Even Though I Visit My Primary Care Doctor For Depression and Anxiety Consistently, I Cannot Win My Disability Claim.




Obtaining consistent medical treatment is critical to winning a disability claim.  However, it is also important who is providing this consistent treatment.  


For mental impairments such as anxiety and depression, it is best that a mental health specialist (e.g., psychiatrist or psychologist) provide that treatment because they are specialists for mental health.  Accordingly, the opinions and reports from mental health specialists will be given more consideration in a disability claim as compared to a primary care doctors. I typically analogize this premise to that of an electrician and plumber.  If someone was going to get an estimate on plumbing work needed, he/she would not seek out an electrician.  And vice versa, one would not seek out a plumber for an estimate on electrical work.  Having said that, mental health treatment from a primary care doctor is better than no treatment.  But to make a more persuasive disability case as discussed above, one should make attempts to obtain treatment from mental health specialists.



-Quentin Sanders
Social Security Disability Hearing Attorney
Martin, Jones, & Piemonte

Website: www.mjpdisability.com

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