Burton McKinnish: Social Security Disability

SSA Lingo

When I first became a cop I had a terrible time memorizing the “10” codes (10-4, 10-6, 10-32, etc,etc). But pretty soon I had 90% of em down pat. To this day I bet I could still get 50% right.  Then I started my job with the Social Security Administration. On my first day I was bombarded with initials and lingo that I had no clue about. What’s worse is that one sentence could contain several words in lingo!! But alas, just like being a cop I had 90% of em down pat within a few weeks. As a claimant for social security benefits, knowing the lingo will help you better understand SSA staff when discussing your claim. If you are an attorney, you better KNOW these following terms or face looking like a fool in front of your client when the Judge asks you a question using the SSA lingo. Heres the basics...

Lingo	Translation	Meaning
AOD	Alleged Onset Date	The date you are claiming you became disabled
CDR	Continuing Disability Review	A follow up determination to see if you have remained disabled
DAC	Disabled Adult Child	A person who is now an adult but became disabled while a child
DEQY	Detailed Earnings Query	List of your income and places you worked
DIB	Disability Insurance Benefits	Social Security’s Insurance benefits for the disabled
DLI	Date last insured	The last time you are eligible for insurance benefits
DOT	Dictionary of Occupational TItles	A book of Job descriptions
DSM-IV	Diagnostic and Statistical Manual - 4th edition	The mental health “go to” book.
PIA	Primary Insurance Amount	How much $$ you get if disabled
POMS	Program Operational Manual	SSA’s instruction book
QC	Quarter of Coverage	Earn 4 per year working at a gainful level
RFC	Residual Function Capacity	What you can do despite your disability
SGA	Substantial Gainful Activity	Sufficient work
SSA	Social Security Administration
SSI	Supplemental Security Income	Insurance for those who do not have sufficient quarters of coverage
SSR	Social Security Rulings	Policy on SSA decisions
TWP	Trial Work Period	An attempt to work after being disabled

These are the most used ones but there are several others. Remember the “meanings” section is just my own layman’s definitions. A true SSA scholar would have a conniption with some of my definitions but these should give you a working knowledge of the system.