WHY IS IT TAKING SO LONG TO RECIEVE SSDI BENEFITS?

"I have had my hearing but they haven't given me a decision.  What's taking so long?"

That is a topic of conversation among attorneys, advocates, claimants and everyone else associated with Social Security disability.

The short answer is, Social Security hearing offices (called ODAR offices) are behind on decision writing and payment processing centers are also behind on issuing payments for newly approved claims.

One office in North Alabama is months behind on decision writing and is actually farming out part of this work to other offices around the country.  

Once an administrative law judge (ALJ) decides your case, it has to go to another department to be written.  Decisions are now written in the order in which the request for hearing was filed.  It is typical to wait at least 3 months to find out what the judge's decision is - and you may wait an additional 60 days to receive your back pay.

Is there any way to speed up this process?  Sadly, there is not.  The Social Security Administration is poorly funded, short of staff and facing budget cuts.  Only Congress can fix it, if they are the mind to.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY

WHAT IS SSDI?   SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance. Since 1956, the US government has required most workers to contribute to a mandatory disability plan administered by the Social Security Administration.  Workers contribute approximately 7.5% of their income (listed as FICA tax on your pay stub) and employers match the amount.  The money goes into a trust account under each worker's Social Security number.  Then, if a disability occurs, the worker can apply for disability benefits. What Are Basic Requirements for Disability?   Assuming a person has worked long enough and recently enough to be covered, here are the basic rules for getting SSDI benefits: at least 1 severe impairment that is medically determinable (provable) the impairment will last a minimum of 12 consecutive months  the impairment is severe enough that the claimant has stopped working full-time What Steps Must You Take To Collect SSDI Benefits?   You ...
Read more

COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH A DISABILITY APPEAL (SSDI)

You decide to represent yourself in your Social Security disability appeal.  What cost can you expect to pay out of pocket? The biggest cost will probably be purchasing medical records.  Yes, you will have to purchase all your medical records.  This is something your attorney/representative would do for you if you were represented.  But if you represent yourself, you pay for all records upfront. Most doctors, hospitals and other providers will charge a set fee, usually called a "retrieval fee" just to locate your records.  Then, they will charge you $1 per page for the first 25 pages, then 50 cents per page thereafter. So, let's say you have 175 pages of records with Dr. A.  You pay $17.50 as a retrieval fee.  Then you pay $25 for the first 25 pages.  Then you pay $75 for the remainder of the records.  Dr. A. has just charged you $117.50 for your records. Not too bad, you say.  But wait.  You must obtain records from every d...
Read more

YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY COVERAGE MAY EXPIRE

Did you know that your Social Security disability program has a shelf-life?  Sure, you know your homeowners insurance comes with an expiration date.  So does your auto insurance.  But Social Security disability? Yes.  Social Security disability is insurance, just like your homeowners, auto policy or life insurance.  You pay for it with taxes (called FICA) deducted from your paycheck.  When you stop working, you also stop paying FICA tax. That begins the clock ticking on your disability coverage. About 4 years after you stop working, your Social Security disability insurance will expire because you are no longer paying into the system.  The date your insurance expires is called "Date Last Insured."  When this date rolls around you can only file a new claim under Title 2 (Social Security disability) if you can prove that the disability began before your date last insured.  It doesn't matter how sick you are, or how unable to work, you ...
Read more