Kansas Disability Benefits

Social Security Disability Benefits can provide disabled Kansas residents with much-needed financial assistance. SSDI payments range from a few hundred dollars to as much over $3,000 per month, with most recipients receiving between $800 and $1,800. Unlike SSI benefits, SSDI benefits are not based on your financial resources.

If you can show the SSA that you cannot perform Sufficient Gainful Activity (SGA), and you have the required number of work credits earned from your employment history, you can qualify for a monthly benefit.

Social Security Disability in Kansas

A little less than 25% of the adult population in the Sunflower State has a disability, resulting in $3.4 billion in healthcare expenditures. The most common disabilities relate to mobility, cognition, and independent living.

Disabled adults in Kansas are healthier than their counterparts in other states in terms of obesity, smoking, high blood pressure, and inactivity. Even so, many of these individuals need SSDI to assist in defraying the cost of their living expenses such as shelter, food, transportation, and medical care.

How To Qualify for SSDI in Kansas

Social Security benefits like SSDI are not the same as workers’ compensation—which protects an employed person who is injured on the job. And it is not the same as SSI, which provides financial assistance to disabled low-income residents and low-income seniors aged 65 and older. SSDI benefits are payable to disabled individuals who have earned enough work credits through employment that contributed to FICA taxes (the Social Security tax used to fund Social Security benefits).

To qualify for Social Security disability in Kansas, you must show the Social Security Administration that you are eligible both medically and non-medically. What that means is you will need to prove that you have a disability from a medical standpoint, and show that you have the required number of work credits needed to collect SSDI. Usually, that’s 40 work credits, half of which must have been earned in the past decade. However, if you are younger, you do not need as many work credits.

To prove your disability, you must furnish documentation of your condition during your application process. If your doctor cannot say you have a specific condition, they may be able to indicate that you have a limited residual functional capacity (RFC) which prevents you from performing normal work tasks on a regular basis.

It’s usually a good idea to ask a Social Security disability lawyer to assist you in packaging the materials for your Social Security disability claim. They can help you make sure you are covering all your bases so your application has a better chance of initial approval without having to go through disability adjudication.

How To Apply for SSDI in Kansas

You can apply for SSDI in Kansas in one of its 13 Social Security Administration field offices. Note that these offices are not the same as the Kansas Department for Children and Families (DCF), which administers other benefits and financial assistance.

SSDI applications can also be done over the phone by calling 800-772-1213 or initiated online by using the forms on SSA.gov. Look over the application before filling it out to make sure you have compiled all relevant materials – such as letters from doctors, prescriptions, hospital bills, and paperwork showing your work history. If your application needs to be appealed, having these items in place already will save time and stress.

How To Appeal a Denial in Kansas

Nationally, about 70% of SSDI applications are denied, but SSDI applicants in Kansas fare better with 50% of applicants receiving SSDI after their initial application.

However, if you are applying for SSDI in Kansas and your application is rejected, there are several steps you can take. Your first step is to request a reconsideration so you can provide further documentation of your disability or your work history. If that doesn’t work, you can bring your case before an ALJ or Administrative Law Judge. Beyond that, your next option is to file for a review by the appeals council, who will either review the case themselves or send it back to a different ALJ.

More Kansas Benefits

There are other benefits for Kansas residents who need financial assistance. SNAP (commonly called food stamps) helps low-income families buy groceries, while WIC provides nursing mothers with approved foods and baby foods. For Kansas residents who are disabled and living below the poverty line, there is SSI, or Supplemental Security Income. When you apply for SSDI, the SSA will review your application and check if you are also eligible for SSI.

Kansas residents who cannot afford medical insurance can apply for Kansas Medicaid, also known as KanCare. The program is jointly funded by the federal government and the state of Kansas. Medicaid is commonly confused with Medicare, but while the latter is a health plan for seniors, the former provides low-income families the opportunity to select a healthcare provider and enjoy free or subsidized health insurance.

For Kansas residents who are out of work, Kansas Unemployment can provide weekly benefit payments until they are back on their proverbial feet. In most cases, recipients of unemployment benefits will need to show that they are actively searching for work. Unlike the monthly payment of SSI or SSDI, unemployment benefits are issued weekly and are only a fraction of your former wages from your most recent place of employment.

Kansas Social Security Offices

Kansas Hearing and Appeal Offices

Kansas is in Region 7 (Kansas City), which services Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri.