SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY LAW BLOG
July 23, 2010
How do Michigan disability judges regard medical evidence from chiropractors?
Many of my Detroit Social Security disability clients find relief from disabling back pain through regular chiropractic adjustments. These clients generally are surprised to learn that chiropractors do not appear on the Social Security regulations’ list of “acceptable medical sources.” Instead, chiropractors appear on a list of “other” medical sources that the Social Security Administration may consider in evaluating the “severity of your impairment(s) and how it affects your ability to work.”
The list of “other” medical sources includes nurse-practitioners, physicians’ assistants, naturopaths, audiologists and therapists, as well as chiropractors. In practice, the administrative law judge presiding over your Detroit Social Security disability hearing may regard chiropractors as the least reliable source on this list. Many administrative law judges will give less weight to your chiropractor’s records than to records from the other non-medical sources; most will give little credence to your chiropractor’s opinion that your back pain is caused by a spinal misalignment.
The Social Security Administration’s low regard for chiropractic evidence means that you will need an opinion concerning your back problem from an “acceptable” medical source – a licensed medical or osteopathic doctor – in order to prevail at your Michigan disability benefits hearing. It does not mean that you should stop seeing your chiropractor or that your attorney should ignore your chiropractor’s records and opinion. If nothing else, chiropractic evidence demonstrates that you were in enough pain – that your impairment was severe enough – to seek frequent and regular treatment.
If you are not presently represented by an attorney, and you would like to talk with a Detroit disability lawyer about your back injury claim or about gathering medical evidence in anticipation of your disability hearing, please complete the claim evaluation form to your right or contact me by phone or email.
SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY LAW BLOG
July 8, 2010
Michigan disability attorney explains how the Social Security Administration evaluates your symptoms
The Social Security Administration uses a two-part analysis to evaluate the alleged symptoms of applicants for Michigan disability benefits.
First, the Social Security Administration reviews the “objective medical evidence” – medical signs, laboratory findings, test results and other similar evidence that can be reliably documented – to confirm that a medically determinable impairment could cause the symptoms you claim to have. Once the fact of your symptoms has been verified by objective medical evidence, the Social Security Administration will consider the nature of your symptoms, including the “intensity, persistence, and disabling effects” of your symptoms. At this second step in the symptom review process, the decision-maker must look beyond the objective medical evidence and consider all the evidence in your case, including subjective evidence in the form of your testimony and the testimony of witnesses in your favor. The decision-maker is looking for proof that the extent to which you claim to be disabled by your symptoms is consistent with the evidence as a whole.
This second step in the symptom review process presents you with a golden opportunity to help your case. Your testimony at your Detroit Social Security disability hearing can be powerfully persuasive evidence of the disabling effects of your symptoms if you provide the judge with detailed descriptions and anecdotes about how your symptoms impact your daily life.
If you would like more information on how to prove your symptoms, please visit my home page. I suggest you read the series of articles under the heading “Your disability hearing,” and watch the videos, How the Judge Determines Disability and What Not to Do at Your Hearing.
