Maximus Issues Ticket To Work Newsletter

Maximus, the prime contractor for the Ticket to Work program, has issued its Winter 2007 Newsletter, with information about implementation of the program. The Newsletter continues the annoying practice of referring to the "Maximus Ticket to Work" program, as if the program exists to provide work for Maximus (although that may be what it amounts to).

The Newsletter provides an interesting chart showing employment network payments for 2007. For instance, providing rehabilitation which keeps a person entitled to Disability Insurance Benefits off benefits entitles the organization providing the rehabilitation to $378 per month, up to a maximum of $22,680. Despite these high reimbursement amounts, few rehabilitation organizations join the employment networks and few Social Security disability recipients get rehabilitated.

SSI Coalition Newsletter

Massachusetts Legal Services has issued its November-December 2006 SSI Coalition Newsletter. The Newsletter contains this very early report on the implementation of the Disability Service Improvement (DSI) experiment in Social Security's Boston region:

We have heard from a few of you about your experiences with DSI but would like to hear more. Please let us know what you are experiencing as you interact with the FedRO [Federal Reviewing Official]. We are especially interested in seeing copies of FedRO allowances and denials.

Here’s what we have learned from those of you who have cases pending at the Federal Reviewing Official (FedRO) level of appeal: ƒ

• The FedRO acknowledges receipt of the appeal with a notice to the claimant/representative. ƒ
• The acknowledgment notice explains how to get in touch with the office, how to request the file, how to request a subpoena, how to submit additional evidence and when to submit it. The preferred method for submitting new evidence is by fax using the barcode provided with the acknowledgment notice.
• ƒSo far, there seem to be several different forms of the notice in use – but they all seem to impose a 10 day deadline in which to submit additional evidence. See copies of FedRO acknowledgment notices in this newsletter. If you contact the FedRO you can let the FedRO know whether you will need more time. So far, we have not heard that getting more time has been a problem when it has been requested. The worry, of course, is that some, especially unrepresented individuals, will not request additional time and the result will be that important documentation will not make it into the record before the FedRO. ƒ
• The DSI regulations do not impose a 10 day time limit for submitting new evidence. The proposed DSI regulations imposed a deadline, but the final regulations do not. See 20 CFR 405.215. In the response to comment section of the federal register publication of the final regulations, SSA states that evidence may be submitted until the Fed RO issues the final decision. 71 Fed. Reg. 16423, 16433 (3/31/06). ƒ
• Ethel Zelenske, NOSSCR, has informed Jim Winn, Associate Commissioner for the Office of the Federal Reviewing Official, of these concerns about the acknowledgment notice. We understand that the acknowledgment notice is being revised to make it more apparent that additional time can be requested if new evidence cannot be submitted within 10 days.

User Fee Remains At 6.3%

The user fee charged attorneys and others eligible for direct payment of fees for representing Social Security claimants remains at 6.3%, according to a notice in the Federal Register. However, the user fee is now capped at $77 per case.

Senate Finance Committee Members Names

The Senate Finance Committee has jurisdiction over Social Security. The membership of the Senate Finance Committee for this Congress has been released and is shown below, although there has been no release of the names of the Social Security Subcommittee members.

Committee Chair Sen. Max Baucus (DEM-MT) Ranking Member Sen. Charles E. Grassley (REP-IA)

Democrats (11) Sen. John Rockefeller (DEM-WV) Sen. Kent Conrad (DEM-ND) Sen. Jeff Bingaman (DEM-NM) Sen. John Kerry (DEM-MA) Sen. Blanche Lincoln (DEM-AR) Sen. Ron Wyden (DEM-OR) Sen. Charles Schumer (DEM-NY) Sen. Debbie Stabenow (DEM-MI) Sen. Maria Cantwell (DEM-WA) Sen. Ken Salazar (DEM-CO) Republicans (10) Sen. Orrin Hatch (REP-UT) Sen. Trent Lott (REP-MS) Sen. Olympia Snowe (REP-ME) Sen. Jon Kyl (REP-AZ) Sen. Craig Thomas (REP-WY) Sen. Gordon Smith (REP-OR) Sen. Jim Bunning (REP-KY) Sen. Mike Crapo (REP-ID) Sen.

House Ways and Means Committee Members

The names of the members of the House Ways and Means Committee for the current Congress have been released. This is the committee which has jurisdiction over Social Security. The list is below, but the membership of the Social Security Subcommittee has not yet been announced.

Committee Chair Rep. Charles B. Rangel (DEM-NY-15th) Ranking Member Rep. Jim McCrery (REP-LA-4th)

Democrats (24) Rep. Fortney Stark (DEM-CA-13th) Rep. Sander Levin (DEM-MI-12th) Rep. Jim McDermott (DEM-WA-7th) Rep. John Lewis (DEM-GA-5th) Rep. Richard Neal (DEM-MA-2nd) Rep. Michael McNulty (DEM-NY-21st) Rep. John Tanner (DEM-TN-8th) Rep. Xavier Becerra (DEM-CA-31st) Rep. Lloyd Doggett (DEM-TX-25th) Rep. Earl Pomeroy (DEM-ND-At-Large) Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (DEM-OH-11th) Rep. Mike Thompson (DEM-CA-1st) Rep. John Larson (DEM-CT-1st) Rep. Rahm Emanuel (DEM-IL-5th) Rep. Earl Blumenauer (DEM-OR-3rd) Rep. Ron Kind (DEM-WI-3rd) Rep. Bill Pascrell (DEM-NJ-8th) Rep. Shelley Berkley (DEM-NV-1st) Rep. Joseph Crowley (DEM-NY-7th) Rep. Kendrick Meek (DEM-FL-17th) Rep. Chris Van Hollen (DEM-MD-8th) Rep. Allyson Schwartz (DEM-PA-13th) Rep. Artur Davis (DEM-AL-7th) Republicans (17) Rep. Wally Herger (REP-CA-2nd) Rep. Dave Camp (REP-MI-4th) Rep. Jim Ramstad (REP-MN-3rd) Rep. Sam Johnson (REP-TX-3rd) Rep. Philip English (REP-PA-3rd) Rep. Jerry Weller (REP-IL-11th) Rep. Kenny Hulshof (REP-MO-9th) Rep. Ron Lewis (REP-KY-2nd) Rep. Kevin Brady (REP-TX-8th) Rep. Thomas Reynolds (REP-NY-26th) Rep. Paul Ryan (REP-WI-1st) Rep. Eric Cantor (REP-VA-7th) Rep. John Linder (REP-GA-7th) Rep. Devin Nunes (REP-CA-21st) Rep. Patrick Tiberi (REP-OH-12th) Rep. Jon Porter

Poll Shows Social Security Illusions

The Associated Press reports that the Treasury and the Federal Reserve have polled baby boomers about their retirement expectations. Only 16% of the baby boomers expect to go on Social Security retirement benefits at age 62 -- but 34% actually do. Only 16% of baby boomers expect that Social Security will be their main source of retirement income -- but Social Security is actually the main source of income for 31% of retirees.

Union Objects To Fines For Social Security Employees

The Federal Times reports that the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) is objecting to monetary penalties for Social Security employees who are alleged to have improperly applied expert testimony to allow a large number of Social Security disability claims. The fines involved amount to $3.5 million for one supervisor and $100,000 and $215,000 for other employees. The matter is being litigated and the union has filed grievances.

Social Security Employees Face Large Fines

There have been rumors for some time that Social Security's Office of Inspector General was investigating one Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) for his conduct in allowing benefits to a large number of Social Security disability claimants. The Des Moines Register now confirms these rumors, but makes it clear that the ALJ is now deceased. It is other employees who acted at the ALJ's direction who are being targeted. See the excerpt below:

In deciding whether to award Social Security disability benefits to certain people, a government administrative law judge will often rely on expert testimony as to the applicant's employability. However, one such judge, the late J. Michael Johnson of West Des Moines, is alleged to have repeatedly relied on expert testimony obtained from one individual in one disability case. In that case, the expert had answered broad, hypothetical questions. Johnson allegedly applied the expert's hypothetical answers to 700 subsequent cases that he handled, awarding benefits in most, if not all, of those cases.

The inspector general's office, which has been investigating the matter for at least four years, contends that it was improper for Johnson's written decisions not to have disclosed the reliance on expert opinions that were not tied to the cases under consideration.

Johnson died in August 2003. The fines that are now being proposed would be levied against three Social Security Administration lawyers who wrote Johnson's decisions and one management official who oversaw the work of the decision-writers.

The inspector general is proposing civil fines of $5,000 for each of the 700 cases in question. As a result, the manager is facing a potential fine of $3.5 million, and the three decision-writers are each facing fines of more than $100,000.

Federal records indicate that the inspector general's office initially tried to bring criminal charges in the matter, but prosecutors in two states turned down the case.