WHY DOES THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION’S (SSA) DISABILITY ADJUDICATION SERVICES (DAS) NOT USE THE DATE OF FILING OF AN APPLICATON OR RECONSIDERATION APPEAL TO DETERMINE WHEN THE SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY CASE IS ASSIGNED TO AN ADJUDICATOR? Pre-Covid-19, initial or reconsideration decisions were made much faster by the SSA’s DAS in Georgia (DDS in other states). DAS took approximately 3-6 months to make a decision at the initial or reconsideration levels before the pandemic. Now, a social security disability claimant may wait 1-2 yrs for a decision. https://gvs.georgia.gov/social-security ..read more

SSA issued an emergency transmittal for orthopedic conditions given the challenges social security disability claimants had in receiving medical treatment for orthopedic conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Law Office of Kathleen M Flynn, LLC www.kathleenflynnlaw.com had many clients who were unable to obtain medical treatment during the Covid-19 pandemic. Some, not all, mental health providers allowed zoom or phone therapy sessions and continue to do so. Conducting physical examinations remotely was and can be more challenging although I have seen a stroke patient examined in the earl ..read more

In August 2021 , the Acting Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (SSA) , Kilolo Kijakazi, announced 12 New Compassionate Allowances (see my earlier blogs for a list of other Compassionate allowance cases) to add to a list of 254 conditions. This program “accelerates the disability application process for people who are likely to get approved for benefits due to the severity of their medical conditions.” To date, more than 700,000 people with severe disabilities have been approved through this accelerated, policy-compliant disability process. https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/r ..read more

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is, currently, reviewing Supplemental Security Income (SSI), need based cases, back to the start of the Covid-19 pandemic to determine where there were reductions made from Covid-19 financial assistance. If there were reductions or your SSI payments were stopped, SSA will restore those payments and mail you a letter explaining the change. Click on the list that no longer can be used to offset your SSI eligibility or SSI payments @ to SSA. https://www.ssa.gov/coronavirus/#nolongercounts Make sure that SSA, at the local district office searched by your zi ..read more

Unfortunately, fibromyalgia is the type of medical condition that has been misunderstood by some Adjudicators at Disability Adjudication Services (DAS), as well as Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) at the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR). Thankfully, there is Social Security Ruling (SSR) 12-2p, which brings much needed guidance for SSA evaluators of this debilitating condition. Two to five percent of the American adult population is afflicted with fibromyalgia, according to Dr. Richard Podell, who addressed SSR 12-2p at a recent NOSSCR (National Association of Social Security ..read more

Effective April 20, 2013, to the relief of Attorneys/Representatives and some Administrative Law Judges (ALJs), the Office of Adjudication and Review (ODAR), will once again disclose the names of the Judges when hearing notices are mailed. Please see my prior blog dated March 1, 2012, which addresses SSA’s prior policy of only disclosing the names of Judges on the day of the hearings. Attorneys/Representatives felt that they could not properly prepare the hearings in advance to satisfy particular Judges. For example, some Judges require pretrial briefs or want the attorneys to present the case ..read more

1. Nicole, a 28 year old female, was a refugee from New Orleans post Hurricane Katrina. Growing up with severe Crohn’s disease, Nicole had much of her small intestines removed at 9 years of age. Nicole’s mother was a drug addict and her father was absent. At age one, Nicole was placed in foster care, and she lived with 12 different foster parents in 18 years due to her behavior, her ileostomy bag, and related medical problems. When Nicole was 18 years old, she was released from state custody, but, at majority age, was left without medical coverage. A doctor in New Orleans was providing medical ..read more

There are four steps to evaluating whether your child is entitled to SSI child disability benefits. 1.Is your child working at the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level? Please see my blog dated September 18, 2010, www.kathleenflynnlaw.com for a more detailed explanation of how SSA examines work activity. In 2012, any child under the age of 18 earning more than $1,010 a month before taxes, will be declared not disabled. 2.Does your child have a medically determinable mental impairment (s) or physical impairment (s) or combination of impairments? Most SSI child cases that are filed meet this ..read more

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has begun effectuating its policy of concealing the name of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) from the attorney and the claimant until they enter the hearing room. According to the National Association of Social Security Representatives, (NOSSCR), the reason for the policy change is to prevent some representatives from “judge shopping,” by declining a National Hearing Center (NHC) video hearing, with an ALJ in Falls Church, VA, once the ALJ’s identity is revealed. As far as the Atlanta area, in the past, video hearings with ALJs from Falls Church, VA w ..read more

As mentioned in my previous blog dated September 12, 2010, the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) Compassionate Allowances program moves the cases of claimants with specific medical conditions, classified as “the most serious disabilities” by SSA, faster. According to SSA, these claimants receive their social security disability decisions “within days instead of months or years.” Effective December 10, 2011, the SSA has added 13 additional Compassionate Allowance medical conditions to the previous Compassionate Allowance list of 50 diseases and medical conditions initiated in 2008. (please ..read more