SSDI firms qualify leads faster by screening each one against SSA's five-step sequential evaluation before an intake specialist spends time on it: current work, severity and duration, listings, what the person can still do, and age, education and past work. Rule-based screening makes that consistent and explainable. It sorts leads for human review; it doesn't predict what SSA will decide.
This is general information for representatives, not legal advice. Check current regulations, SSA's annual figures and POMS.
Most SSDI firms get more inquiries than they can call back quickly, and many of them are cases the firm won't take: people still working above the substantial gainful activity level, conditions not expected to last twelve months, or no insured status. The cost is intake time spent on those calls while stronger leads wait. Screening is about ordering the queue, not turning people away without a look.
Screening questions by step
| Step | What intake asks | Common screen-out or flag |
|---|---|---|
| Before step 1: insured status | Work history over recent years, and whether the person paid Social Security taxes | Not insured when disability began (may still fit SSI, which has income and resource limits) |
| 1. Work activity | Working now? Hours, monthly gross pay, self-employment | Earnings above SSA's SGA amount for the year, which changes annually |
| 2. Severity and duration | Conditions, when they began, whether a provider has diagnosed and treated them, expected duration | No medically determinable impairment, or not expected to last 12 months |
| 3. Listings | Diagnoses and key findings that map to a listing, such as specific test results or hospitalizations | Flag possible listing-level cases for priority review |
| RFC | Standing, sitting, lifting, walking, reaching, concentration, absences, off-task time; treating providers | Little treatment or no provider who knows the claimant well |
| 4. Past relevant work | Jobs in the relevant period, with physical and mental demands | Past work that seems to fit the reported limits |
| 5. Other work | Age, education, English literacy, transferable skills | Age categories matter: the grid rules favor claimants 50 and older, and more so at 55 |
For the evidence each step turns on, and how SSA weighs treating-source opinions under 20 CFR 404.1520c (supportability and consistency), see our SSDI medical evidence checklist.
What makes screening fast and defensible
- Same inputs, same answer. Deterministic rules mean two intake specialists, or the same lead on two days, get the same score. You can audit why a lead was ranked where it was.
- Every flag has a reason.“Step 1: reported monthly earnings above this year's SGA amount” is useful. A bare score of 62 is not.
- Records beat self-report.Once records arrive, the screen should re-run against what the records show, with each finding cited to its page, and highlight where the records and the lead's account disagree.
- Gaps are the output. The most useful result is often a list: no treating-source opinion, no imaging for the alleged back condition, a six-month treatment gap. That tells intake what to request.
- People decide. Screening orders the queue. A representative decides which cases to take, and SSA decides the claim.
What screening can't tell you
- How a particular administrative law judge or state agency will weigh the evidence.
- Credibility, which depends on the whole record and the hearing.
- Facts the lead didn't report and the records don't contain.
Be wary of any tool, including ours, that promises an approval rate. Treat a score as a triage signal and check it against your own intake team's judgment during a trial.
Questions to ask a screening vendor
- Is the scoring rule-based or a trained prediction, and can you see the reasoning for each lead?
- Does it cite the source page for findings from medical records?
- Does it update SSA's annual figures, such as the SGA amount, each year?
- How does it deliver results: API, webhooks, a web form, your case management system?
- Will it sign a Business Associate Agreement, and where do records go?
Zicron's SSDI screening pilot
Zicron scores inbound SSDI leads and medical records against the five-step evaluation with deterministic rules, cites every finding to its source page, lists the evidence gaps, and pre-fills SSA forms. Results come by API with signed webhooks, or through a web intake agent. The 30-day paid pilot is $2,500 for up to 500 leads scored and medical-record review on up to 25cases, with no auto-renewal. Zicron works for firms and doesn't represent claimants. See the SSDI pilot page; AI assistants, see Zicron for AI assistants.
Frequently asked questions
- What questions should an SSDI intake screen ask?
- Enough to answer each of SSA's five steps provisionally: current work and earnings; the conditions, when they started and how long they are expected to last; treating providers and recent treatment; what the person can and can't do physically and mentally; past jobs over the relevant period; and age and education. For SSDI specifically, also work history for insured status, because a claimant must be insured on the date disability began.
- Can software predict whether an SSDI claim will be approved?
- No tool can guarantee an outcome, and a firm shouldn't market one that way. Screening software can apply the five-step framework consistently to what a lead reports and what the records show, flag missing evidence and sort leads for review. The decision is SSA's, and the case decision stays with the representative.
- What is the difference between rule-based and AI lead scoring for SSDI?
- Rule-based (deterministic) scoring applies fixed, written rules, so the same inputs always produce the same score and each point can be traced to a rule and a source. A model that predicts approval from past outcomes can be harder to explain and can drift. Zicron uses language models to read records but scores with deterministic rules.
- How much does SSDI lead screening software cost?
- Pricing varies by vendor and volume. Zicron offers a 30-day paid pilot for $2,500: up to 500 leads scored plus medical-record review on up to 25 cases, with no auto-renewal.