It's taking 17 months to get a hearing on a Social Security disability claim in Tupelo. MS. In the neighboring state of Louisiana it's only taking 6 months to get a hearing Shreveport. Why? Oh, wait, I know, they're in different regions. Why does that matter? Oh, I know another reason. They had a hurricane in Louisiana. Katrina was almost nine years ago and Shreveport is well north of New Orleans. How can that possibly matter? Social Security has spent tens of millions of dollars equipping its hearing offices for video hearings but can't get one region to help another or overcome the effects of a hurricane after nine years? Why is this? For that matter, why is the wait time 8 months in Augusta, GA but 17 months in Miami? They're both in the same region. Why do these discrepancies continue? Why doesn't the agency get serious about this?
11 comments:
Funny you throw video hearings in SSA's face when you and so many other reps always refuse the video hearing offer and wait for an in-person.
Actually, the word isn't "funny," it's "disingenuous."
Isn't this the same blog that used to trash video hearings every week less than a year ago?
I suspect that many of my colleagues make a blanket objection to video hearings because of insecurity as to the ALJs and VEs with whom they will be confronted at the hearing. Most of us practice in the regions of 1-2 ODARS and become familiar with the expectations of the ALJs who we see on a regular basis, and we believe we will be more effective for our clients in those circumstances. After analyzing the results of video hearings, I found no great difference in approval rates from live hearings. Personally, I welcome video hearings when they are closer to where I practice than my client and I having to drive several hours to a distant ODAR.
However, I object to video hearings in about 20% of my cases because those claimants exhibit symptoms which can better be appreciated by the ALJ who sees the claimant struggle to ambulate into the hearing room or who picks up on the "weirdness" of the mentally ill claimant which can only be appreciated after spending some time in the same room.
A few years ago when SSA began video hearings, I predicted that ODAR would eventually attempt to replace live hearings with videos. It seems that we are moving toward that situation, which I do not like.
is this a serious post? or are you just trolling?
You (and most other reps) consistently decline (as is your right) any video hearing. Give me a break, your credibility is going downhill fast.
I routinely object to VTC hearing s with NHC ALJs. These ALJ for the most part appear to have been indoctrinated into a particular way of thinking and in my personal opinion have agreed to buy into a jaundiced view of claimants in order to take the job as an ALJ.
As the claimant is already fighting an uphill battle with these types of ALJs, why would I further prejudice my client by putting them into a situation where the ALJ can't even observe their demeanor, gait, smell, ticks, etc. that go into judging credibility. Furthermore, I find that these NHC ALJs routinely play doctor as opposed obtaining testimony from medical experts. The national hearing centers have become nothing but a mill for issuing decisions, regardless of the equality.
I really don't get the point of any rep acting like a long wait time for a claimant is a bad thing or a short wait time is a good thing. The longer the wait time generally means more backpay, end of story.
-Signed a rep who likes to make money
I really don't get the point of any rep acting like a long wait time for a claimant is a bad thing or a short wait time is a good thing. The longer the wait time generally means more backpay, end of story.
-Signed a rep who likes to make money
While I know your trying to make a general comment, the wait time in Shreveport in particular is so low because the approval rating of the ALJs in that office is so so low that attorneys simply won't take cases there anymore. Shreveport is maintaining a 6 month local wait time while also giving workload assistance to other offices. That's unheard of.
In Miami, the reps claim that all the claimants can't speak English (despite swearing on the applications that they can . . . ), so interpreters are necessary, which makes each hearing take at least twice as long,
Shreveport has had a large turnover in judges between retirements and transfers and two more on extended leave for family or personal health issues.
Despite that the wait time for local hearings is very short. The wait times in the office have come from covering other receiving offices that had more cases than they can handle and have long wait times. In recent times I know they've covered a site in Arkansas near Memphis, a Michigan site near Indiana, and El Paso, Texas.
Dig into the numbers, Shreveport isn't an office with processing issues.
9:27, curious as to what you mean when you say "Shreveport isn't an office with processing issues"?
I've also heard that Shreveport is being used as a training ground of sorts for new ALJs. There has been a lot of turnover there. It's odd - you can track it, too - judges come in to this ODAR with pretty good statistics, from a rep's point of view, but gradually get to the point where the unfavorables outnumber the favorables significantly. This holds true even for more experienced judges. It's really odd.
Another thing that might help get quicker hearings is that MEs are never, ever used in the hearings.
And don't let the short time for processing the hearings fool you. After the hearings are held, there are often 6 month waits for decisions.
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