i am already with the ARC ohio program and am on the ODAPT program for my meds. i see my case manager on the 20th of this month as i have to reup for my meds to be paid. i will ask her about helping me with my new place. i got on the housing voucher program so they will pay my rent and all that. i am just angry that my state is wanting to treat me in this manner. no one in my condition should have to fight so hard for their benefits. it has been 10 years now and no end in sight so to speak. i worked hard all my life since i was 16 and paid into this program all along. i am not going to make it to 65, i need them now. it isn't fair to treat us in this manner. thanks jen

i live in akron area right now and will be moving to the kent area december 1. not only are my numbers a shoe-in, i have this letter from the dept of ed saying that i am perm and totally disabled since 7/2008. the last time i applied and was denied they said that i am "severely limited" but not disabled! i had a job last year around this time when i had a viral load of 79,000 and a cd4 count of 5 that i did out of my house. after my first week of working, i got a case of the shingles and was out for 2 weeks. the docs then put me on a 4 hour work schedule per day and i still couldn't do it. i got on a new pill deal and was sick as a dog for the first couple of months. i ended up getting fired in april. it even stated on my termination letter i was being let go due to my health. my last denial letter said that i am still able to work! i think these people are on some serious crack. i just called the hearing office where my case is in akron and this yutz is saying another 18 months before i get in front of a judge. what if i don't have another 18 months? i think it is just pathetic!

hello fellow paralegal! i went to heald business college for their program but had to stop before i got my certification because of having my daughter. what a trade off, career for kid but i got the good  one in the bargain! i am on 5th application right now, i am in ohio and the previous 4 were ssd only, this one is both, applied in feb 2013 denied in april, requested for reconsideration in may, denied in june filed for appeal in july 2013. spoke with hearing office in akron oh in september, sent them papers then, the paper i have is a letter from the us department of education. they discharged my repayment of my student loans due to my total and permanent disability from 7/8/2008 and my doctor prescribed me for a handicap plaque for my car that is good until 2018. i worked from 1987-2004. i got diagnosed in oct 2004 with it unchecked for 18 months prior. my last job was at allstate insurance company. i got infected while i was employed but had to quit in feb of 2004 to become full time caretaker to my partner that infected me. he died in 2006. by the time i was diagnosed in 2004, my viral load was very high and my cd4 was 153. i have gone to a cd4 of 5 this time last year. i was put on stibild and reyataz in nov 2012 and just saw my hiv doc and i am undectable and have a cd4 of 123. i have had to have 2 ultrasounds in the last 2 weeks, one for liver and now one for kidneys. they think that my reyataz is damaging my organs now. as far as my legs, i am having issues with weakness in them, i don't feel like they will hold me up. i have broken both ankles in the past and now have arthritis in both. i have chronic fatigue as i can't stand for more than 10 minutes without having to sit down. i can't walk long distances anymore which is why my doc gave me the blue guy for the car. i started physical therapy a few weeks ago for them and also for my shoulders. my right one has a plate and 6 pins in my collarbone from a car accident in 1998 and the other one my daughter's dog threw me down the garage steps and i landed on my left shoulder and face. they say i now have a chronic injury in the shoulder. i am a medical mess! i did try to work last year, i had a job working from home, i had to go up to the office for a week of training and ended up  with a nasty case of shingles, 2nd time for them, and was out for 2 weeks. i then got doc note saying i can only work 4 hour shifts at time. i had just started new meds at that time and struggled with my attendence and health the whole time i was employed with them. i got fired in april 2013, termination letter states it is due to my health. it  is to my understanding that federal supercedes the state in all cases. if that is so, they owe me benefits from the date of 7/2008. what ticks me off is all the years that i was working they had no problems in taking fica from every damn check i had, i am not going to make it to 65, realist that i am, i only am asking what is mine, know what i mean. hearing office is telling me i won't see a judge for 18 months, that is insane to me. what if i don't have 18 months? now on top of all this crap i have to move after i have been in my house for 6 years. i really don't need this stress on top of everything else. i called them and told them this, all they tell  me is to send them a copy of my 30 day notice, they don't give a crap. it is cool that you are still able to work, i really miss it and i hate the fact that i have to depend on my 2 kids to support me, they are full time college students and have a lot on their plates. i want to be able to contribute as long as i can while i am still able to have some semblance of a life. i know this disease affects everyone differently, but it is not to say that it is not going to debilitate me, it seems that it is doing that already. thanks for any help or suggestions you can give me. i really appreciate it and you have a great one my new warrior!