You are required to notify the Social Security Administration (SSA) as soon as your condition has improved to the point where working is feasible, and you are able to return to full-time employment. The SSA will periodically examine cases to verify that recipients still qualify for benefits in order to make sure that nobody is abusing the system. You may wonder, “How often will my SSDI be reviewed?”

Your first review will typically take place six to 18 months from the day you became disabled if the improvement is anticipated. The SSA will examine your case about every three years if progress is possible, but cannot be foreseen. A seven-year evaluation of your case will be conducted if no improvement is anticipated.

Keep reading below for more information.

Why Is My Social Security Disability Review Being Conducted?

Even though the majority of people receiving disability benefits are truly disabled, there are some dishonest people out there who try to take advantage of the system. You’ve likely seen or heard stories about people who have recovered and are back at work, while still being eligible for disability benefits and/or those who fabricated a disability to receive payments.

The purpose of social security disability benefits is to help people who are disabled. It is federally supported, in contrast to workers’ compensation. Hence, the government must ensure that people who have received disability status are eligible. 

Having numerous non-disabled people on the SSA’s disability payroll will restrict those who genuinely need it the most.

Hence, if you have been notified of a social security disability evaluation, be aware that it is common. It doesn’t necessarily imply that your claim is flawed. However, the rewards you receive may be impacted by your questionnaire responses.

How Often Will My SSDI Be Reviewed?

While some patients’ medical issues may improve with treatment, others will see little change or even deterioration in their diseases. The SSA will create a schedule for your case called a “diary” centered on these categories, which will decide how often your SSDI will be reviewed. 

The dates of your CDRs will be recorded in this diary. Diaries do ultimately “mature,” at which point you will run out of CDRs.

Expecting Medical Improvement

There is a good chance that the disabled individual will become well enough to return to work in cases where Social Security has labeled “medical improvement expected (MIE).” 

MIE instances will sometimes entail illnesses that necessitate intense care for a year or longer, yet the care is frequently quite effective. (Organ transplants and certain malignancies fall within this category.)

You will have more regular CDR appointments than every three years if the case is categorized as MIE. After initially receiving benefits, you should anticipate obtaining your first CDR six to 18 months later.

Even if your case is marked as MIE, if you’re above 55, you typically won’t get a CDR. Your diary will mature once you’re nearly 60 if your case’s circumstances suggest that a full recovery may be possible (such as certain fractures, dislocations, or strains).

Medical Improvement Possible

The Social Security Administration (SSA) doesn’t know if you’ll be able to go back to work at any point, but it doesn’t want to rule out the option if you’ve been given the “medical improvement possible” (MIP) designation. 

This category frequently includes ailments such as back injuries and mental health issues since treatment options like surgery or new medications may considerably enhance your health.

The CDRs for your case will be scheduled every three years if it is designated as MIP. Beyond the age of 52, you will generally no longer be scheduled for CDRs, with the exception of certain conditions like cancer in remission or bone fractures.

Medical Improvement Not Expected

Medical improvement not expected (MINE) cases involve terminal, incurable illnesses, and for which there are no recognized cures. The MINE categorization would include conditions like Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome, just to name a few. 

Your CDRs will happen every five or seven years if your case is labeled as “MINE.”

Child SSI Recipients

The cases of children receiving SSI are typically examined every three years. Typically, the cases of infants whose low-birth-weight applications were approved are reassessed at age 1. Regardless of the severity of their disability, all child recipients’ cases are evaluated once they are 18 years old.

Deviations From These Guidelines

Reviewers for Social Security are told to make their decisions based on “good adjudicative judgment” when determining whether or not a medical improvement is likely. Due to the increased likelihood that they will recover before retirement age, recipients in their twenties and thirties frequently have more CDRs. 

Yet, each situation is unique, and health might be unpredictable.

Based on fresh medical data, the agency may decide to raise or reduce the occurrence of your CDRs. Your case might be categorized as “medical improvement possible,” which means you’ll have fewer CDRs going forward if you were initially announced under the “medical improvement expected” category, but your prior CDRs revealed that your condition was stable or worsening.

Continuous Disability Review

When your case is up for review, the SSA will mail you the short form Disability Update Report if it believes you won’t get better enough to go back to work. If the SSA considers you to have a higher probability of medical improvement, the agency will mail you a lengthy document, the Continuing Disability Review Report.

The brief form is typically given to disability recipients; once they submit it, the review process is typically over. 

In most cases, passing a CDR is far simpler than initially qualifying for disability payments. After a CDR, most recipients continue to receive their benefits. 

Redeterminations vs. CDRs

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) are two different forms of disability payments that are provided by the SSA. If you get SSI benefits, the agency will regularly evaluate your monetary resources to see whether or not you are still within the permissible limitations. 

SSI is a needs-based program with income and asset limits (known as a “redetermination“).

These recalculations are in addition to and distinct from CDRs. Both are required of SSI recipients. Redeterminations will look at your income, resources, and living circumstances, while CDRs simply look at your medical data. 

Even if you pass your CDR, your benefits will end if you solely get SSI, and the agency determines that you are outside the permitted limitations.

The frequency of re-evaluation varies between every three and every six years. Whenever anything happens that would affect your eligibility for SSI, your claim will also be re-evaluated (for example, if you get married).

Conclusion

Some factors decide how often your SSDI will be reviewed. These schedules are usually pre-determined. Despite being fairly difficult, there are a few things you can do to make sure you pass a Continuing Disability Review.