A press release:
WASHINGTON — March 15, 2020 — The coronavirus pandemic has caused the Association of Administrative Law Judges (AALJ) to make the unprecedented demand that the Social Security Administration immediately cancel all hearings in its 163 offices across the U.S. for the next two weeks, and longer if needed, in order to protect Americans. AALJ’s move follows what it sees as weeks of poor decision-making by SSA’s leadership. To date, SSA hasn’t enacted AALJ’s common sense request to have claimants asked if they would like a telephone hearing before they arrive for their hearings or if COVID-19 symptoms are exhibited in the hearing room. AALJ leaders, who represent approximately 1,300 judges who preside in Social Security disability hearings, note that municipal, state and federal courts have canceled their proceedings and the lack of similar action in disability hearings is confounding. AALJ President Judge Melissa McIntosh says, “We can’t understand why Social Security officials are blatantly ignoring public health guidance. Let’s always remember that many claimants in our hearing rooms and offices are senior citizens and report they have compromised immunity; they could be particularly at risk for the coronavirus. As administrative law judges, we take the health and safety of the claimants, representatives and our colleagues very seriously. Because of the Agency’s failed response, the only way to ensure the safety of the American public is to cancel hearings for a limited period of time.” The latest details about coronavirus are available at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.
Why would it be appropriate to stop holding hearings but not close hearing offices? Why the concern about protecting ALJs from claimants? Shouldn’t ALJs be more worried about the staff in their own offices? If you think that claimants are dirty people who will make you sick but the nice people you work with aren’t a threat you don’t understand the situation. ALJs have much less physical separation from hearing office staff than from claimants.
This doesn’t come across to me quite the way the ALJ union might like and, no, I don’t think that protecting claimants is really what the union is concerned about. The hearing offices and field offices may have to be shut down altogether soon but I don’t think that merely stopping hearings is much use. Social Security hearing rooms don’t have anything like the foot traffic of a general courtroom or a Social Security field office, for that matter. If anything, I would say that Supreme Court justices face a greater threat from other justices and attorneys than Social Security ALJs and the Supreme Court isn’t shutting down oral arguments even though many of the justices are at serious risk due to age.
17 comments:
I agree Charles, no hearings but keeping the offices open makes no sense. But I could care less that the AALJ maybe doesn’t look great, because they’re right. California and Ohio just shut down their bars and restaurants. If it’s that bad it’s common sense that the hearing offices shouldn’t be open. The three hearing offices I’m supposed to go to this week aren’t in isolated buildings; they’re in large, crowded government buildings where thousands of people are in/out every day. Seems like a disaster ready to happen.
And practically speaking, I can’t be the only attorney who thinks phone hearings are garbage. I’d rather have double the workload months later.
How is the administration going to keep reps and claimants informed of whether or not there are going to be hearings?
I'm an ALJ. You're reading too much into this and stirring up people unnecessarily. Trust me, we do want to protect claimants and staff.
Perhaps my reading comprehension skills aren't up to your level, Mr. Hall, but I'm not seeing anything in that article suggesting the AALJ is begging the agency to keep its hearing offices open while it postpones in-person hearings. I doubt anyone working for SSA (excluding the idiot in charge) really feels any compelling need for employees whose jobs can be performed 100% remotely to keep the office chairs warm while this preventable s***-storm ravages our population and stretches our healthcare system and economy past the breaking point. And I certainly hope you're not suggesting that in-person hearings on disability claims are just too important to allow for whatever minor delay/inconvenience a short moratorium on in-person hearings would cause.
I don't follow your logic, Charles. Each ALJ is supposed to schedule 50 hearings per month. So for an average office, that's hundreds of claimants, reps and relatives mingling in the waiting room. Add to that the interaction with staff, hearing reporters, in-person VEs, and yes even ALJs, and you have a breeding ground for germs. If there are no hearings, more people can work from home and limit the spread of any germs.
To your point about other employees, it would seem that fewer hearings would certainly limit exposure, both from sick claimants but also sick employees or contractors transmitting germs to claimants. Moreover, employees can call in sick; claimants that don't show up might have their cases dismissed.
As to your point about whether supreme court justices are more at risk...correct me if I'm wrong, but the AALJ doesn't represent supreme court justices.
The VA announced that they will be postponing all hearings through the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) until at least May 1. Many of my clients have waited 5 to 7 years for these hearings, but at least the VA recognized that the hearing does no good to the client if in the process he or she gets the virus and dies.
And as Ohio closes up the state, we hope to be less like Italy. Schools closed. Colleges closed - students told to come get their belongings at semester end. Restaurants and bars closed except for take out orders. Day care alternatives are being worked on by the state, and day care was warned they are next....
I would ask that everyone keep in mind that while there are some ALJs who could care less about our clients or following the law, there are also attorneys who could care less about their clients and throw stuff at the wall to see what sticks, which makes it harder for all of us. So, let's assume most of the people here are not taking the extra time to read this or other lists to find out how to be even bigger jerks. I neither want my clients or my attorneys to go to OHO and pick up a virus - and I don't want any potentially contaminated client to spread that virus to me or an ALJ or OHO staff and contractors either. I hope to get my clients the benefits they deserve - not get them (or me) killed.
We are all equally pissed at the pathetic leadership that, despite the first pandemic in 100 years, still claims as of today that "everything will be fine" and "everything is under control." The fact is that if we continue to follow the path Italy took, where 398 people died in the last 24 hours, we are all in trouble.
So, let's keep the anger and crappy attitudes to yourselves. There is plenty of time for those who survive after this is over to start sniping at each other again. Instead, take a look around you - some of us will not likely be here a few months from now.
First of all, the best move worldwide to stop/slow this virus is Trump's travel ban from China! Italy made no such move, and the result is the spread of the virus in Egypt. Almost all of these deaths are in people over 65, with the average age of about 80. They are largely in people with respiratory ailments. A great deal of those who have come in contact have little or no symptoms. Some have tested negative for a week before getting some symptoms and then testing positive. Thos means there are likely thousands of carriers...This means that it's possible NO MEASURES will stop the spread, but only slow it. If that's true, then all this criticism is pointless. Having said that...
The real goal should be to prevent contact to those most vulnerable. Closing schools, sports, events, etc. won't do that! Panicking and destroying the economies of the countries hardest hit isn't going to save anyone, especially if you can't get the medications and goods you need!
As for the topic at hand...I never got the impression that an ALJ cared about me, the stress that I was under, or the depression and suicidal thoughts... when he twisted logic like a pretzel in order to deny me! Here's a thought...ASK the claimant if they want to proceed or delay the hearing. How about making OTR decisions if YOU think YOU don't need to see the claimant? THAT would save a lot of people some stress!
Current AALJ leadership actually ran on a pro-management slate, but quickly learned that neither civilian management (DC Gruber and her revolving door of assistant DCs) nor OCALJ (Neagle and Dhillon) had any interest in granting any of AALJ's wishes. The AALJ demand here is completely reasonable and conservative, but agency management seems uniform in insisting that life go on as normal, even as the rest of the country shuts down to avoid going the way of Italy. This could all make for a riveting House SSA-subcommittee hearing.
They should consider having all claimants and attorneys appear by phone, with supplemental in person hearings offered to any claimant who is denied. Our clients can not afford to wait months and months longer. This would allow the sickest to get benefits ASAP while preserving the rights of all
In my office, about 2/3 of our hearings are video hearings from remote sites that are co-located with the DO. Each docket I have, asks that the 6-8 claimants be exposed to the VHR who has contact with everyone, the reps who come with the claimants, the entourage that some claimants bring, plus the walk in customers of the DO. Many of my claimants are older and already compromised with serious health conditions, including COPD, diabetes, and auto immune diseases.
When I decide to postpone a docket, it really is out of concern of the exposure of the claimants. I feel pretty safe for myself, sitting alone in my hearing room, but I feel the responsibility to look out for them.
SCOTUS just shut down oral arguments in scheduled cases.
The Denver and White Plains, NY OHOs are now closed.
IMHO, all HOs in areas/states in which local and/or state govts issued mandatory closing of all sorts of facilities (at this moment NY and NJ are joining the pack) must be closed - and they need to be closed indefinitely, i.e., until further notice. All hearings canceled with no reschedule date 'cause any date offered could be nothing but an uneducated guess. All other HOs in the nation must switch to an option offered to the clt (not the rep - it's not a rep's but it's a clt's case): phone hearing or indefinite postponement. Extraordinary times require extraordinary measures. Public health interest trumps any clt's or any ALJ's interest. BTW, issuing OTRs on all cases can't be done and it won't pass any federal court's scrutiny for, if nothing else, denial of due process rights - rest assured that most OTRs would be unfavorable and that would be an automatic remand by courts.
Of course, if federal govt decided that all HOs must be closed - so be it. Again, public interest as deemed to be such by our elected officials (no matter what we personally think about it or them) takes precedence and that is so well settled in our legal system.
11:59
How about the idea from above by 6:55? Hold telephone hearings on all scheduled cases and for those who should be awarded (grids, Listings,etc.) grant them and promise a supplemental H for those which cant be awarded via phone H. This way at least some cases would be processed in a more timely manner.
Charles, where is your source for the press release? I looked at the AALJ website but don't see the press release there. Would be interested to see the direct link.
I found it here: https://twitter.com/jbendery/status/1239546328880943105 via a Vox news link: https://www.vox.com/identities/2020/3/16/21182046/courts-disability-immigration-coronavirus
Update at the top of the Vox article:
"Update March 16 6:40 pm: The Social Security Administration announced it will be closing its doors for in-person services, including hearings, effective March 17. Many immigration courts, meanwhile, are expected to remain open."
https://www.vox.com/identities/2020/3/16/21182046/courts-disability-immigration-coronavirus
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