Knee or hip replacement surgery can leave you unable to stand or walk long enough to meet the physical demands of your job. If recovery time has not restored your ability to work, disability benefits for knee, hip, and joint replacement patients in Toledo may provide support when you meet Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) requirements.
SSDI is for workers who paid into Social Security and now have a qualifying disability. You must have worked long enough and recently enough to remain insured, generally including enough recent work within the last five years. Coverage can expire if you have not worked recently. If your claim was denied, a Social Security disability attorney from our team can review the decision and help you appeal.
Being a patient with a knee, hip, or other joint replacement does not automatically qualify you for SSDI benefits in Toledo. The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses a five-step evaluation that considers your:
For joint replacement disability claims, the SSA will look closely at your medical evidence and residual functional capacity. Records may show limits on standing and walking or the need for an assistive device.
Social Security also maintains a musculoskeletal listing, Listing 1.17, for a major weight-bearing joint that has been surgically reconstructed or fused. Meeting it requires specific findings, including qualifying functional limits that last or are expected to last at least 12 months and a documented need for certain assistive devices in listed circumstances.
Joint-replacement recovery varies. The SSA needs evidence showing not only that you had surgery but also how your condition affects your ability to function over time. A joint disability benefits case may depend on records such as documented work restrictions and surgical notes from when you were a knee or hip replacement patient in Toledo.
Useful evidence can document:
Age can also matter. For disabled individuals age 50 and older, Social Security considers age together with your remaining ability to work when deciding whether you can adjust to other work. These factors can make some cases stronger, but age alone does not establish disability.
If the SSA denied your joint replacement disability claim, you can generally seek reconsideration and, if necessary, request a hearing before an administrative law judge. SSDI hearings are informal proceedings, and the hearing is recorded.
At Schaffer & Associates, our legal team focuses on denied claims and appeals. We are a small, local firm serving Toledo and the surrounding area and can review the denial of your disability benefits claim and identify missing evidence if you are a patient with a knee, hip, or other joint replacement. We can also communicate with Social Security and represent you at the hearing before the administrative law judge. When you contact us, you will speak directly with an attorney and continue working with the same people throughout your case.
If surgery has not restored your ability to work and Social Security denied your claim, our team at Schaffer & Associates can help you understand what to do next. We are local attorneys who were born and raised in northwest Ohio, and we provide practical guidance to clients in the local area.
Contact us about claims involving disability benefits for knee, hip, and joint replacement patients in Toledo and the surrounding area. We can review your denial and help you meet the appeal deadlines that protect your claim.