Additional Arrests In NYC

     The New York Times reports that 28 more have been indicted in New York on charges of Social Security disability fraud. They are alleged to have feigned mental illness in order to obtain benefits. As before, these are state charges instead of federal charges.

Staff Instructions On Priority To 100% Disabled Vets

     Social Security has released staff instructions on its plan to give priority in processing to the disability claims of veterans who have been awarded 100% permanent and total compensation by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Am I reading this right that since it refers to "compensation" that it does not apply to veterans receiving non-service connected veterans "pensions" from VA? Those vets have also been found totally and permanently disabled by VA yet I think they are excluded under these instructions. The instructions could be clearer on this point.

Facts About Social Security Disability

More People Get On Social Security Disability Benefits For Fibromyalgia Than You Might Think

     From the abstract of Social Security Work Disability And Its Predictors In Patients With Fibromyalgia by Frederick Wolfe MD, Brian T. Walitt MD MPH, Robert S. Katz MD, and Winfried Häuser MD, published in Arthritis Care & Research, a publication of the American College of Rheumatology:

During the study, 34.8% (95% CI 32.9, 36.8) of fibromyalgia patients received SSD [Social Security Disability]. The annual incidence of SSD among patients not receiving SSD at study enrollment was 3.4% (3.0, 3.9%), and 25% were estimated to be work disabled at 9.0 years of follow-up. By comparison, the prevalence of SSD in rheumatoid arthritis patients with concomitant fibromyalgia was 55.6% (54.3, 57.0) and was 42.4% in osteoarthritis. By study conclusion, 31.4% of SSD awardees were no longer receiving SSD. In univariate models, incident SSD in patients with fibromyalgia was predicted by socio-demographic measures and by symptom burden; but the strongest predictor was functional status (Health Assessment Questionnaire disability [HAQ]).

Efforts To Prevent Or Detect Fraud

     Social Security's Acting Commissioner, Carolyn Colvin, has sent a letter to the Chairman of the House Social Security Subcommittee detailing her agency's efforts to prevent or detect fraud in disability claims. It sounds as if a fair amount of Social Security's scarce resources will be devoted to this effort. I expect that Republicans will be disappointed with the results since I expect that little organized fraud will be found.

Chained CPI Will Not Be In President's Budget

     The President's proposed budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2015, set to be released in early March, will not include a change to Chained CPI for Social Security's cost of living adjustment. Chained CPI is strongly opposed by Social Security supporters. Take a look at Fox News' take on this announcement.

"Electronic Matrimony"

     A message I received from the Social Security Administration:

Dear Colleague:

I have great news!  Social Security has made it even easier for people to apply online for disability benefits.  We have joined the Social Security disability benefits application, and the adult disability report in “electronic matrimony.”  It used to be that you had to complete both of these forms separately when applying for disability benefits.  Our new streamlined process puts both forms together all in one place.  Please refer to www.socialsecurity.gov/applyfordisability for more information.

Be advised that this application is for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits only.  To find out about applying for Supplemental Security Income benefits, visit www.socialsecurity.gov/pgm/ssi.htm.

Thank you for your support as we continually strive to improve our service to the American people.

Expediting For 100% Service Connected Vets -- A Bad Idea

     Yesterday, Social Security announced a plan to expedite Social Security disability claims for veterans who have been found 100% disabled by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Let me explain why that was a bad decision. 

• This is NOT about expediting disability claims for wounded warriors. Social Security was already doing that. This announcement expedites disability claims for veterans whose disabilities are NOT the result of combat. You ask how that can be. Easy. A veteran gets VA service connected benefits for virtually ANY disability incurred while in military service. Heart attacks, cancer, off base automobile accidents, rheumatoid arthritis, kidney failure, etc. The only things excluded are disabilities which are the result of the veteran's own willful misconduct or abuse of alcohol or drugs 
• To expedite disability claims for one group of people is to delay them for everyone else, which is no minor matter when we consider the severity of the backlogs at Social Security. Vets receiving 100% service connected VA benefits for non-combat related disabilities are undeserving of this special attention because they already have substantial incomes of more than $2,800 per month. They can be hurting somewhat financially but most Social Security disability claimants are hurting much worse because they do not have any disability benefit from their former employer. If anyone gets expediting, it should be those who are in serious financial distress, not vets already receiving 100% service connected benefits. 
• This new policy makes it NO more likely that vets drawing 100% service connected benefits will be approved for disability benefits by Social Security. It's only expediting. I strongly suspect that this was a cynical attempt to head off legislative proposals that would automatically grant Social Security disability benefits to those who had been approved for 100% service connected VA benefits.

     Vets deserve our respect. We owe them a lot. They certainly deserve compensation for their service connected disabilities. Those who are disabled by combat related injuries deserve special treatment at Social Security. However, vets with non-combat disabilities don't deserve to have their disability claims expedited at Social Security.