As someone in OHO, my big takeaway is how many ALJs we have. I can't remember a time when there was less than one thousand, particularly as the current COSS is pushing disposition goals higher and higher. Not an issue now, but without ALJ hiring & training, could be an issue when Receipts climb... such as a future recession or economic disruption.
Receipts have already exceeded predictions for the current year, and the effects of this new labor market (in case you haven’t heard, it‘s bad, real real bad) haven’t even manifested in disability claims yet. Bisignano‘s behavior is about to bring about backlogs that will make the early 2010s look like a minor blip.
Agree, less than 1000 ALJs is concerning and it will probably only continue to decline with retirements. There are none incoming since they cancelled that posting.
It looks to me like receipts are definitely trending upward after being at historical lows since 2020. Productivity per ALJ is also trending upward for the last few months, after cratering for the last 4-5 years, though still below pre-pandemic levels. The usual AlJ attrition means that even if productivity regains its historical average (500+ per ALJ per year) they will have to look at hiring within a year or so, especially if receipts continue to increase due to the focus on eliminating the DDS backlog.
I would love some input from you about your interpretation of these numbers.
ReplyDeleteAs someone in OHO, my big takeaway is how many ALJs we have. I can't remember a time when there was less than one thousand, particularly as the current COSS is pushing disposition goals higher and higher. Not an issue now, but without ALJ hiring & training, could be an issue when Receipts climb... such as a future recession or economic disruption.
DeleteReceipts have already exceeded predictions for the current year, and the effects of this new labor market (in case you haven’t heard, it‘s bad, real real bad) haven’t even manifested in disability claims yet. Bisignano‘s behavior is about to bring about backlogs that will make the early 2010s look like a minor blip.
DeleteAgree, less than 1000 ALJs is concerning and it will probably only continue to decline with retirements. There are none incoming since they cancelled that posting.
DeleteIt looks to me like receipts are definitely trending upward after being at historical lows since 2020. Productivity per ALJ is also trending upward for the last few months, after cratering for the last 4-5 years, though still below pre-pandemic levels. The usual AlJ attrition means that even if productivity regains its historical average (500+ per ALJ per year) they will have to look at hiring within a year or so, especially if receipts continue to increase due to the focus on eliminating the DDS backlog.
ReplyDelete