New York Social Security Disability Lawyer Blog

Surprisingly few people are aware of a Federal program that can provide huge benefits to disabled police, firefighters and other first responders or to their families in case of death. It's called the Public Safety Officers Benefit Act (PSOB), and recently we were successful in obtaining these benefits for one of our clients.

PSOB provides a one-time benefit to eligible public safety officers who were permanently and totally disabled as a result of a catastrophic injury sustained in the line of duty on or after November 29, 1990. Injuries must permanently prevent officers from performing any gainful work in the future.

PSOB also provides support for higher education to eligible spouses and children of public safety officers who died in the line of duty or were catastrophically disabled in the line of duty.

The program is administered by the Office of Justice Programs, a branch of the Department of Justice. With a small staff, limited budget and a very detailed application process, decisions may be long in coming. But the benefits are quite substantial: over $300,000 for any death or disability since 2007, with the exact amount depending on the date of death or injury.

30 years ago, when I began advising my Workers' Compensation clients to also file for Social Security Disability a common response was, "I never heard of that." While almost everyone knows about Social Security Disability today, I would be willing to bet that I would get the same response from most people about PSOB.

For more information about PSOB visit the government website by clicking here, and if you know anyone who might be eligible feel free to send them our way!

Lewis B. Insler, Esq.

In the most recent newsletter, Lew Insler discusses the negative ramifications of a recent Social Security ruling. To visit our newsletter online, click here.

Thanks to everyone who participated in our drive to raise money for area food pantries! Over the holiday season, we offered to donate $10 for every new "Like" on our Facebook page, and we raised $520. Lew and Gabe will be rounding this up to $600, to be distributed equally between the following food banks:
• Tarrytown Community Opportunity Center Food Pantry
• Dutchess County Community Action Partnership: Beacon Food Pantry
• Center for Food Action (Hackensack)
• Daily Bread Food Pantry (Danbury)

Let's all make an ongoing effort to donate food and other necessities to a food banks serving our local communities!

Wishing you and yours Happy Holidays, from all of us at Insler & Hermann.

We are proud to announce that Insler & Hermann, LLP has been selected for the 2011 Best of Danbury Award in the Miscellaneous Business Legal Services category by the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA).

The USCA "Best of Local Business" Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2011 USCA Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the USCA and data provided by third parties.

Between now and New Years, for every new "Like" we get on Facebook, we will donate $10 to the following food pantries (up to $1000, to be distributed equally):

• Tarrytown Community Opportunity Center Food Pantry
• Dutchess County Community Action Partnership: Beacon Food Pantry
• Center for Food Action (Hackensack)
• Daily Bread Food Pantry (Danbury)

Tell your friends!

Check out our new newsletter, and be sure to sign up for future issues!

Shana Tova!

Wishing everyone a happy and healthy Rosh Hashana

from all of us at Insler & Hermann!

September 11, 2011: I had a hard time watching the reading of the names of the dead this morning. Whatever you might think about how our country has responded to the events ten years ago, our thoughts are with the innocent people who died due to the cowardly acts of terrorism perpetrated on September 11, 2001 and the brave people who died trying to help save them. I am planning to visit the site later this month to pay my respects in person when I will be serving as an arbitrator in the Wall Street area.

Lew Insler

Wishing everyone a happy Fourth of July!

One of the hardest things for anyone to do is to really see things from someone else's perspective. As a lawyer I can tell you that sometimes things seem so obvious to us that we can't imagine why our client or potential client, or even our adversary, doesn't see it or didn't do it.

In preparing to meet with a financial planner recently my wife and I had to complete a worksheet so that he could understand our issues and concerns. One of the things it asked for was to list our Long Term Disability policies. Although I have been practicing disability law for over 30 years and can't imagine how many times I've told people (not clients---by then it's too late) to get disability insurance and to make sure they increase it as their salary increases, when I got to that part of the form I must admit I was at a loss.

I thought I had a Long Term Disability policy for myself for one amount and two for my wife. Coincidentally, I had just received a solicitation from the insurance company asking me to increase the coverage and it stated I had a far different amount of coverage in force than I thought. I sheepishly told the planner that even though this is my field, I really was unclear about my own coverage.

It turns out when I went through the policies a few days later that in fact I had two policies, and they actually totaled more than I thought! As for my wife, her two policies were there, but I really couldn't tell the amount of coverage without making some additional phone calls.

So the moral of this story is that once again, like the "caregiver" entry from last year and maybe one or two others I've posted here, I once again have a better insight when I meet with people who don't know if they have insurance, or what the coverage amounts are.

And for all of you, go check now. And make sure your coverage has kept up with your salary!

Lewis B. Insler, Esq.

Within the disability spectrum, our clients who suffer from Multiple Sclerosis tug at my heartstrings just a little bit more than most. Perhaps because they are invariably vibrant, successful people who are totally blindsided by the disease, they are very sympathetic clients and we usually expect their claims to be decided favorably.

However, there are two reasons why winning an MS disability case is not always as easy as it might appear at first glance.

The first is that in many cases, people suffering from MS are not actually diagnosed or treated until many years after their symptoms arise. They might see many doctors before they are correctly diagnosed, or they might not see a doctor at all. Just this week I reviewed a set of records where the claimant was diagnosed with MS and spent the next year treating for Lyme Disease before accepting that MS was the cause of his problems and starting to take Copaxone.

The result of a delayed diagnosis in some cases is a loss of retroactive benefits. In the worst case scenario, a correct diagnosis is not reached until after the claimant's disability coverage has expired, and no claim at all can be brought. Other than asking a doctor for a retrospective opinion, which the judges often do not credit, we can't do much about this problem.

The other reason that MS claims can be tricky to win is that very often the medical records don't contain all of the claimant's relevant medical complaints or they state that the claimant is "doing well." There are two reasons that happens, and both can be dealt with by an experienced attorney.

Often, patients don't tell their doctors the full extent of their problems, and sometimes the doctors either are not paying attention or do not see the need to record the patient's medical complaints in detail. Both of these situations can be remedied by having the client make a special appointment with their physician to go over their complaints, and to make sure that their chart is accurate and that the doctor notes the length of time the complaints have been present.

When the records say "doing well," it usually means "no change," or is in relation to a baseline that relates to the patient's medical condition, not that he or she has no problems or limitations. When we see a notation like that in the records, we have the doctors complete a Functional Capacity Assessment in which they have to note the patient's specific limitations and the findings that support them. Most neurologists who deal frequently with MS patients are quite willing to complete these forms for us.

My best advice to anyone with MS fighting a disability claim is to seek treatment immediately, and make sure to tell your doctor about all of your medical complaints. And that goes back to what I always tell ALL of my clients when they ask me "what do I have to do?" I tell them: "your job is to try to get better, and we'll take care of your claim."

Lew Insler, Esq.

Several months ago I wrote about the New Jersey health insurance program available for individuals with pre-existing conditions (click here for that blog entry).

A similar program exists in New York State as well.

As with the New Jersey plan, pre-requisites include:
• having a pre-existing condition - although, in New York, the conditions are specifically identified and if an application's condition is not on the list, eligibility is subject to medical review.
• Not having had health insurance coverage for 6 months
• Being a legal US resident and a resident of New York State

Rates are as follows:
$421 for residents of the 5 counties that make up New York, Nassau and Suffolk, and counties North of the city including Ulster, Dutchess, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam and Sullivan.
$362 for all other counties of New York State.

Please note that this program is first come, first served and thus will likely fill up quickly. If that happens, the state and GHI (the plan administrator) will create a waiting list.

Click here for an application and further details.

Happy New Year!

Gabe Hermann

Once again, I am proud to be volunteering my time and expertise on disability law to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society when they hold their upcoming Legal Day on Saturday, December 4, 2010. I first participated in their regular event on May 8, 2010 alongside other professionals possessing different areas of expertise of particular interest to those suffering from multiple sclerosis.

At the last Legal Day, the issues presented to me covered a wide range of scenarios. Some were relatively straightforward, whereas others proved to be quite complex (though I personally enjoyed the challenge). Of course, the real reward is in helping those who come to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for assistance. I've been assured that every appointment slot has been reserved by someone seeking Social Security assistance this Saturday. I am looking forward to offering my help to these individuals whose lives have been affected by MS as well as reuniting with the other professionals who also kindly volunteer their time and knowledge to such a worthy organization.

Brian Anson