NO INSURANCE. NO DOCTOR. CAN YOU GET DISABILITY BENEFITS?

I often encounter individuals who need disability benefits but they have no doctor because they don't have health insurance and can't afford doctors.

It's a problem because Social Security always requires medical evidence to approve a disability claim. You can explain to them why you have no doctor but it doesn't solve the problem of no medical evidence.

What I recommend is to seek out one of the free medical clinics in North Alabama.  There are a number of doctors and clinics that will treat individuals with no health insurance, either without a fee or with a greatly reduced fee that is affordable.

Can you just go ahead and apply for benefits without seeing a doctor?  Yes, of course you can.  However, your case probably won't make it through the five-step process.  You will most likely stall out at Step 2:  no evidence of severe medically determinable impairment.

Won't Social Security send you to see one of their doctors?  They might but there's no guarantee.  If they do, there is still a big problem.  In a vast majority of cases, the consulting doctor from Social Security will not provide information that helps get your claim approved.  Most often, this doctor's exam will result in a denied claim.

You are nearly always better off to depend on your own doctor, not a Social Security consulting doctor.

How do you get a list of free or lower cost medical clinics?  My office provides that list free.  Using it, you may be able to find a doctor you can afford or a clinic right in your community, or close by.