If you are disabled because of an illness or injury, you might be planning on filing a long-term disability claim. After all, if you have a disability that is going to prevent you from being able to work again for a long time—or if you are afraid that you will never be able to work again because of your disability—then you might be worried about how you are going to support yourself in the coming months and years.

Because of how important your long-term disability claim is, you may want to handle each step of your case in the right way. These are some of the most important things that you will probably want to focus on when filing one of these claims.

Your Attorney

There is a good chance that you have already hired an attorney to assist you with your long-term disability claim. If you have not, this is probably one of the main things that you will want to prioritize. You will want to specifically look for an attorney who has experience with helping clients with filing—and getting approved for—long-term disability claims. Ideally, you may also want to look for an attorney who will work on a contingency basis and who will not charge legal fees until your case has been handled, particularly if you are in a tough financial situation because of your disability and the related inability to work.

Your Medical Records

Each time that you have been to the doctor, your doctor and other members of your health care team should have logged medical records about your appointment. They might have documented information about your disability that could be very helpful to your case. Therefore, you should make sure that you give your attorney permission to access your medical records. Typically, you will need to fill out a form to allow this.

Your Doctor's Opinion

Your doctor might have given you an opinion about whether or not they think you will be able to return to working and living normally. You will want to take your doctor's opinion seriously since this can help you with planning for the future, and it might even help with your case.

The Findings in an Independent Medical Examination

In many long-term disability claims, those who are filing for long-term disability are asked to undergo an independent medical examination. Basically, this involves visiting with a doctor who you have never seen before. Make sure that you do this if asked, to help ensure that everything goes well with your case.

Contact a long-term disability attorney for more information.