One Sign Of The Field Office Backlogs

     An e-mail I received today from a legal assistant at my firm: "_____ [Field Office] is again telling people it will take them 90 days to even call the clients for the SSI resource interview after they have been approved."

     Actually, it probably won't take that field office that long to do an interview needed before benefits can be computed and paid but it tells you something about workloads at Social Security's field offices that one would say this to a desperately poor person who has just been found disabled.

     And a Social Security spokesperson recently used the phrase "world class service"?

What Entitlement Crisis?

    That "entitlement crisis"? Paul Krugman says it never existed. This chart seems to bear him out.

Do They Have A Plan To Come Up With A Plan?

     The National Journal has an article summarizing the current state of Republican efforts to come up with a plan for the upcoming shortfall in Social Security's Disability Insurance Trust Fund. The takeaway is that the GOP has no plan nor are they likely to have any plan until well into next year.

The Mess In Kentucky

     From the Lexington Herald-Leader:

Dexter Conn needs a lawyer. So do 1,500 of his neighbors.

The 57-year-old from Dana is one of the 1,500 people, mostly in eastern Kentucky, whose federal disability benefits are in jeopardy after the federal government ordered a review of cases handled by attorney Eric Conn. Now those cases are likely headed to hearings before administrative law judges that could start as soon as September.

All of those people need attorneys, and most of them can't afford one. ...

One problem is the attorneys likely will not be paid. In many Social Security cases, applicants are often awarded benefits dating back to the time they became disabled. In some cases that could be up to a year or more of benefits, money often used to pay attorney's fees. But these cases don't have that possibility because they are reviews of existing awards. ...

So far, 80 attorneys have volunteered to help. But [Robert] Johns [Executive Director of the Appalachian Research and Defense Fund of Kentucky] said the "vast majority" have no experience handling Social Security benefit cases, which require extensive knowledge of federal law and regulations while juggling mountains of medical records. Training them will take time. ...

    And before someone raises the questions, let me answer it. No, it's not reasonable to expect the local Social Security attorneys to represent all these people pro bono. It's a rural area. There can't be that many local Social Security attorneys. Every Social Security attorney in the country is struggling to survive in a difficult environment. I'm sure that's the case in Kentucky as well. These attorneys can't drop everything they're doing for the next two years to clean up a mess they didn't create. And, no, it's not reasonable to expect attorneys from other parts of the country to step in and represent these claimants. That's impractical. I'm supposed to not only represent these folks pro bono but spend money to travel to Kentucky? Be realistic.

Interesting Logo For #OneSocialSecurity

Sklar Responsible For Not Delivering World Class Service?

     The Washington Post has a report on the departures of Glenn Sklar and James Borland from Social Security's Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR). The article refers to ODAR as a "slow-moving, unwieldy bureaucracy." LaVenia LaVelle, who is identified as a spokesperson for Social Security, is quoted as saying “This is not about an individual but about ensuring under Acting Commissioner Colvin’s leadership the Agency is ready to continue its world class customer service to the American public.”

     Note that the article seems to put the blame for ODAR's backlogs on ODAR's leadership rather than on inadequate appropriations and that Social Security's spokesperson seems to endorse this view. If this is the case (and I don't believe it is) why has Carolyn Colvin allowed the backlogs to grow to this disgraceful level. She must not care. She's just another incompetent Obama appointee. There's probably something illegal here. When is President Obama going to fire this bumbling, heartless bureaucrat? We need a Congressional hearing to grill Colvin on this unbelievable situation. It's just like the VA!

Randall Frye Admits ALJs Feel Pressure To Deny Claims

     Take a look at this local TV report on Social Security's hearing office in Charlotte where it's become much harder for a disability claimant to win on appeal. 

     This is from an interview with Administrative Law Judge Randall Frye, who is, or recently was, the head of the Association of Administrative Law Judges (AALJ), an employee union:

[The reporter] asked Frye if there's any pressure to deny more cases, to save money.

“I don't want to suggest that it forms the basis of a decision but it is something that's out there,” he answered. “There's pressure from Congress, the administration, the peer pressure.”

Democratic Senators Protect Social Security Disability

     From Daily Kos:

Two provisions to cut Social Security benefits in the proposed highway bill caused Democrats in both the Senate and House to revolt. Democrats have succeeded in getting both of those provisions removed, but now Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is facing a serious challenge in getting the bill past his own party, in both chambers of Congress. 

Senate Democrats defeated McConnell's first effort to bring the bill to the floor for debate, arguing they didn't have time to read the 1030-page bill in the few hours he had given them, and because of these spending provisions that hit Social Security. Immediately following that defeat, the Social Security cut to people who were concurrently receiving disability benefits and unemployment insurance was removed. The second cut, which would have ended benefits to anyone with an outstanding felony warrant, was was axed before a second procedural vote Wednesday night. Democrats pointed out that the last time this was attempted, and stymied by the courts, the government had to pay back $500 million to some 80,000 people who were wrongly cut off.

McConnell got the votes of 14 Democrats after removing these provisions, and the bill is moving forward this week in the Senate. ...

     Reality check, GOP: If you can't pass these changes to the Social Security disability program, what makes you think you can pass dramatic cuts in the program?