i have had a 3 cervical fusion and recently went back to work which is laboring, I am in pain.

Hi Debbie:

I am so sorry for your pain and added worry you have with the uncertainty of disability.  Prior to my RA kicking in, I was a Human Resource Manager for many years.  I haven't worked since November of 2006. I live in California, and they offer  Short Term Disability (STD) for up to one year which pays a portion of your former salary if a Doctor (your own and one of theirs) states that you are unable to work.  After the year was up,  I was lucky, the company I worked for had a private Long Term Disability (LTD) Policy that has been paying me a portion of my previous salary.  I was very lucky, we were able to make our finacial commitments on my husband's salary while waiting for the policy to begin paying...it was very tough, as I earned a significant salary as a HR Manager, but there was just no way I could of worked I was (and still am) just too sick. 

The Private Company has required me to file for Social Security Disability which I have done with the assistance of a Legal Firm that specializes in getting Social Security disability approved.  Social Security typically takes 3-5 years to get approved!!!  However, once approved you would qualify for Medicare for your health care needs free of charge.  The key to this is you CAN'T be working AT ALL!  And you have to have a doctor that states you are disalbed long-term.  If you work while trying to get disability, they will say that you can work (even part-time counts).  The problem is if a person doesn't have a Private policy, what do they do for money while waiting for Social Security to approve them??  It is a VERY UNFAIR system!!

So, my first suggestion to you would be to find a good doctor and see if he/she believes you are disabled long-term.  If so, then find out if your state has  STD and file for it right away.  Then find out if your  Company has a Private LTD policy, and put in a claim ASAP.  If your doctor beleives you to be disabled beyond  "temporary" (90 days or less) start NOW and call a firm that specializes in obtaining Social Security disability for you.  I would highly recommend "Allsup" they are very successful and it costs you nothing until you are awarded Disability, then they take a percentage.  If you do have to work while trying to obtain Social Security make sure you have it documented IN WRITING every time you miss work or leave early due to your illness.  But, again, if you are working, getting disability will be very difficult.

I wish you the best...Good Bless