Applicants in Western New York seeking a hearing for Social Security benefits have to wait nearly two years, one of the worst processing times in the country.
Such delays have prompted Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, to ask the federal agency to add more administrative law judges to the seven-county region, which includes Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Genesee, Monroe and Ontario counties.
In a letter to Social Security Administration Commissioner Michael Astrue, Higgins noted administrative law judges working the Buffalo area office have an average of 895 pending cases, among the largest caseloads in the nation. Also, the average length of each claim is 381 days. Figures are cited from the SSA's March 2008 hearing office report.
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