back in Time
🌸 Sage went back in time by getting an old case reopened. How Sage Got Approved for Disability by Ignoring Everything He Was Told
MORE OPTIONS
Going back in time is not your only option! If you do not have enough work credits, there may be other ways you can still apply: How To Apply For Disability if You Don’t Have Enough Work Credits
Applying for disability after your work credits have expired is more difficult than a regular application. It is helpful if you can do everything possible to make the strongest application you can. For new applications, check out: How to Get Approved for Disability the First Time You Apply
If you have already applied or are appealing, check out: How to Greatly, Greatly (Greatly!) Improve Your Disability Application
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Updated May 2018. If you found this page helpful, please share it with others by pressing one of these magic little buttons:
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