Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids Disability Lawyers for SSDI and SSI
Downard & Associates represents adults in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applications and appeals. We work by phone and video, help gather medical evidence, and prepare cases for reconsideration and administrative hearings. Begin with a list of your treatment providers, the dates you received care, and how your condition affects work. Include hospital care and physician visits separately when those records come from different sources.
How we help
Working With Downard on a Grand Rapids Application or Appeal
If the case reaches an administrative law judge hearing, we prepare you for testimony and present the case.
For an SSDI application, we help prepare the filing, gather medical evidence, and document your work history. For SSI, we also help complete the financial disclosures. That work documents the information Social Security uses to evaluate program eligibility and, for a disability-based claim, your ability to work.
At reconsideration, we review the reasons for the denial and develop missing evidence. If the case reaches an administrative law judge hearing, we prepare you for testimony and present the case. Explaining what your work required and how your symptoms limit those tasks is part of preparing the evidence.
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.
Our Michigan disability representation page explains the statewide context for working with us.
Benefit eligibility
SSDI and SSI Rules for Grand Rapids Applicants
Duration rule
12months
SSDI generally requires enough recent work covered by Social Security and a condition that meets the disability standard used by the Social Security Administration (SSA). The work credits required depend on your age when disability began. See SSA's disability eligibility guidance.
SSI does not require an insured work record. It requires limited income and resources, plus eligibility based on age 65 or older, blindness, or disability. Citizenship or qualifying noncitizen status, residency, and other requirements also apply. SSA's SSI eligibility explanation describes those separate rules.
For SSDI and adult SSI claims based on disability, SSA considers whether you are performing substantial gainful activity. Substantial gainful activity generally means work involving significant physical or mental activities that is usually done for pay or profit. If the evaluation reaches the work-capacity steps, SSA considers whether you can do previous work that counts as past relevant work or adjust to other work. A claim can be decided at an earlier step.
The disability-based standard requires a condition that has lasted, or is expected to last, at least 12 consecutive months or is expected to result in death. You do not have to wait a year to apply. SSI based on age 65 or older does not require a disability finding.
SSI statutory blindness follows different rules: SSA does not use substantial gainful activity to determine initial SSI eligibility on that basis. SSI statutory blindness has no duration requirement. Income, resource, and other SSI rules still apply.
Treatment records
Finding Hospital and Medical Group Records for a Grand Rapids Claim
For records pickup, it directs patients from Blodgett and Meijer Heart Center to Butterworth.
Trinity Health Michigan's Grand Rapids records instructions list separate contacts for Saint Mary's hospital records and Trinity Health Medical Group records. If you received care in both settings, list the hospital stay and the physician visits separately, with the dates for each. Check the appropriate request instructions rather than assuming one request covers both.
Corewell Health offers medical-record requests through MyChart, an online process, or a signed authorization. Its Grand Rapids hospital entry groups Butterworth, Blodgett, and Meijer Heart Center among the listed facilities. For records pickup, it directs patients from Blodgett and Meijer Heart Center to Butterworth. Confirm the current instructions before making a records trip.
Build the treatment list around where care occurred, including independent practices and care outside these systems. A portal download can help you identify records you already have, but compare it with your treatment history to identify missing visits, tests, or hospital stays. For a disability-based claim, SSA's medical-evidence guidance explains why the record must show the condition, its duration, and its effects on work activities.
Get organized
Build a Treatment and Work Timeline for Your Grand Rapids Claim
Use a single list to connect treatment dates with changes in your work and daily activities. Mark uncertain dates as estimates, and update the list when you remember another source.
Treatment sources: Record the hospital or practice name, provider, contact information, and first and most recent visit dates. Identify hospital care and Medical Group visits separately when applicable.
Records to locate: Note the visit notes, test reports, and hospital records you have, the dates missing from your copies, and any request already submitted.
Work changes: List the jobs you held and the actual duties. Describe changes in lifting, standing, sitting, concentration, attendance, or hours, and when work stopped or changed.
Daily limits: Give specific examples of tasks you cannot sustain, how often symptoms interrupt them, and medication side effects. Include changes over time.
Claim documents: Keep decisions and evidence requests with the date each arrived. Keep copies of appeal submissions and any confirmation you received.
You do not need a complete records folder before applying. SSA says not to delay an application because documents are missing. Identify the sources you know and respond to later requests for information.
After a denial
The Next Review After a Grand Rapids Disability Denial
Deadline
60days
The usual next step after an initial SSDI or SSI denial is reconsideration. After a reconsideration denial, you may request an administrative law judge hearing. These requests generally must be made in writing within 60 days after you receive the notice. SSA ordinarily presumes receipt five days after the notice date unless you show it arrived later.
If a request may be late, ask for an extension in writing and explain why the deadline was missed. SSA must find good cause; acceptance is not automatic. The SSDI reconsideration rule and SSI reconsideration rule describe the request and extension requirements. Read the instructions for the decision you received rather than treating every SSA letter as having the same deadline.
Local claim process
Reading Your Grand Rapids Hearing Instructions
Confirm the office handling your own appeal through SSA's correspondence. Our hearing-office guide provides office information for the hearing stage.
SSA has four hearing methods: in person, audio by telephone, agency video using SSA equipment, and online video using a personal device. Online video requires your agreement. Objections to audio or agency video are subject to SSA's rules and exceptions. Review SSA's hearing attendance options and the notice and forms sent to you.
The scheduling notice states how you will appear and, for an in-person or agency-video appearance, where to go. An in-person hearing can use a hearing office or another hearing site. A directory listing alone does not establish your scheduled location. Follow the actual notice and any updated instructions for your case.
Common questions
Questions Grand Rapids Clients Ask Before Getting Started
Do I need to travel to Tennessee to work with Downard?
We work with Grand Rapids clients by phone and video. Our firm is based in Tennessee and has no Michigan office. Attorney-client communication is separate from SSA hearing attendance; follow your hearing notice for that proceeding.
Will a patient portal download include everything SSA needs?
Do not assume it will. Compare the records you can see with the providers and dates on your treatment list. Identify missing care and records from other sources. For a disability-based claim, SSA uses evidence of the medical condition and its effects on work activities, so a diagnosis or a single visit summary may not address all the issues in the claim.
Can I start an application while records are still being requested?
Yes. SSA says not to delay an application because you do not have all the documents. Provide the treatment-source information you know and any medical evidence already in your possession. Respond to requests for additional information as the claim proceeds.
Can Downard help with SSDI if I already receive VA benefits?
We handle SSDI cases for people who currently receive VA benefits. We do not handle VA claims or appeals. Receiving VA benefits does not by itself establish eligibility for SSDI; SSA applies its own disability and program requirements.
How will I attend an SSA disability hearing?
SSA hearings can take place in person, by audio using a telephone, by agency video using SSA equipment, or by online video using your own device. Online video requires your agreement. SSA's hearing-options guidance explains the appearance notice and forms; audio and agency video objections follow SSA rules and exceptions. Follow your scheduling notice for the actual method, site, and connection instructions. An in-person hearing may be at a hearing office or a permanent remote site.
Discuss your claim
Discuss Your Grand Rapids Disability Claim With Downard
Tell us whether you are preparing an application or responding to a decision, and describe what has made working difficult. We can discuss your SSDI or SSI matter and the next step for your case.