How Does Social Security Process a “Low” Profile Code (Disability Update Report)

When Social Security processes your Disability Update Report, they will make one of these decisions. Either:

a. They will send you a full Continuing Disability Review or

b. They will skip the full review and just approve you

HOW SHOULD I FILL OUT THIS FORM?

Below you will find some excruciating, confusing, and somewhat boring detail on how Social Security process your form. If you would like to skip all this, you can! Just go ahead and read: Ten Tips and Tricks for Filling Out a Disability Update Report

WHAT’S MY CODE?

When you get your Disability Update Report, it will include a profile code: Low, Medium, or High. Here’s how to find it: How to Find Your Secret Code

Information on this page comes from the SSA policy for the short form.

If your profile code is “Low” here’s how they make the decision:

HAVE YOU WORKED?

If you have not worked, this question will have no impact.

If you have worked, Social Security reviews work activity using a set of complicated SSA policies. These result will be taken into account by the reviewer, along with anything you write or attach. If the reviewer finds any indication “possible medical improvement,” this may lead to a review.

HAVE YOU ATTENDED SCHOOL OR WORK TRAINING?

• No – Won’t cause a review
• Yes – Won’t cause a review

HAVE YOU DISCUSSED WORK WITH YOUR DOCTOR?

• Have Not Discussed – Won’t cause a review
• Cannot work – Won’t cause a review
• Can work – Won’t cause a review

DESCRIBE YOUR HEALTH NOW

• Same or worse – Won’t cause a review
• Better – Without remarks or attachments – Will cause a review
• Better – With remarks or attachments – May cause a review unless anything you wrote or attached “raises doubt about the response.” For example, medical documents that show you are still severely impaired. Reviewer may call you or your representative payee for more information. 

HAVE YOU GONE TO THE DOCTOR OR CLINIC

Do you have three recent doctor’s appointments (within the last 2 years)

• Yes without remarks or attachments – Won’t cause a review.
• Yes with remarks or attachments – Won’t normally cause a review, but could if anything in your remarks or attachments indicates a possibility that your condition has improved.
• No – May cause a review. However, they may check if there is a good reason listed in your remarks. They may also call you or your representative payee for more information. If there is a good reason, this may be accepted.

REASON AND FREQUENCY OF VISITS

There are not specific rules for this. However, if there is an indication that you may not be in regular treatment for your condition, they may check if there is a good reason listed in your remarks or they may call you or your representative payee for more information. If there is a good reason, this may be accepted.

HAVE YOU BEEN HOSPITALIZED OR HAD SURGERY

• No – Without remarks or attachments – won’t cause a review
• No – With remarks or attachments – May or may not cause a review. May cause a review if anything written indicates there is possible medical improvement
• Yes – Without remarks or attachments – won’t cause a review
• Yes – With remarks or attachments – May or may not cause a review. May cause a review if anything written indicates that the hospitalization or surgery caused a possible medical improvement.

Notes: Reviewer may also take into consideration your diagnosis or impairment, and the affects of hospitalization/surgery. If there is indication that you had a procedure which caused possible medical improvement, this could also cause a review.

Notes: If you answered “no” to the question about doctors visits and then also answered “no” or left blank the question about hospitalizations, this may also cause a review unless you have shown proof of a “credible reason for an absence of treatment”

BLANK QUESTIONS

If questions are left blank, they may call you. If important information is missing, this may trigger a review.

LEARN MORE

More important info on: How to Fill Out a Disability Update Report 

If you would like to read some excruciating and impenetrable instructions on how the Short Form is processed, here you can find the policy manual for the short form.

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