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I am often asked questions about other disability programs such as workers compensation, veterans benefits, and private disability policies and their potential impact on one’s eligibility for Social Security Disability.

In general an award for service connected disability through the VA, a workers compensation disability rating, and a private disability plan will not interfere with your eligibility for social security disability benefits.

However the standard for receiving benefits for each program are different and qualifying for one will not automatically qualify an individual for benefits from the other. Social security will always make their own determination of your disability independent of other government agencies, workers compensation ratings, or private insurance policy decisions.

Even claimants with an unemployable rating from the Veterans administration will still have to again prove their eligibility for disability through the social security program. Although Veterans are given expedited processing of their claims.

when dealing with workers compensation the amount of workers compensation you receive may have an impact on the amount of benefits you can receive from social security. However, it is imperative to start your claim as soon as possible to prevent any lag time between the expiration of your workers comp benefits and the beginning of social security benefits.

For individuals receiving private long term disability benefits you are also still eligible for disability benefits. And again as always it is always best to start your application as soon as possible in case your long term disability benefits lapse unexpectedly.

Early Retirement and Disability
If you are an older claimant 62 years of age or older and thinking about collecting early retirement because of an inability to sustain work. It is important to contact an attorney before making any determinations because you may be able to fight for your disability payments while collecting early retirement.

Claimant’s collecting early retirement can suffer as much as a 30% reduction in benefits when compared to their potential disability payments. In order to minimize that reduction we can file a claim a claim for disability, which if successful will allow you to recoup benefits lost due to the early retirement penalty.