Can I submit physician's portion of EDD SDI claim online after I've already applied?

Unfortunately the physician portion can't be submitted online after you've already applied. Your doctor will need to complete the form and mail it directly to EDD. The mailing address should be printed on the form itself. Since your doctor is out-of-state, I recommend asking them if they can expedite it (overnight or priority mail). I had a similar situation last year with a specialist in Oregon, and I actually offered to pay for the expedited shipping myself because the delay was making me anxious about my benefits starting.

my dr office said they faxed mine. check if thats an option too

The dr has to mail it in or fax it. They cant submit electronically either but neither can you. My claim got held up for 6 weeks because my doctor thought I could scan and upload it!! Make sure they know THEY have to send it directly to EDD!

When I filed my SDI claim in January 2025, I ran into this exact issue. The medical portion must be submitted by your doctor directly to EDD either by mail or fax. There's absolutely no online submission option for the medical certification after you've filed your initial claim. Here's what I recommend: 1. Call your surgeon's office and explain that they need to fax or mail the completed form directly to EDD 2. Make sure they include your claim number on the form 3. Ask them to notify you when they've sent it 4. Once they confirm it's been sent, wait about 5-7 business days 5. Then try calling EDD to confirm they received it If you have trouble getting through to EDD (which is very likely), I'd recommend using Claimyr. They got me connected to an EDD representative in under 25 minutes when I couldn't get through for days on my own. You can check out their service at claimyr.com and they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/1X-mEsLtbmQ?si=1hcSq3KFtCr4oAmd. It was worth it for my peace of mind to confirm everything was in order.

When I had my SDI claim last year, my doctor actually submitted the wrong form first and it delayed everything by almost 3 weeks. Make super sure your doctor has the right form (DE 2501) before they submit anything. Also be aware that out-of-state doctors sometimes aren't familiar with California's disability system so you might need to be really specific with them about what's needed.

Im sorry but your TOTALLY wrong about not being able to submit online!!!! I just did my disability last month and my doctor submitted everything online through SDI Online. They need to register for an account as a medical provider first though. Maybe your doctor just doesn't WANT to do it online because its more work for them to set it up?

I went through this exact headache in February! The doctor HAS to send it themselves - you cannot submit it for them. And since you already applied online without the doctor's certification being submitted simultaneously, they have to mail or fax it now. The system is incredibly frustrating. I ended up having my claim delayed for almost 4 weeks because of this ridiculous process. The EDD system feels deliberately designed to be as difficult as possible!

dont forget u have to wait 7 days after ur disability starts before benefits kick in anyways. so ur not losing money right away at least

Based on everything shared here, here's what you should do: 1. Contact your surgeon's office ASAP and explain they need to mail or fax the completed form directly to EDD 2. Confirm they have the correct form (DE 2501) 3. Ask them to notify you once it's been sent 4. Wait about a week after they send it, then try contacting EDD to confirm receipt Also, keep in mind that your claim will be backdated to when your disability began (minus the 7-day waiting period). So even if there's processing delay, you should eventually receive all benefits you're entitled to. Hope this helps and that your recovery goes smoothly!

I went through this same frustrating situation last year with my orthopedic surgeon in Nevada. The key thing is to be very clear with your doctor's office about the process - they need to mail or fax the DE 2501 form directly to EDD, not back to you. I actually created a simple one-page summary for my doctor's office explaining: 1) They must send it directly to EDD, 2) Include my claim number, 3) Use the specific mailing address on the form, and 4) Let me know when it's sent. This prevented any confusion. Also, don't stress too much about the timing - once EDD receives the medical certification, they typically process it within 2-3 weeks, and your benefits will be backdated to your disability start date (after the 7-day waiting period). The delays are annoying but you won't lose any money you're entitled to.

I'm dealing with this exact same situation right now! My doctor is in Nevada and I filed my SDI claim online last week. Reading through all these responses has been so helpful - I had no idea the doctor HAD to send it directly to EDD rather than back to me. I was actually planning to ask them to send the completed form back to me so I could submit it myself! Thank you everyone for clarifying this process. I'm going to call my doctor's office tomorrow and make sure they understand they need to fax or mail the DE 2501 directly to EDD with my claim number. Has anyone had experience with how responsive EDD is about confirming they received the medical certification? I'm worried about it getting lost in the mail.

I'm new to this community but going through the exact same situation right now! My orthopedic surgeon is in Texas and I filed my SDI claim online about 5 days ago. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea about so many of these details. A few questions for those who've been through this: How long did your out-of-state doctors typically take to complete and send the DE 2501 form? My surgeon's office said they'd get to it "within a few business days" but I'm not sure if that's realistic given they're not familiar with California's system. Also, for those whose doctors faxed the form - did you get any kind of confirmation from EDD that they received it, or did you have to call to check? I'm already anxious about the whole process and want to make sure I follow up appropriately without being annoying. Thanks to everyone who's shared their experiences here - it's making this whole confusing process feel much more manageable!

I'm also dealing with this exact situation right now! My orthopedic surgeon is in Arizona and I filed my SDI claim online about 10 days ago. Reading through everyone's experiences here has been absolutely invaluable - I had no idea about most of these requirements and was totally confused about the process. Based on all the detailed advice shared in this thread, I called my surgeon's office yesterday and spoke with their insurance coordinator. Here's what I learned that might help others: They were actually really familiar with disability forms in general, but had never dealt with California's specific SDI requirements. Once I explained that they needed to fax the DE 2501 directly to EDD (using the fax number on the form itself) and include my claim number prominently, they were completely cooperative. One thing that really helped was creating a simple email summary beforehand with all the key points, then following up with a phone call. They appreciated having everything in writing to reference while we talked. They also told me they keep a log of all faxed disability paperwork with timestamps, which gives me peace of mind about being able to track when it was sent. My surgeon's office said they'll complete and fax the form within 2-3 business days, and they'll email me a copy of the fax confirmation page. I plan to wait about a week after they send it, then call EDD to confirm receipt (might try that Claimyr service others mentioned to get through faster). It's definitely frustrating that the system is so outdated, but this community has made the whole process so much clearer. Thanks everyone for sharing your detailed experiences - you've turned what felt like an impossible bureaucratic maze into a manageable step-by-step process!