Two Social Security Rulings Rescinded

     From a notice published by Social Security in the Federal Register (footnote omitted):

   ... In accordance with 20 CFR 402.35(b)(1), we give notice that we are rescinding the following SSRs [Social Security Rulings]: 

• SSR 96-3p: Titles II and XVI: Considering Allegations of Pain and Other Symptoms in Determining Whether a Medically Determinable Impairment is Severe.
• SSR 96-4p: Titles II and XVI: Symptoms, Medically Determinable Physical and Mental Impairments, and Exertional and Nonexertional Limitations.

These SSRs are unnecessarily duplicative of SSR 16-3p Titles II and XVI: Evaluation of Symptoms in Disability Claims, which was applicable on March 28, 2016 , published in the Federal Register on March 16, 2016, 81 FR 14166. SSR 16-3p, a more comprehensive statement of our policy on symptoms, explains how we evaluate the extent to which alleged symptoms limit an adult’s ability to perform work-related activities and a child’s ability to function effectively in an age-appropriate manner. ...

Social Security Employee Arrested

     From the Daily Herald of suburban Chicago:

A Montgomery woman has been indicted on charges that she pocketed at least $680,000 while working as a claims specialist for the Social Security Administration.

Officials said Ann Aroste, 42, faces five counts of wire fraud and five counts of aggravated identity theft in connection with five instances between August 2013 and May 2018, according to an indictment filed in federal court Thursday.

According to the indictment, Aroste began working for the Social Security Administration in April 2008 as a claims specialist processing and approving applications for social security benefits. Authorities said Aroste used her position to approve fraudulent applications for survivor benefits for people she falsely claimed had been married to deceased workers. Those five fraudulent claims resulted in at least $680,000 being paid by the U.S. Treasury Department to bank accounts Aroste controlled, officials said.

Officials said Aroste was arrested Monday morning and pleaded not guilty at an arraignment hearing later Monday afternoon.

Each count of wire fraud can carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, and each count of aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory two- year prison sentence after a conviction.

     I assume the Montgomery where this woman lives is in Illinois.

Social Security Operating Budget Under Consideration

     From the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP):

The House Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee may consider this week its 2019 funding bill, which funds the Social Security Administration (SSA) — and, when it does, it needs to continue the recent progress in reversing years of damaging cuts to SSA’s budget.

SSA’s operating budget fell nearly 9 percent between 2010 and 2018, after adjusting for inflation — even as the number of beneficiaries (including retirement, survivors, and disability benefits) grew by nearly 15 percent. The 2011 Budget Control Act’s (BCA) tight annual caps on defense and non-defense discretionary spending drove extremely tight SSA budgets, undermining its customer service by forcing it to close field offices, shorten office hours, and cut staff.

Policymakers increased SSA funding earlier this year, a step in the right direction but not nearly enough to make up the ground SSA has lost since 2010. The 2018 Bipartisan Budget Act raised the BCA budget caps for fiscal years 2018 and 2019, and policymakers responded by boosting SSA’s 2018 operating budget by $480 million or 4.5 percent.  However:

• More than half the increase, $280 million, will go for much-needed information technology improvements, which will fund about 40 percent of SSA’s multi-year IT modernization plan.
• Another $100 million will help address the nearly 1-million-case backlog in disability appeals by letting the agency hold roughly 50,000 more hearings.
• Just $100 million of the increase will go toward front-line service for Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Medicare, and the other programs SSA supports.  SSA needs over three times this amount simply to keep up with fixed costs like rent and employee health insurance.

So even with the increased funding, SSA is still struggling to keep up with rising demands, and its customer service problems continue. The agency has started another round of field office closures, prompting bipartisan concern in Congress. ...

Pending Hearing Requests Dropping

     From a recent presentation by Teresa Gruber, Social Security's Deputy Commissioner for Hearings Operations at a conference of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR):

Click on image to view full size

NAS To Get $20.5 Million Contract

     From a contracting notice published by Social Security:

The Social Security Administration (SSA) intends to issue a sole source contract with cost reimbursement task orders ... to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) for a period of 5 years beginning on or around September 30, 2018. The NAS will set up Committees of medical, vocational, and other experts having expertise in fields such as, internal medicine, pediatrics, oncology, otolaryngology, ophthalmology, endocrinology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, occupational therapy, physical therapy, orthopedic surgery, industrial and organizational psychology, psychiatry, developmental-behavioral pediatrics, neurology, cardiology, vocational rehabilitation, health care case management, social sciences, education and health care and workplace economics. The Standing Committee will continue work necessary to maintain an essential capability for theoretical analyses of research, relevant evidence and clinical practices in physical medicine, psychiatry, and rehabilitation medicine.

... The size standard is $20.5M....

     The National Academy of Sciences is not a governmental agency. It's a private non-profit that largely functions as a beltway bandit seeking out this sort of contract.

Congressman Wants Some Answers

     From a press release:

U.S. Rep. French Hill (R-AR) chastised the Social Security Administration (SSA) for reportedly overpaying Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries by billions of dollars for several years and then permanently waiving billions more in overpayment debt. And the congressman wants an update.

In a May 31 letter sent to SSA Acting Commissioner Nancy Berryhill, Rep. Hill requested that she provide responses to three questions, including the exact totals for what SSA has overpaid to SSDI beneficiaries and for waived overpayment debt from fiscal year (FY) 2014 to the present.

The congressman’s letter also served as official congressional notice to Berryhill that the SSA was receiving the most-recent Golden Fleece Award for its wasteful use of American taxpayers’ dollars. ...

     I've got a modest proposal. How about no overpayment waivers in Hill's district with Social Security giving out Hill's phone number to his constituents who want an explanation?

Arlington Field Office Still Closing

     The Arlington, VA Social Security field office is still closing despite Congressional pressure. It's in an area whose population is rapidly increasing. Social Security tried to blame the closing on a lack of rentable office space in the area but local leaders say that's ridiculous. The agency failed to follow its own protocols for closing a field office, blindsiding local leaders.

If You Were Hoping For Evidence That Eric Conn Is Suffering, Here You Go

     From the Lexington, KY Herald-Leader:

Eric C. Conn, who fled the country to avoid prison after committing fraud on a grand scale in his legal practice, pleaded guilty Monday in a deal that will keep him behind bars for up to 27 years. ...

Conn, wearing a green jail jumpsuit, handcuffs and a leg chain, walked slowly into the courtroom.

It appears being behind bars has drained Conn ...

Conn’s hair appeared more gray than when the FBI brought him back to Kentucky in December, and there was no energy in his voice as he answered Reeves’ questions, unlike his firm tone in prior appearances.

Conn — 57 by his account, but listed as 58 by the government — fidgeted and appeared to shake during the hearing, and seemed to wince at times.

Reeves asked him at one point if he was in distress, and Conn said he was in pain but was okay to continue.

Conn didn’t describe the source of his pain, but told Reeves he takes anti-anxiety medication. His plea mentions that he might ask to serve his sentence at a medical facility. ...

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article212475189.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article212475189.html#storylink=cpy