Consultative Exams: Claimant Assistance or Sly Mechanism?

Consultative examinations, also known as CE or social security medical exams, are medical examinations that social security disability and SSI claimants are sometimes sent to in the course of processing a claim for disability benefits to allow disability examiners to review recent medical evidence before they decide on a case.

By Vanessa Francisco Category: Self-Help

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Consultative examinations, also known as CE or social security medical exams, are medical examinations that social security disability and SSI claimants are sometimes sent to in the course of processing a claim for disability benefits to allow disability examiners to review recent medical evidence before they decide on a case.

There are a number of misconceptions about CEs. For the record, consultative exams do not render treatment, do not corroborate past diagnoses, do not provide additional diagnostic details with regard to the client’s health condition, do not substitute for actual medical certificate and have little influence on the result of the case. Most disability exams do not provide substantial evidence to support a claim.

Many CE doctors have an unfavorable predisposition in attitudes toward disability claimants as pointed out in this article http://www.disabilitysecrets.com/rude-quick-exams.html. A consultative physician often suspects that the claimants are exaggerating complaints and symptoms since they have occasionally encountered a number of malingerers. Doctors, however, should remember that pain is a subjective matter and there is no objective way of measuring it.

Evidence from CEs is short observations about the muscular strength, range of reflexes, motion, and vital statistics of the claimant thus, cannot serve as a basis for approval of benefits. I have handled some cases where CE can sometimes carry substantial weight for the decision on a disability claim. Cases involving claimants who have psychological or psychiatric impairments can give substantial credence to a consultative exam. CE in these cases can have an effect on the decision of a disability claim.

Social security medical exams are not about helping claimants, apparently they are there to conveniently speed up the closing of cases, which alas usually means denial. Since disability exams do not assist claimants in their attempts to win benefits, claimants can seek services of social security disability law firms. Proper representation usually wins clients the benefits they deserve and rightfully belong to them.

We have Social Security Disability Law Firms with professional and competent lawyers advocating and representing clients with claims and appeals for benefits under the Social Security programs.

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