Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville SSDI and SSI Lawyers for the Rowan Street Hearing Office
Social Security's hearing office data lists nine field offices, including Sanford, Whiteville, Rockingham and New Bern, under the Fayetteville hearing office on Rowan Street. Downard & Associates represents adults in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and across that area with Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claims: applications, reconsideration, hearings before an administrative law judge and Appeals Council review. There is no fee unless you win.
How we help
Representing Fayetteville Claimants From Tennessee
Each source has its own request route, set out below.
A Fayetteville claim often draws on two kinds of records. The City of Fayetteville's own description calls the city adjacent to Fort Bragg, so a file can hold Army medical records from a military hospital alongside civilian care at Cape Fear Valley or a VA clinic. Each source has its own request route, set out below.
We represent claimants at every stage before Social Security, from the first SSDI claim or SSI application through a hearing and a request for Appeals Council review, and we respond within 3 business hours.
We have no Fayetteville office. Consultations happen by phone or video, and our attorneys handle hearings from Tennessee by phone or video. We represent adults age 18 and older. We handle SSDI cases for people who receive VA benefits, but we do not handle VA claims or appeals. We do not take disability cessation or continuing disability review cases, or cases about back pay alone, and we refer federal court appeals to affiliated counsel.
Hearing office
The Fayetteville Hearing Office and the Field Offices on Its List
Social Security's hearing office locator data lists the Fayetteville hearing office at 2nd Floor, 150 Rowan Street, Fayetteville, NC 28301. Its list names nine field offices: Goldsboro, Fayetteville, Kinston, New Bern, Lumberton, Rockingham, Sanford, Wilmington and Whiteville.
Two of those nine appear twice in the same data. Goldsboro is also listed under the Raleigh hearing office, and Wilmington is also listed under the Charleston, South Carolina, hearing office. The data does not say which listing controls, so a Goldsboro or Wilmington claimant should go by the office named on the Notice of Hearing.
The field office list is a directory, not the rule. Social Security's operations manual, POMS GN 03103.040, says hearing office jurisdiction is determined by the claimant's residence address, and HALLEX I-2-0-70 says a hearing office will generally process hearing requests for claimants residing in its service area. Our hearing office list covers every office, and our North Carolina page covers the other offices that decide claims in the state.
Hearing formats
Choosing How to Appear Before a Fayetteville Judge
Deadline
30days
20 CFR 404.936
Social Security offers hearings by phone, online video, agency video or in person. Its hearing options page describes online video as a hearing on a smartphone, tablet or computer with an internet connection, from a private location you choose.
Under 20 CFR 404.936 (20 CFR 416.1436 for SSI), Social Security tells you before it schedules the hearing that it may schedule you by audio or agency video, or by online video if you agree. You have 30 days after you receive that notice to object in writing to audio, agency video or both, and the same 30 days to agree in writing to online video. You can withdraw an online video agreement any time before the hearing starts. For a claimant in New Bern, Whiteville or Rockingham, online video lets you appear from a private location you choose instead of traveling to a hearing site. Our page on disability hearings covers what happens once the hearing begins.
Local treatment records
Medical Records From Cape Fear Valley and UNC Health Southeastern
Cape Fear Valley Health: its medical records page sends requests for records created within the last 5 years through MyChart. Requests outside MyChart go on a signed authorization form with a copy of a government-issued photo ID, emailed as a PDF to sharecareroi@capefearvalley.com, faxed to 866-476-9682 or mailed to the Health Information Management Department, 1638 Owen Dr., Fayetteville, NC 28304. The page also lists walk-in hours at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, Highsmith-Rainey, Hoke, Bladen County, Central Harnett and Betsy Johnson hospitals.
Three details from Cape Fear Valley's records FAQ affect timing. It asks you to allow 7 to 10 days after the request arrives, with some taking up to 30 days. It does not take requests by phone. Behavioral health records need approval from the attending provider before release, and they take longer. Radiology images are a separate request: its other records page says to contact the nearest hospital location and ask for the Radiology Department.
UNC Health Southeastern (Lumberton): its records page offers the MyChart portal or an authorization form returned by fax to (910) 671-5349 or by mail to the HIM Department, 300 W 27th Street, Lumberton, NC 28358. The form must be filled out completely, including a contact phone number and a dated signature. The HIM line is (910) 671-5539, option 1, weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Fort Bragg and veterans
Fort Bragg Service Members, Womack Records and the Fayetteville VA
The Army renamed Fort Liberty as Fort Bragg on February 14, 2025, so medical paperwork dated between June 2023 and February 2025 may carry the Fort Liberty name. For a soldier there who can no longer work, Social Security's Wounded Warriors publication (April 2026) makes two points. Active-duty status and military pay do not necessarily prevent SSDI, because Social Security counts the actual work activity, not the pay or the duty status. And a disability that began on active duty on or after October 1, 2001, can receive expedited processing.
Veterans have a second route to faster handling. Social Security's veterans page says a 100% Permanent & Total VA compensation rating may qualify a claim for expedited processing. Our veterans page explains how a VA rating and an SSDI claim relate.
Womack Army Medical Center: its medical records page uses DD Form 2870, signed with a CAC digital signature or in ink; computer-generated signatures are not accepted. An emailed request includes the front and back of a state or federal ID, not a DOD ID card, and may take up to 30 days. The page also says outpatient records are retired two years after a patient's last recorded clinic visit, so a soldier who left years ago should ask early. Outpatient Medical Records is at 910-907-7179.
Fayetteville VA Coastal Health Care System: its medical records office page at 2300 Ramsey Street takes a signed VA Form 10-5345a by mail or fax, or a signed written request in person with your Veteran Health Identification Card, and says mailed or faxed requests may take up to 20 business days. It provides available images on DVD: on the form, check the CD-ROM or Other box and write in DVD.
After a denial
Appeal Deadlines After a Fayetteville-Area Denial
Deadline
60days
20 CFR 404.909
A denial starts a 60-day window. A written request for reconsideration is due within 60 days after you receive the notice, under 20 CFR 404.909 for SSDI and 20 CFR 416.1409 for SSI. After a reconsideration denial, the written hearing request has the same 60 days under 20 CFR 404.933 and 20 CFR 416.1433.
Under 20 CFR 404.901, the date you receive a notice is 5 days after the date printed on it, unless you show that it did not reach you within those 5 days. In a military household, mail can follow a move or a deployment and arrive late. Write the date it arrived on the envelope and keep both, and count your 60 days from the notice date plus 5 unless you can show the later arrival. Our appeals page covers each stage.
Common questions
Fayetteville Disability Claim Questions
Why does a Wilmington claim show up under both Fayetteville and Charleston?
Social Security's hearing office data lists the Wilmington field office under the Fayetteville hearing office and under the Charleston, South Carolina, hearing office. It does not say which listing controls, so the Notice of Hearing is the document to follow.
Is a Goldsboro disability hearing held in Fayetteville or Raleigh?
The same data lists Goldsboro under both offices. Hearing office jurisdiction is set by the claimant's residence address, and the Notice of Hearing names the office handling your case.
Does a Cape Fear Valley records request include X-ray and MRI images?
Images are a separate request. Cape Fear Valley's records pages direct you to the Radiology Department at the nearest hospital location for radiology images, apart from the Health Information Management request for the written record.
How do I get Womack Army Medical Center records for an SSDI claim?
Womack uses DD Form 2870, signed with a CAC digital signature or in ink. Emailed requests need the front and back of a state or federal ID and may take up to 30 days. Ask early if your last clinic visit was more than two years ago, since Womack retires outpatient records after that.
Does military pay stop a Fort Bragg soldier from receiving SSDI?
Not necessarily. Social Security's Wounded Warriors publication says it counts the actual work you do, not the amount of military pay or your duty status.
Discuss your claim
Start a Fayetteville Claim Review by Phone or Video
Tell us where you live, the date on your latest Social Security notice and whether Womack, VA or Cape Fear Valley records are part of your treatment. We respond within 3 business hours.