WHY THE "ALLEGED ONSET DATE" IS SO IMPORTANT

When you file a Social Security disability claim, you will be asked the date you became disabled.  This is called the "Alleged Onset Date" (AOD). Potentially, the claim will pay a benefit back to this date.  So, choose the date with care.

There are two important things to consider when choosing your alleged onset date (AOD):

1.  You must not have been working on the alleged onset date and you must not have worked at any substantial gainful job after the AOD. A job is usually "substantial" if it was full time work.  

2.  You must have medical evidence of disability going back to the alleged onset date.  If not, Social Security will move the onset date forward, causing you to lose some past due benefits.

So, if Mr. Claimant comes to my office for help filing a disability claim, here are the questions I need to ask him about his AOD:

• When did your medical impairment first become so severe that you could not work?
• Have you worked any at all since that date?  If yes, was any of that work performed at "substantial gainful activity? level?  (If yes, the onset date must be changed to a later date).

There is a Social Security rule that basically says a person cannot be disabled while working a full-time job.  Even if you feel you were disabled while you continued to work, Social Security will not pay a benefit for any month in which you worked at the level of "substantial gainful activity.)*  So, generally, you can't claim a benefit while you were still working, regardless of your medical condition.

While an alleged onset date may be amended or changed after the claim has been filed, it is best to begin with a date that can be defended.  I recommend that you speak with an attorney or advocate who handles disability claims before you decide on an onset date. If there are legal problems with the onset date, the attorney/advocate can save you a lot of headaches.

Put the most simple way, the alleged onset date (AOD) is:  the date when the claimant became medically unable to work and, therefore, stopped working.
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Charles W. Forsythe
The Forsythe Firm
7027 Old Madison Pike, Suite 108
Huntsville, AL 35806
CALL US:  (256) 799-0297

SOCIAL SECURITY JUSTICE 

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