Fee Payments Up in June

Payments of fees to attorneys and others for representing claimants before SSA were up 19% in June over May 2006 and up 46% over June 2005, according to a report on a Social Security website. Below are the numbers for 2006.

Fee Payments
Month/Year	Volume	Amount
Jan-06	18,752	$64,848,326.02
Feb-06	20,426	$70,312.586.15
Mar-06	26,227	$91,045,934.83
Apr-06	23,042	$79,714,961.76
May-06	23,581	$82,015,869.29
June-06	27,771	$97,085,724.60

SSA May Require Attorneys To Use On-Line Filing

According to a letter from the National Council of Social Security Management Associations (NCSSMA), an association of Social Security management personnel, Social Security is considering a proposal to require what is described as "large, for-profit third party filers", which would be lawyers representing Social Security claimants, to use Social Security's electronic form 3368, a lengthy form required for disability benefits claims. Social Security is having trouble persuading lawyers or claimants to use the on-line form voluntarily, largely because the form is not considered user-friendly. NCSSMA strongly supports making the online form mandatory.

SSAB Meeting Agenda

The Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB) has released the following agenda for its meeting on July 12, 2006:

1:45 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. SSA e-gov initiatives; Assistant Deputy Commissioner for Communications,

Phil Gambino;Associate Commissioner for Electronic Services, Jo Armstrong

Already Behind?

The Disability Service Improvement plan begins on August 1. The most important element of this plan is the Reviewing Official (RO) position. There is an unconfirmed report that the first ROs will start work on August 7 and will then begin a two month training period. If this is true, it means that once the ROs finish training and start their actual jobs they will be greeted by a large backlog. There has been concern from the beginning that the RO position will dramatically reduce the backlog of claimants waiting for ALJ hearings, by creating a huge backlog of claimants waiting for RO review.

SSAB To Hold "Public Discussion" on July 19

The Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB) has scheduled a "public discussion" on July 19 in Washington on the U.S. disability "system". The Board's press release says that it has been looking at recommendations for a new "system" that "maximizes economic self-sufficiency at a reasonable standard of living." The press release talks at some length about aspects of a "system" which seems completely geared towards encouraging disabled people to return to work, which may be much more controversial in practice than it sounds. A similar approach is taken by insurance companies administering long term disability insurance plans -- and the encouragement to return to work often takes the form of terminating benefits. What may be a similar plan in Britain is predicted to throw one million people off their Social Security disability benefit program.

Martin Gerry To Speak At ADA Conference

Martin Gerry, who is, in effect, the number two man at Social Security, will be speaking on July 26 at the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Town Hall Meeting in Washington, sponsored by the National Council on Disability.

Fraud in Jacksonville

WPMI reports that in separate cases two Jacksonville, FL women have been charged with fraud for cashing the Social Security checks of their deceased mothers.

Britain To Throw One Million Off Social Security Disability Benefits

From The Guardian:

Radical changes to the social security system aimed at saving billions of pounds in incapacity and housing benefit payments were announced yesterday by John Hutton, the work and pensions secretary.

The government's welfare reform bill, published yesterday, aims to take 1 million of the 2.7 million claimants off incapacity benefit by replacing it with a new two-tier employment allowance to encourage people back to work. Higher rates will be paid to those who genuinely cannot work, lower rates to those refusing to be reassessed for a job.