In the final part of “The Truth About Applying For Social Security Disability” medical-vocational rules are looked at. This step follows the RFC assessment to decide whether the disability applicant can work doing their previous job. It is a crucial step in the application process and will help determine the final outcome of the claim and whether is is approved or denied.
If the RFC assessment comes to the conclusion that the applicant cannot return to his or previous work, it will be decided if the applicant’s RFC allows for different work. To complete this process Social Security is required to use a set of rules, called the medical-vocational grid.
Medical-Vocational Grid
The medical-vocational grid is a set of rules used to decide if there are other jobs that the applicant can still do, or, at the very least be expected to learn to do. The Medical-Vocational Grid is usually only useful for older applicants. For example, if an applicant is older and has little education or transferable job skills, the grid rules may not expect this applicant to learn a new job, and subsequently, will consider the applicant disabled, thus approving the claim.
The medical-vocational grid can be yet another hurdle that can be the deciding point between successful Social Security Disability claims and unsuccessful Social Security Disability claims.
This concludes the 4 part series of The Truth About Applying For Social Security Disability.
Are you planning on applying for Social Security Disability? Going about the process alone can affect your financial security for the worse. Let a professional help. Mark J. Palmiere has been a Social Security Disability attorney since 1994 and continues to help those facing issues with applying for Social Security Disability.