Social Security has issued new instructions on dealing with same sex marriage cases. Social Security's Administrative Law Judges are now instructed to cancel any scheduled hearing dealing with this issue and to not make a decision in any case that has already been heard. I don't know how many of these cases there may be but I'd bet the vast majority of them are couples who still live in the state in which they were married. I know there are issues with cases where the parties to the marriage have moved to a state that refuses to recognize same sex marriage but there is no issue when the parties live in the state where they were married. How long should it take to write instructions for these cases?
Jul 6, 2013
Jul 5, 2013
Not Buying It
Jay Barnes isn't buying the claims that Social Security is pressuring its Administrative Law Judges to approve disability claims.
Jul 4, 2013
Jul 3, 2013
Soaring Disability Payments?
We keep hearing that Social Security disability benefit payments are soaring. They're going through the roof. It's ruinous how rapidly disability payments are rising. Funny thing about that. It's not happening, at least not anymore. Below is a chart showing Disability Insurance Benefits payments over the last two years. I know the chart contains some extraneous information but I couldn't copy just the month and the total benefit payments. Notice that benefit payments have gone up in the last two years by 8%, which is certainly significant but hardly a disastrous increase considering the aging of the baby boom population and considering the 3.6% cost of living adjustment at the end of 2011 and the 1.7% cost of living adjustment at the end of 2012. More interesting is that the increase in benefit payments has ground to a halt over about the last year. We seem to be near stasis. This is exactly what the actuaries have been predicting. Once the number of baby boomers reaching full retirement age, making them no longer eligible for disability benefits, started equaling the number reaching their prime years for disability, the boom in disability claims would be over. Well, it's happened. It's right there in the numbers you see below. Total benefit payments in June 2013 were less than they were nine months earlier in September 2012, despite the intervening cost of living adjustment.
| Year | Month paid |
Total benefit payments a |
Cyclical payments b | Medicare premium deductions |
All other payments | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Cycle 1 | Cycle 2 | Cycle 3 | Cycle 4 | |||||
| 2011 | Jul | $10,897 | $9,116 | $5,168 | $1,305 | $1,303 | $1,341 | $430 | $1,351 |
| 2011 | Aug | 10,761 | 9,133 | 5,171 | 1,309 | 1,307 | 1,345 | 430 | 1,198 |
| 2011 | Sep | 10,818 | 9,169 | 5,189 | 1,315 | 1,313 | 1,352 | 433 | 1,216 |
| 2011 | Oct | 10,758 | 9,207 | 5,206 | 1,322 | 1,320 | 1,359 | 433 | 1,118 |
| 2011 | Nov | 10,638 | 9,235 | 5,222 | 1,326 | 1,324 | 1,363 | 435 | 967 |
| 2011 | Dec | 10,970 | 9,337 | 5,292 | 1,337 | 1,334 | 1,374 | 434 | 1,199 |
| 2012 | Jan | 11,278 | 9,668 | 5,459 | 1,391 | 1,388 | 1,429 | 428 | 1,182 |
| 2012 | Feb | 11,279 | 9,693 | 5,472 | 1,395 | 1,393 | 1,433 | 429 | 1,156 |
| 2012 | Mar | 11,522 | 9,730 | 5,490 | 1,401 | 1,398 | 1,441 | 438 | 1,354 |
| 2012 | Apr | 11,376 | 9,767 | 5,508 | 1,407 | 1,404 | 1,447 | 434 | 1,175 |
| 2012 | May | 11,247 | 9,811 | 5,529 | 1,415 | 1,412 | 1,455 | 436 | 1,000 |
| 2012 | Jun | 11,625 | 9,816 | 5,531 | 1,416 | 1,414 | 1,455 | 442 | 1,367 |
| 2012 | Jul | 11,434 | 9,841 | 5,539 | 1,422 | 1,419 | 1,461 | 442 | 1,152 |
| 2012 | Aug | 11,124 | 9,849 | 5,542 | 1,424 | 1,421 | 1,462 | 442 | 832 |
| 2012 | Sep | 11,847 | 9,846 | 5,542 | 1,423 | 1,420 | 1,461 | 449 | 1,551 |
| 2012 | Oct | 11,139 | 9,889 | 5,562 | 1,431 | 1,428 | 1,469 | 442 | 807 |
| 2012 | Nov | 11,219 | 9,894 | 5,568 | 1,430 | 1,428 | 1,468 | 449 | 876 |
| 2012 | Dec | 11,788 | 9,966 | 5,627 | 1,435 | 1,431 | 1,472 | 445 | 1,378 |
| 2013 | Jan | 11,583 | 10,079 | 5,676 | 1,456 | 1,453 | 1,494 | 471 | 1,033 |
| 2013 | Feb | 11,590 | 10,076 | 5,677 | 1,455 | 1,451 | 1,493 | 472 | 1,041 |
| 2013 | Mar | 11,827 | 10,089 | 5,684 | 1,456 | 1,453 | 1,496 | 475 | 1,263 |
| 2013 | Apr | 11,572 | 10,106 | 5,695 | 1,458 | 1,455 | 1,498 | 470 | 997 |
| 2013 | May | 11,786 | 10,136 | 5,716 | 1,460 | 1,458 | 1,502 | 471 | 1,179 |
| 2013 | Jun | c 11,734 | 10,136 | 5,717 | 1,460 | 1,457 | 1,501 | 475 | c 1,123 |
Jul 2, 2013
Chief Actuary Projects Effects Of Immigration Reform On Social Security
From a June 28 letter from Social Security's Chief Actuary Stephen Goss to Senator Marco Rubio:
I am writing in response to your request for estimates of the long-range financial effects on Social Security of Senate Bill S. 744, as reported out by the Judiciary Committee, amended, and passed by the Senate on June 27. ...
We estimate that enactment of this Bill would increase asset reserves for the combined Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) and Disability Insurance (DI) Trust Funds by $284 billion by the end of 2024, and would extend solvency of the OASDI program for an additional 2 years ...
Jul 1, 2013
Telephone Problems At ODAR Today
I'm hearing reports that Social Security's Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR) offices nationwide are experiencing telephone difficulties today. It's not clear to me whether this is affecting other parts of Social Security as well.
Some Agencies Were Prepared For Supreme Court Decision On DOMA
I wrote last week that Social Security seemed unprepared for the decision of the Supreme Court holding the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional. Some agencies were prepared for this decision. See the memo from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued just a day after Social Security issued staff instructions to hold all claims filed by those in same sex marriages.
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