This is an e-mail I received this morning from an employee at my law firm:
Certainly, this man needs to respond but Social Security disability claimants are often difficult to hunt down. Many are homeless. This claimant isn't homeless but he's quite confused. As we know, there are many errors in Social Security's databases and there are many people who lack photo I.D. This policy could cause a lot of problems. Is fraudulent misrepresentation of identity really a problem for Social Security? If there is a problem, will this new policy really do anything to solve the problem?I just got off the phone with _______ of the Raleigh DO [District Office]. Ms. _____ called because she had just been assigned this claimant’s case, and he has a core identity discrepancy that falls within a new nationwide SSA policy that went into effect this week.The new nationwide policy says that core identity discrepancies have to be resolved by the claimant within 45 days of notification, or SSA must deny the claim, even if the claimant is medically approved in the meantime.Ms. Harris said she has attempted to contact Mr. ____ on 3 occasions to advise that the date of birth he has reported is different from what his SSA record shows. Ms. Harris has mailed him a letter detailing what must be done and enclosing an application for Social Security card to be completed. Within 45 days from today, Mr. ____ must return to her the fully completed form that she mailed him, and produce an unexpired driver license and certified copy of his birth certificate to correct the discrepancy. Should he fail to meet the deadline, she says his claim will be dismissed.
2 comments:
Considering that we have 12-20 million illegal immigrants running around loose with no enforcement, I applaud SS for making people prove they deserve benefits.
Saving money by not paying people who are not even legally eligible to collect it is a much better thing than beating down and shaking down the folks who were approved to get it.
If it's a mental issue that he can't remember his birthday, then get the guy some help.
I agree with part of what the previous commenter said. There are SO many illegal immigrants who are receiving benefits under fake names etc. or immigrants collecting that have no business doing so because they fell through the cracks.
I get that SSA needs to enforce the identity match rule, but 45 days is a little ridiculous, and not just for THIS man, but for ANY case!!!!
Depending on the state he lives in, it could literally be IMPOSSIBLE to produce a "certified birth certificate copy" within that 45 day time period. Not only for the reason of the processing time that a particular state needs to process the request, but also because as you stated in your original blog post, if this man has NO I.D. OR an expired I.D. based either on his living situation, his mental health situation or even his FINANCIAL situation to obtain said I.D. it would just be too difficult to complete the task without ASSISTANCE.
My husbands BC was ruined and he needed a new one. He had to order it from California (where he was born) and it took them almost 3 months just to PROCESS the request, and then another month before it was completed and mailed out to us. Keep in mind, that doesn't include the time it took for the paperwork to get to California through the mail (approx. 1 week).
We even paid extra to the state of CA to "expedite" his BC request. and it still took that long!
I've been told by a friend who just ordered a copy of her BC that it would take approximately 4-5 months to receive it. She lives in New York.
I think that SSA has gotten a little too finicky with their requests on their "time limits" for things. If they can take YEARS to make a decision in approving one for disability, it certainly wouldn't hurt them to give at least 5 or 6 months for someone to get all requested information together, especially when a determination has already been reached, and approved. Why take away the approval of benefits and make someone go through the whole process of re-applying and waiting again, even if just for a few months.
JMO, but I think I've made some valid points.
~Mel
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