Fort wayne, Indiana
Fort Wayne Disability Lawyers for SSDI and SSI
Downard & Associates represents adults in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claims. We help with applications, reconsideration requests, and administrative hearings, and work with clients by phone and video. When a health condition makes working difficult, the next step starts with understanding the benefit requirements and documenting how your condition affects you. Contact us to discuss where your claim stands and the help you need.
How we help
How Downard Helps With a Fort Wayne Disability Claim
Preparation connects your treatment history with the difficulties you have at work and in daily activities.
We work through the information your claim needs, from an initial application to preparing for a hearing. Our role depends on the stage of your case.
Preparing an application: We help file the application, gather medical evidence, and document work history. For SSI, we also help complete the financial disclosures.
Responding to a denial: We review the reasons the Social Security Administration (SSA) gave, prepare the reconsideration request, and address missing evidence.
Preparing for an administrative hearing: We develop the medical record, prepare you to answer questions about your limitations, and present the case to the administrative law judge. Preparation connects your treatment history with the difficulties you have at work and in daily activities.
Our service limits also address matters involving Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits.
We handle SSDI cases for people who currently receive VA benefits, but we do not handle VA claims or appeals. We do not take disability cessation or continuing disability review cases, or new cases involving back-pay issues alone. We refer federal court appeals to a trusted affiliate rather than handling them in-house.
Benefit eligibility
Understanding SSDI and SSI Eligibility in Fort Wayne
Duration rule
12months
SSDI generally requires enough recent work covered by Social Security. The work credits you need depend on your age when disability began. SSI does not require SSDI insured status. Instead, it has income and resource limits and separate eligibility categories: age 65 or older, statutory blindness, or a qualifying disability. Residency, citizenship or eligible immigration status, and other rules also apply.
For SSDI and adult SSI claims based on disability, a medically determinable condition generally must prevent substantial gainful activity, meaning significant physical or mental work that is done or ordinarily done for pay or profit. The condition and resulting inability to perform that work generally must have lasted or be expected to last at least 12 consecutive months, unless the condition is expected to result in death within that period. SSA considers past work and adjustment to other work when those steps apply; a claim can be decided earlier.
You do not have to wait a year before applying. SSI statutory blindness has different rules: SSA does not use substantial gainful activity to determine initial eligibility, and statutory blindness under SSI has no duration requirement. SSI financial and other eligibility requirements still apply.
Review SSA's disability requirements and its SSI eligibility explanation. Our Indiana disability page provides the statewide overview.
Treatment records
Requesting Parkview and Lutheran Records for a Fort Wayne Claim
Copies requested through MyChart are delivered electronically to your account.
Start with the places that actually provided your care. If a hospital visit led to specialist appointments, testing, or therapy, list each treatment source and the dates involved. Use facility names rather than one network name for the entire history.
Parkview's medical-records instructions explain patient requests through MyChart, mail, fax, or a hospital location. Copies requested through MyChart are delivered electronically to your account. Mail and fax requests use an authorization form. These are patient instructions; Parkview lists separate directions for attorneys and other third parties.
Lutheran Health Network's records page directs you to choose the facility where you received care. Its links include Lutheran Hospital, Dupont Hospital, Lutheran Downtown Hospital, and The Orthopedic Hospital. Match the request to the facility on your treatment history. For example, Lutheran Hospital offers an online request and a form alternative.
Records also need context. Describe what becomes difficult during an ordinary day, such as standing, concentrating, or completing tasks without extra breaks. SSA evaluates symptoms alongside medical and other evidence; a symptom description alone does not establish disability. The named providers are examples of record sources, not a requirement to receive care at a particular facility.
Get organized
Build a Treatment and Work Record for Your Fort Wayne Claim
Use this working list to identify information you have and items to follow up on. Add new treatment as it occurs.
SSA's adult disability application checklist is a useful starting point. Its application document guidance says not to delay applying because documents are missing. You can begin while information is still being collected.
| Information | What to record | How to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Doctors and facilities | Provider names, contact details, patient numbers if available, and treatment dates. | Identify each record source, including separate hospital and office visits. |
| Tests and medications | Test dates, ordering providers, current medications, and prescribers where applicable. | Mark what you already have and which results still need follow-up. |
| Jobs and duties | Jobs in the five years before you became unable to work, dates, duties, hours, and pay. | Describe the actual demands of each job rather than relying on the job title. |
| Daily limitations | Symptoms, how often they occur, tasks affected, breaks needed, and medication side effects. | Give accurate examples of how symptoms affect activities and work. |
| Requests in progress | Facility, treatment dates covered by the request, date sent, and records received. | Keep track of outstanding items without repeating completed requests. |
After a denial
Handling a Denial and Checking Your Fort Wayne Hearing Instructions
Deadline
60days
After an initial SSDI or SSI denial, reconsideration is generally the next step. After an unfavorable reconsideration decision, you may request an administrative law judge hearing. Each written request is generally due within 60 days after you receive the applicable decision notice.
SSA ordinarily presumes you received the notice five days after its date unless you show you did not receive it within that period. If your request is late, ask for an extension in writing and explain the delay. SSA must find good cause to extend the deadline. Read the reconsideration instructions and hearing-request instructions.
SSA's hearing-office directory lists the Fort Wayne field office among those served by the Fort Wayne hearing office. This is a field-office service listing, not a guarantee of an individual resident's assignment or scheduled location. An in-person hearing may take place at a hearing office or another SSA hearing site. Follow your hearing notice for the instructions that apply to you. Our hearing-office guide contains the detailed office information.
Common questions
Fort Wayne Disability Claim Questions
Can I apply while waiting for my Parkview records?
Yes. SSA says not to postpone applying because documents are missing. With your permission, SSA can help obtain medical records. Provide the treatment information and records you have. Keep a list of outstanding requests so you can update the information as it arrives. You still need to meet the applicable benefit requirements.
Does Lutheran Hospital's medical-record request include billing records?
No. Lutheran Hospital says its Medical Records Department does not have access to billing records or information. If you need bills, ask the hospital for its billing instructions separately. Use the medical-record request for treatment records.
What should I explain if my symptoms change from day to day?
Describe how often symptoms occur, how long they last, and which activities they affect. Note medication effects and measures you use for relief. SSA considers this information with the medical and other evidence. Describe both better and more difficult days accurately; your statements alone do not establish disability.
Will I have to travel to Fort Wayne for a hearing?
That depends on how SSA schedules your appearance. There are four methods: in person, audio by telephone, agency video using SSA equipment, and online video using your own connected device in a private location. Online video requires agreement. Objections to audio or agency video are subject to SSA rules and exceptions. Follow the forms and response deadlines in your notices. Your hearing notice identifies the scheduled method and any location. Read SSA's hearing options. Phone or video meetings with Downard are separate from SSA hearings.
Discuss your claim
Discuss Your Fort Wayne SSDI or SSI Claim With Downard
Tell us whether you are preparing an application, responding to a denial, or getting ready for a hearing. We can discuss representation by phone or video. Have your treatment-source list and any decision notice available if you have them.