While the average person doesn’t know much about Social Security Disability benefits, they probably know that applicants often face rejection even for qualified claims and that people end up waiting months or even years to get the benefits that they need. Many people struggle to make ends meet for months before their application even goes through processing.
While the Social Security Administration will pay back-due benefits to the date of the initial application, people may have to wait quite some time to receive that money, all while going without any sort of income due to an injury or illness. It is common for disabled adults who aren’t able to work to worry about getting the medical care they need or even paying for the basic necessities of life, like groceries and rent.
Those living in the Peoria, Illinois, area who find themselves in need of Social Security Disability benefits should take heart. Compared with the national average wait time for a hearing, as well as other locations in the state of Illinois, Peoria has a relatively quick turnaround time for Social Security benefit applications.
Peoria averages 10 months between application to hearing
At a time when chronic understaffing has left many states scrambling to process incoming Social Security Disability benefits, Illinois is doing relatively well. The federal government regularly reviews wait times for SSD hearings for transparency reasons.
In Chicago, the average applicant will need to wait 13 months. When you consider that many other states have wait times that average as high as 22 months, 13 months of wait time isn’t nearly as bad. However, the Peoria office has an even faster turnaround time. The average applicant seeking Social Security Disability benefits from the Peoria office can expect roughly 10 months of wait time.
That is many months fewer than what offices average in other states. In short, residents in Peoria can connect with the disability benefits they need, including the back-due benefits, sooner. That could help them avoid serious issues such as collection activity on medical debts or the loss of their homes because of a lack of income.
Those who don’t receive approval can still appeal that decision
When you do hear back from the Social Security Administration about your disability application, it isn’t always good news. Sometimes, minor issues on your application result in a denial. Other times, a lack of adequate medical information documenting the impact of your condition on your ability to work and care for yourself prompts a denial.
Regardless of what causes the initial denial, it is important for you to understand that you can successfully appeal that decision and connect with the benefits you need to support yourself.