North Carolina Social Security Disability

Each and every year, thousands of North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants apply for disability benefits through the Social Security Administration. There are currently more than 300,000 North Carolina residents receiving Social Security Disability benefits. While the initial stage of the application process only takes three to four months to complete, most North Carolina Social Security Disability recipients wait a year or more before receiving their first disability payment. This is due to the fact that the majority of disability claims are denied during the initial stage of the application process. Most North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants must have their case heard before an Administrative Law Judge before being awarded the benefits they deserve.

If your initial claim for disability benefits is denied by the Social Security Administration, chances are that you will also be denied during the initial stage of the appeal process. This stage of appeals, which is called the Request for Reconsideration, has an approval rate of less than twenty percent. The second stage of the appeal process is when an applicant has their disability case heard before an ALJ. It can take a North Carolina Social Security Disability applicant anywhere from 338 to 548 days to be scheduled for a disability hearing. It then takes another 45 to 90 days to receive notice of the outcome of that hearing.

The Office of Disability Adjudication and Review is the Social Security agency in charge of managing disability hearings for Social Security Disability applicants. Each state has a multiple ODAR offices managing the state's Social Security Disability caseload. The part of North Carolina that you live in is what determines which ODAR office will handle your Social Security Disability case, as well as how long you will have to wait to have your case heard before an Administrative Law Judge. The cities in which the North Carolina ODAR offices are located and the field offices that they serve are as follows:

• North Charleston, South Carolina

The ODAR office located in North Charleston, South Carolina is the office that manages the disability hearings for the Social Security field office located in Wilmington, North Carolina. It takes this office an average of ten months to schedule a disability hearing for North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants.

• Charlotte, North Carolina

The Charlotte ODAR office is responsible for managing the disability hearings for the Albemarle, Charlotte Downtown, Concord, Hickory, Gastonia, Rockingham, Salisbury, Shelby, Statesville, Whiteville and West Lumberton Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of 338 days to schedule a disability hearing.

• Fayettville, North Carolina

The Fayettville ODAR office services the Kinston, New Bern, Lumberton, Rockingham and Sanford Social Security field offices. The average processing time for this office is nine months.

• Greensboro, North Carolina

The Greensboro ODAR office serves the Asheboro, Burlington, Greensboro, Hickory, Mt. Airy, Reidsville, Sanford, Wilkesboro and Winston Salem Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of 413 days to schedule a disability hearing for North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants.

• Greenville, South Carolina

The Greenville ODAR office in South Carolina is responsible for scheduling the disability hearings for the Franklin and Hendersonville Social Security field offices in North Carolina. It takes this office an average of eleven months to schedule a disability hearing.

• Kingsport, Tennessee

The ODAR office located in Kingsport, Tennessee is responsible for scheduling the disability hearings for the Asheville, North Carolina ODAR office. The average processing time for this office is eight months.

• Raleigh, North Carolina

The Raleigh ODAR office services the Ahoskie, Durham, Elizabeth City, Goldsboro, Greenville, Henderson, Kinston, Raleigh, Roanoke Rapids, Rocky Mount, Washington and Wilson Social Security field offices. It takes this office an average of 548 days to schedule a disability hearing for North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants.

Hiring a North Carolina Social Security Disability Attorney

While the initial application process only takes North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants approximately three to four months to complete, the majority of applicants must undergo the extensive disability appeal process in order to obtain the disability benefits they are entitled to. Unlike the initial application process, a disability appeal can take well over a year for an applicant to complete. Many applicants wonder if there is any way to increase their chances of receiving an approval of their initial disability claim rather than having to endure the stress of the disability appeal process. The services of a qualified North Carolina Social Security Disability lawyer may help.

Statistics show that North Carolina Social Security Disability applicants who obtain legal representation have a better chance of being approved for disability benefits than those who choose to represent themselves. When working with a North Carolina Social Security Disability attorney, they will help you gather the medical documentation that will be needed to prove your disability claim to the Social Security Administration. They will also ensure that your application is presented properly to the SSA, increasing your chances of an approval at the initial stage of the application process. If your initial disability claim is denied, your North Carolina Social Security Disability lawyer can represent you during your disability appeal.

Click here if you would like to learn more about hiring a North Carolina Social Security Disability attorney and to receive a free evaluation of your Social Security Disability case.