Social Security Disability

The SSA advises you bring the following documents and information with you to your first appointment with the SSA worker in your home town.

1. Names, addresses and phone numbers of all doctors, hospitals, emergency rooms and clinics you use or have visited
2. Patient ID number(s) and Medicaid or other medical assistance number(s)
3. Dates seen
4. Name(s) of medicine(s) you are taking, why you take them and who prescribed them as well as medical tests you have had in the past or will have in the future
5. Medical records in your possession
6. An original or certified copy of your birth certificate. If you were born in another country, we also need proof of U.S. citizenship or legal residency.
7. If you were in the military service, the original or certified copy of your military discharge papers (Form DD 214) for all periods of active duty.
8. If you worked, your W-2 Form from last year; or if you were self-employed, your federal income tax return (IRS 1040 and Schedules C and SE).
9. Workers’ compensation information, including date of injury, claim number and proof of payment amounts.
10. Social Security Number(s) for your spouse and minor children.
11. Your checking or savings account number, if you have one.
12. Name, address and phone number of a person we can contact if we are unable to get in touch with you.
13. Kinds of jobs and dates you worked in the 15 years before you became unable to work.

Don’t be surprised if they ask for more information and documents as your case winds through the application process. Remember this is just the material the SSA wants to see at the initial interview. The government is a paper based organization so you will have to produce a record for everything you are claiming or want to claim.