New OMB Filings

One of the most important levers of control that White House has over the Social Security Administration (SSA) is that the Commissioner of Social Security cannot simply order the adoption of a new regulation. By presidential fiat -- and it is an old fiat -- no agency may adopt a new regulation without the approval of the Office of Managament and Budget (OMB), which is part of the White House. The President cannot order the Commissioner of Social Security to adopt a new regulation, but the President can block a new regulation.

SSA must file any proposed regulation with OMB. At least OMB posts the news when SSA files a proposed new regulation with them. SSA recently filed these two items seeking OMB approval:

AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AF33
TITLE: Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Immune System Disorders (804F)
STAGE: Final Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
** RECEIVED DATE: 01/17/2008	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG67
TITLE: Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating HIV Infection (3466A)
STAGE: Prerule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
** RECEIVED DATE: 01/17/2008	LEGAL DEADLINE: None

The Number Of New Employees To Be Hired At SSA Just Went Down

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that it will cost about $1 million to correct the erroneous 1099 forms recently sent out by the Social Security Administration (SSA).

Turning The Spigot Off But Not Back On

From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:

The Broward Sheriff's Office collects $400 every time the Social Security Administration learns about and suspends benefits for inmates within 30 days of their incarceration.

The Broward Public Defender's Office is raising pointed criticism of the Sheriff's Office because it does not take part in a system designed to help these inmates reinstate their benefits upon release.

"If they're turning the spigot off, they can help turn it back on, too," said Doug Brawley, a chief assistant public defender. ...

The county took in more than $211,000 through the program last year, according to budget reports. ...

The Sheriff's Office does not participate in the administration's pre-release agreement, said Patti Patterson, an administration spokeswoman.

Under such an agreement, jail staff would have a liaison at the local Social Security office who would help the staff navigate eligible inmates through the application process and match benefits reinstatement with release dates.

Monthly Statistical Packages Released

The Social Security Administration has released its monthly statistical reports on Title II and Title XVI of the Social Security Act.

Waiting In Youngstown

From WYTV in Youngstown, OH:

Administrators in the Youngstown office say as the baby boomer generation gets older, more claims fill the offices.

Kathy Burke of Hubbard says she has been diagnosed with arthritis all throughout her body and has not been able to work for nearly two years. But the Social Security backlog has prolonged a hearing on her disability case since last spring. In the meantime, her finances are taking a hit.

Burke is one of an estimated seven hundred and fifty thousand citizens waiting for judges to decide on disability appeals filed. The Social Security administration is trying to attack the nationwide backlog by opening a national center to hold disability hearings to help decrease the wait for those in need.

Comptroller General Calls For More Funding For SSA -- And Jo Anne Barnhart Reappears

From Federal Computer Week:

The Social Security Administration is making progress in reducing its backlog of disability claims, but without more resources, it will like fall further behind as aging boomers overwhelm the system, Comptroller General David Walker said.

SSA needs more funding from Congress and it needs to hire more staff, Walker said.

“There are serious fundamental and systematic problems. We need to change the pipeline, not just the tail end. We need to look at the flow,” he said Jan. 16 at a panel sponsored by the Association of Administrative Law Judges. Administrative law judges hear disability cases as claims wind through the lengthy process.
...

SSA received an increase in appropriations last month to hire a number of administrative law judges this year to reduce the backlog. That means, however, that SSA will not be able to hire for positions in earlier stages of claims processing, said Jo Anne Barnhart, Social Security commissioner from 2001-2007.

Barnhart estimated in 2004 that it would take 8,000 employee years or four years to clear the backlog. However, SSA has steadily fewer employees, she said. While commissioner, SSA started the Disability Service Improvement initiative to evaluate what happens with claims at each stage of the process.

Funny, but I do not seem to remember Jo Anne Barnhart making much of a pitch for increased staffing while she was Commissioner. She seemed, if anything, to be promising much better processing times no matter what how much or little money was appropriated to the Social Security Administration -- as long as her Disability Service Improvement plan went forward.

Social Security Response To CBS Report

The CBS report on the Social Security disability programs came up briefly at yesterday's House Social Security Subcommittee hearing. Representative Lloyd Doggett asked David Rust, Social Security's Associate Commissioner for Disability and Income Security Programs, a softball question on the subject. You can see the question and Rust's response in an excerpt from the hearing available on the CBS News website. Basically, Rust denied that there was a culture of denial, but then emphasized that it was a complex subject.

NADE Reacts To CBS Story

The National Association of Disability Examiners (NADE), an organization representing the examiners who make the determinations at the initial and reconsideration levels, has posted the following statement on the recent CBS News reports on the Social Security disability system:

Members of the National Association of Disability Examiners (NADE) viewed with interest the news story broadcast by CBS Evening News on January 14 and 15. We commend CBS for highlighting some of the problems that have been previously known to exist within the disability program and hope that the story will build momentum for a positive examination of these issues/concerns, and for a true exploration of their potential solutions. However, we were disappointed that the news story sensationalized many of these problems and we were equally disappointed that the CBS story did not offer any of the pending solutions. We were saddened that the story misrepresented many concerns and seemed to report allegations as facts. We believe this story to be an unfair representation of how the disability program is operated. We are prepared to refute the allegations presented in the story as well as to offer a more definitive explanation of the disability process and how it serves the American public. Had we been invited to be interviewed for the CBS story, we would have presented our response on camera.

We are disappointed that CBS did not choose to offer an unbiased examination of the issues but chose to concentrate on sensational reporting. NADE has been working with SSA and with other stakeholders to address the problems highlighted in the CBS story for many years now, and we will continue to do so. Our efforts, however, will continue to be aimed at how best to arrive at reasonable solutions to these issues rather than focusing on the problems. We will continue to be professional in our approach and will continue to honor our commitment to provide world class customer service. This will always be our paramount objective.

Georgina Huskey
President

Let me pose a question for NADE to think about: Does NADE favor or oppose more discretion for disability examiners? If NADE favors more discretion for disability examiners, I think that now would be a great time to say so. It was obvious at the House Social Security Subcommittee hearing yesterday that various groups were trying to lay out an agenda for consideration after the next election. NADE's expressed distress about the CBS report, although understandable, suggests that NADE opposes more discretion for disability examiners. Is that the agenda that NADE wishes to pursue?