The Sequential Evaluation Process Used by SSA to Evaluate Claims

If you have earnings in a  specified amount per month, you generally cannot be considered disabled.

The monthly SGA amount for statutorily blind individuals for 2008 is $1,570. For non-blind individuals, the monthly SGA amount for 2008 is $940. SGA for the blind does not apply to Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, while SGA for the non-blind disabled applies to Social Security and SSI benefits. See historical series of SGA amounts below.

CLICK HERE TO SEE A CHART OF THE HISTORICAL  MONTHLY SUBSTANTIAL GAINFUL ACTIVITY AMOUNTS

Your impairments must interfere with basic work-related activities for your condition to be severe. If not, you lose.  If yes, you go on to the next step.  Many applications are denied on this basis.  When you get to a hearing in front of an Administrative Law Judge, Severity is rarely an issue since most conditions are deemed severe in light of Federal Cases construing the term "Severe".

The fight at the hearing usually involves step number 5.

The Social Security Administration maintains a list of impairments for each of the major body systems.  Each listing has several elements and if you meet each required element, your condition will be presumed to be so severe that SSA will determine that you cannot work.  Thus, if you meet the terms of a listing, you win.  If not, you go on to the next step.

You can look at the Listings of Impairments here.
ADULT LISTINGS ::: CHILD LISTINGS 

Note: Meeting a listing is very difficult and most people will not meet a listing.  However, some people will come close to meeting one or more listings.  A Claimant can still win at this step if the Claimant has an impairment or combination of impairments that meets or medically equals a listing.  Therefore, even if you don’t meet the literal terms of a listing, it is helpful to show why you come close to meeting all the listings resembling your conditions.  Further, even if you don’t meet a listing but you come close, Judges are often swayed by this when deciding the following steps.

If you can perform any jobs that you performed within the past 15 years, you will lose at this step.  If you cannot perform any of those jobs, you go on to the next step.

Once your case gets to a hearing, this is usually the most critical step. This is typically what the big fight is over.

Many people think that if they cannot perform their last job, they are disabled.  Such is not the case under Social Security rules. If you cannot perform work that you performed within the past 15 years, the process will simply continue on to this step.

At this final step, Social Security will look at your age, education, experience, training, and your limitations and decide whether there are any other jobs that you can perform. If there are other jobs that you can perform and they exist in significant numbers, then you will lose. If there are no jobs that you can perform or if jobs you can perform do not exist in significant numbers, then you should win.

At the hearing, the Judge will typically pose several hypothetical questions to a Vocational Expert hired by Social Security. In response to at least one of the hypothetical questions, the Vocational Expert will usually testify that there are several jobs that you can perform. If the Judge accepts that testimony, you will lose. This is why it is so important not only to have an Attorney with you at the hearing, but to have an Attorney with years of formal and on the job training in the art of cross-examination and trial techniques taught in law schools.

When preparing your claim, you should think of the easiest jobs imaginable and ask yourself whether you would be able to perform that job and if not, why not. This is a good question that you should think about. You should discuss this with your Attorney as soon as you can in the process, several times during the process, and even before you submit your application if possible.