Help In Waukesha

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has an article on Hebron House of Hospitality, apparently a homeless shelter, that provides help for individuals applying for Social Security disability benefits. Hebron House claims a success rate of over 90%. The executive director of Hebron House is quoted as saying "We take the hardest cases there are."

March Madness For SSA Employees?

The Small Business Administration has informed its employees that it is illegal for them to participate in an NCAA Basketball Tournament pool while on the job, at least if they involve money.

I hate to open a can of worms, but has the Social Security Administration taken a position on this?

What Does This Mean?

The title of this one had thrown me. David Traver at SSA CONNECT noticed this notice to potential contractors put out by the Social Security Administration:

SPECIAL NOTICE TO: Contractors who can provide subscription access for an electronic publication that will provide SSA with updated occupational information for use as a replacement for the Department of Labor's (DOL) Dictionary of Occupational Titles Revised 4th Edition (DOT) in SSA's disability evaluation process. -- THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION AND NO CONTRACT AWARD WILL BE MADE AS A RESULT OF THIS POSTING.

INTRODUCTION: The Social Security Administration (SSA) anticipates awarding multi-award contracts to contractors for electronic publication subscriptions on a pilot 120-day trial basis. Following the trial period, SSA may exercise the option of a full subscription with one of the contractors. SSA's requirements are further delineated in the attached Statement of Work (SOW).

FYI - Under SSA-RFI-08-1500, SSA is concurrently seeking Independent evaluators IE services which will include pre-award and post-award evaluations of the occupational information and methodology employed by the subscription contractors.

If you feel your organization possesses the capability and expertise for performing the above type of service, please provide the following information about your company:

1. Company name, address, email address, website address, and point of contact;
2. GSA FSS contract number if available;
3. Does your company have relevant experience in providing similar information to the government? If yes, briefly explain;

SSA anticipates issuing a Request for Quotation for the services described above around April, 2008 and awarding a single BPA within approximately 60 days thereafter.

This RFI is not a solicitation and does not constitute a request for quotation or proposals. The purpose of this RFI is strictly for determining capable sources for market research purposes only and for incorporating industry comments into the SOW. Submission of any information based on this RFI is purely voluntary.

Please submit your response directly to Robert Pfaff via email at robert.pfaff@ssa.gov .

Worse Off For Getting Workers Compensation

A recent study by the Social Security Administration shows that because Social Security disability benefits are offset by workers compensation benefits and because of the way in which Social Security disability benefits are computed, Social Security disability benefits recipients who also receive workers compensation benefits actually replace a lower percentage of their pre-injury wages than those who receive only Social Security disability benefits.

Youth Transition Demonstration Extended

From today's Federal Register:

On October 7, 2003, the Commissioner of Social Security published a Notice in the Federal Register (68 FR 57950) announcing the beginning of a demonstration project designed primarily to test the effectiveness of altering certain Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other program rules as an incentive to encourage individuals with disabilities or blindness to work or increase their work activity and earnings. In order to complete a more thorough evaluation of this project, we are extending the duration of the altered program rules in three of the seven original project locations and adding three new project locations that will also offer the alternative program rules.

New On Record Reversal Form

The February 2008 issue of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR) newsletter includes a form that can be used to request that an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issue a fully favorable decision on the record (OTR or ORR for On Record Reversal), that is, without holding a hearing. Apparently, the form comes from the Social Security Administration, but Social Security will not post the form online until July, probably due to the need to meet the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act that requires approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for any new form.

I am attaching the form here, with NOSSCR's name and logo cropped out. Click on the images to view them full size.

Andrew Biggs Already Campaigning

Until his recent resignation, Andrew Biggs held a recess appointment as Deputy Commissioner of Social Security. The Senate had refused to confirm Biggs' appointment because of his advocacy for privatizing Social Security.

From a Wall Street Journal editorial page piece penned by Biggs and published today:

Until recently, Sen. Barack Obama took a responsible position on Social Security, noting the urgency of reform and saying all options should be on the table.

But having cornered himself among Democratic activists whose attitudes toward Social Security reform range from demagoguery to denial, Mr. Obama has recently veered sharply left. He now proposes to solve the looming Social Security shortfall exclusively with higher taxes. [Obama's plan is to partially lift the cap on wages covered by the FICA tax] ...

If we want to retain the shared character that underpins its political support and distinguishes it from traditional welfare programs, we need to share the burdens of reform proportionately.

For Biggs to talk about Obama undermining "the shared character that undepins [Social Security's] political support" is rich, since undermining Social Security's "shared character" is Biggs' purpose in life.

53 Days Behind In Birmingham

Earlier today, a staff member at my firm called Module (or Mod as they are usually called) 3 at Social Security's Program Service Center in Birmingham, AL to inquire about a case. Mods are where the actual work of putting claimants on benefits is done.

The staff member was told that Mod 3 was 53 days behind on its workload -- and I suspect that that is 53 days behind in even starting each workload item, not on finishing each workload item.

Commissioner Astrue has conceded that Program Service Center backlogs will grow over the course of this year, because few departing program service center employees will be replaced.

The claimant in the case about which my firm had inquired has now been waiting about three and a half months after a favorable decision for payment of back benefits. The delay occurred because Social Security took an unnecessary Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claim, which was denied due to excess income. However, this SSI claim lived on in Social Security's computers. Once she was approved, the Title II back benefits could not be paid until something was done about SSI, because of windfall offset concerns. No one did anything about implementing SSI benefits, because there was nothing to implement. Would the back benefits ever be paid without someone raising questions? I cannot say. I can say that it will be quite some time before this lady's back benefits will be paid, through no fault of hers.

I predict that Social Security's response to this post will be to tell Mod 3 and other Mods not to tell attorneys anything specific like 53 days; just keep it vague and pretend that things are not as bad as they are, because if Social Security admits that things are bad, then Social Security would have to admit that its current budget is inadequate, and that is not what the Commissioner of Social Security wants to admit.

Waiting In Tuscaloosa -- And Allsup Can Help

From the Tuscaloosa News:

Rebecca Sutton was 46 years old when she realized that her body would no longer allow her to hold a job.

She had suffered for years from spondyloarthritis, a severe and degenerative form of arthritis of the spine, and had been diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a muscle affliction that causes chronic pain, tenderness to being touched and fatigue. ...

Despite recommendations from her longtime rheumatologist and years of documentation of her worsening condition, her first application for Social Security benefits was denied. As part of the application process, the Social Security Administration sent her to a doctor who said he felt her medical conditions did not qualify. ...

So began Sutton’s waiting process that, in light of the Social Security Administration’s backlog of such cases, was fairly short. ...

Through a friend at church, Sutton turned to one of several Social Security claimant advocacy providers (Allsup, Disability Group or a Social Security lawyer are a few options) that help people denied disability benefits maneuver through the appeals process.

The company she chose was Allsup, which claims to have helped 100,000 disabled Americans obtain about $1.5 billion in Social Security and Medicare payments since 1984. ...

“Allsup pre-qualifies claimants to help ensure their eligibility, gathers critical medical and other information to prepare an accurate factual record and represents the individual at hearings,” Allsup said. “This can ease a significant burden for Tuscaloosa residents who may have to travel more than 60 miles for a hearing.”

Proposed Regs On Rep Payees

The Social Security Administration has posted proposed regulations on representative payees in today's Federal Register. There is some technical problem with the Federal Register at the moment, so the link is not working. I suppose they will get it straighted out shortly, since none of the links from today's Federal Register is working at the moment. My understanding is that what is being proposed is only a minor change.