As Michles & Booth, P.A. marks its 25th anniversary, the firm’s Social Security Disability attorney, Antonio Bruni, is pushing back on what he calls the most damaging misconception about the benefit: that it is a government handout. Bruni says Social Security Disability Insurance, or SSDI, is insurance that workers pay for through payroll deductions from their first job onward, with employers matching the contribution.
“It’s not a handout,” Bruni said. “You paid for that insurance, and now you need to use the insurance you paid for. I’ve paid my disability insurance to the government since I was 16, out of every check I ever got.”
Speaking on the local program Sonshine’s Corner, Bruni explained that eligibility turns on function rather than diagnosis. A medical condition must be expected to last at least 12 months, and Social Security weighs a person’s combined limitations and age instead of any single label. He added that veterans are often surprised a VA disability rating does not carry over, because the two systems measure different things.
Bruni said processing times have grown, with some claimants in the region waiting as long as three years for a decision. He urged applicants to file within a year of leaving work to protect retroactive benefits, and noted that a denial starts a 60-day clock to appeal, the first step in a process that can move from reconsideration to a hearing before a judge, and finally to the Appeals Council.
Bruni also cautioned against using artificial-intelligence tools or online forums to build a claim, saying they apply a single rule while missing the exceptions that decide cases. “AI looks at that one rule and misses all the exceptions,” he said. “It is destroying cases quickly.”
The implications extend beyond individual claims. With waits stretching to three years, claimants who miss the one-year filing window or the 60-day appeal deadline can lose benefits they have already funded through payroll taxes. Bruni’s warning about AI and online advice adds a newer risk: applicants who rely on automated tools may build claims that fail on the exceptions a trained advocate would catch.
Bruni said the work is personal, recalling that he helped his own father file for disability years ago. The firm’s goal for clients, he said, reaches beyond a monthly payment to include the health coverage an approved claim can provide. For workers and families navigating the system, the message is that SSDI is earned insurance, and that deadlines and expert guidance can determine whether that insurance pays out.
