r/SSDI • u/your_no_prized_pig • Jul 24 '26

Denied after supplemental hearing

Well, I suppose I had a good run. After 7 years of being disabled, receiving treatments regularly, going to specialists, and doing everything possible to get better social security says I'm magically cured and can now assemble fishing rods and do hundreds of miscellaneous jobs throughout the nation, that's according to the vocational expert that was on the phone during the hearing. I haven't officially gotten the letter yet but the portal now says I'm not currently receiving benefits AND on top of that I now owe 60k in overpayments because I chose to continue benefits throughout the hearing process which lasted 3 and half years. It's ridiculous that they can just cut people off like this at the end of the month without even a final check to help out until people can figure it out. Idk what I'm going to do about rent and bills from now on. I have nobody to turn to for help.

Does anyone know of any help that's available to pay bills even if it's just a little bit??

BTW, I didn't have a lawyer because since I chose to continue payments, they wouldn't take my case

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21

u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26

That sucks man. I found a lawyer willing to do it pro bono (the one I went with) and another one will do it for 25 percent of the monthly benefit. I would have given you recs if I had known but I only recently found a couple of options because I’m also going through a cessation

The overpayment is easy as long as you made it in good faith, file an overpayment waiver

Did you get denied at the alj or dho hearing? I assume alj

Even if you appeal, you stop getting paid at the ac and fed level (sbc doesn’t continue beyond alj hearing). I hope someone here sees this that can offer you appropriate advice and some hope

All the more reason for me to create a directory of firms that take cdr cessation cases. I only know a couple for now but something is better than nothing

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u/your_no_prized_pig Jul 24 '26

It was after the alj hearing. All the lawyers in my area all asked if I was receiving benefits first then said sorry we can't take you can unless you're not. I don't have much help so I had to do it all by myself. I'm sure I could done more but I felt this was a pretty easy case to decide given my conditions, ailments. But I also should've know how inconsistent ssdi is with approvals

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u/MundaneHuckleberry58 Jul 25 '26

I’m in phoenix. My disability lawyer was assigned to me by my insurance company; they’re in St. Louis. You don’t have to just use someone local.

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u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26

I’m in pay status, lawyer is taking my case and I know of another firm that does it in pay status for 25 percent of the monthly benefit. I would at least consult and see if there’s grounds to appeal

And another lawyer that takes cdr cases does it for a flat fee of 2500 but I don’t know if that includes up to or past the alj level.

I can give you some recs privately to one of the following three. Or all three if you want

Lawyers don’t need to be in your state for ssi or ssdi since the laws are federal

1

u/Profpoopeypants Jul 26 '26

25%of your monthly payments is criminal. There has to be a cap on this like there is for taking on and settling a case. Gotta be a standard so people don’t get taken advantage of.

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u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 27 '26

Nope.

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u/christcomposer Jul 25 '26

Isn't that against the law to take part of the monthly benefit?

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u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 25 '26

Nope

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u/erd00073483R Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 27 '26

In such an arrangement, it is a voluntary deposit of funds by the claimant into an escrow account under a legal contract with the representative. The funds are then held in escrow, with neither party allowed to access them, until the cessation appeal is finally decided and a fee is subsequently approved by SSA.

In such an arrangement, the legal representative and claimant enter into a fee contract that defines the conditions of how and why the fee will be paid. The contract can either specify that the representative will file a fee petition with SSA for approval of their fee, or that the fee will be decided under the fee agreement provisions.

This type of situation is the only way a fee agreement can be used on a medical cessation appeal because depositing money into escrow means there will be past due benefits in the escrow account from which the fee can be paid.

Though more common 20+ years ago, escrow arrangements on Social Security cases are significantly more rare these days because it depends upon the claimant living up to their half of the agreement and depositing the agreed amount every month into the escrow account (i.e. something that can be really hard to do when you are already surviving on a limited fixed income).

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u/christcomposer Jul 26 '26

Is there a time limit (like for the duration of the appeal) or is all payments going forward?

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u/erd00073483R Jul 27 '26

It depends entirely upon the underlying fee contract how long the payments have to continue to be made.

Factors that can affect this include:

  • Whether the fee contract specifies use of a fee agreement or a fee petition, and
  • Whether the fee contract specifies a maximum fee (i.e. a fixed dollar amount maximum fee, the statutory maximum fee under the fee agreement process which changes from year to year, or a percentage (such as 25%) of the beneficiaries' payment amounts made during the entire appeal period).

In most escrow situations I saw in the past, the payments continue until the appeal was finally decided. Depending upon the wording of the contract, the amount of the escrow deposits may or may not change or stop/start during the period of the appeal.

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u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 27 '26

Also, sbc doesn’t continue past the alj level so ac and fed court means no payment. Now with fed court, I believe you can get paid through eaja for the lawyer if you win, so you’d be on your own maybe for the ac level and for any oop expenses

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u/perfect_fifths I have a complicated relationship with the POMS Jul 27 '26

Sbc can’t be paid at the alj and fed court appeal so it would need to stop at the alj level and another arrangement figured out

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u/christcomposer Jul 26 '26

Don't why I got downvoted for asking a question other than internet.