Status of Disability Service Improvement Plan

I suppose we can officially call Commissioner Barnhart's plan for disability adjudication at Social Security the Disability Service Improvement (DSI). Implementation of DSI is set to begin on August 1, 2006 in Social Security's Boston Region. A centerpiece of DSI is the Reviewing Officer (RO) position, a new job. Although implementation of DSI is supposed to begin three months from today, Social Security has not yet announced any job openings for ROs or their supervisors on the USAJobs website. Interviewing job applicants takes time. After they are hired new employees often have to move themselves and their families to a new city. Training of new employees takes time. In general, the Federal establishment moves more slowly than private enterprise. All of this suggests that the August 1, 2006 start date for DSI may already be in danger.