A SIMPLE QUESTION MANY CLAIMANTS CAN'T ANSWER

Here's a simple question that is always asked near the beginning of all disability hearings:

"What is the last date you worked for pay?"

And oddly enough, many claimants cannot answer.

The answer is important because the judge must determine the date you first became disabled (called the "onset date"). You cannot receive disability pay before you stopped working at "substantial gainful activity" or SGA. So, the date you stopped working is vital.

It's understandable that pain, depression, memory loss or other symptoms of disability can make it hard to remember dates. But judges expect you to know when you stopped working, down to the month and year. The claimant should be able to answer, for example, "I last worked in late November of 2019."

How do you find this date if you simply can't remember? Look at your pay records. Call your former employer. If your last day at work was related to a specific incident, such as an accident, heart attack or stroke, check your medical records. It's not difficult to find, for example, the date you were taken to the emergency room for chest pains, stroke , an accident or some other reason. If you never went back to work after this event, then you know the date you stopped working.

What's the worst answer you can give to this question? It would be something like: "Judge, I last worked in 2018. No, make that 2019. Or, maybe it was 2017. I think it was in July, but wait, it could have been in October. Well, it was the year my aunt passed away in Delaware.....I think."

That type of answer starts the hearing on a note of confusion and uncertainty. If you begin that way, things may never recover and the whole hearing can be ruined, along with you chance to win. Nail down that date before you walk into the hearing!