I Thought He Was Still Interested In Becoming President

     Former Vice President Joe Biden expressed interest in means testing Social Security and Medicare  a few months ago.

     Democrats have long been opposed to means testing either. Means testing would put the programs in the widely despised category of “welfare.” There’s a reason Democrats always refer to them as “social insurance.”

     A few weeks ago some unknown jackass keyed my car for God knows what reason. My insurance company is paying for the repair. They didn’t inquire whether I could actually afford to make the repair without their help. No, I had paid my premiums so they pay for the repair. Do we want it any different for Social Security? If my insurance company was inquiring about whether I could afford to make repairs without their help, I’d feel very different about paying their premiums. That’s what  Republicans want.

Get Publicity For Your Case, Get A Call At The Dinner Hour Telling You That Your Problem Has Been Fixed

     From the Washington Times:

Two sisters faced with repaying the federal government $100,000 after their “dead” father turned up alive — 47 years later — received some welcome news in the waning hours of 2018. 

Lynne Grensted Thurston, 61, said a Social Security Administration agent notified her Monday that her share of the bill and the share owed by her sister, 63-year-old Beth Grensted, had been forgiven. 

We were already sitting down to dinner, and she [the agent] called to say she was leaving the office, but, ‘I wanted to let you know that the decision has been made,’” Mrs. Thurston told The Washington Times. “‘It’s completely erased for you and your sister.’” ... 

In June 2016, the sisters were hit with a bombshell: Their father, Douglas Grensted, who had been declared legally dead after disappearing on a hunting trip in 1968, actually had faked his death to run off with his mistress to Arizona. He died there in December 2015. Not only that, but the SSA ordered the sisters and their mother to repay about $100,000 in survivors’ benefits. Mrs. Thurston, who was 11 when her father vanished, was billed about $12,000; her sister Beth, who was 13, owed $10,000, and their mother, Barbara Grensted, received a bill for $87,000. ...

     This family deserved the relief but so do many others who don’t get relief or only get it after a long delay.  The difference is that this family got media attention. It didn’t hurt them that the attention came from a right wing source.

Initial And Reconsideration Allowance Rates -- FY 2018

     Below is a Social Security report on allowance rates at the initial and reconsideration levels on disability claims in Fiscal Year (FY) 2018, which ended on September 30, 2018. Click on each page to view full size. This appeared in the most recent issue of the newsletter (not available online) of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR).

     I live in North Carolina. Why is it that the initial allowance rate is 29.2% in North Carolina but 42.1% in neighboring Virginia? For that matter, why is the allowance rate 51.5% in New Hampshire but only 25.3% in Mississippi? Don't tell me the demographic differences are that great. I thought this was a national program.

Happy New Year!

OHO Processing Time Report

     Below is the monthly hearing processing time statistics from Social Security's Office of Hearings Operations (OHO) for the month ending October 11, 2018. This was obtained from Social Security by the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR) and published in their newsletter, which is not available online. Click on it to view it full size.

Exactly The Reaction The GOP Hopes For

     Mark Wohlander writes for Kentucky Today about his struggles trying to deal with Social Security, both online and by telephone. I would say that the poor service he received is proof that the Social Security Administration is underfunded and understaffed. Mr. Wohlander, however, sees it as proof that it’s a good thing there is a government shutdown, because, well, if the government can’t do a better job than this, who needs it?

     There are signs in this piece that Mr. Wohlander is a bit confused. First, he thinks that the Social Security Administration has been shut down. Not so. It’s only a part of government that’s been shut down and that part doesn’t include Social Security. He also thinks that the government shutdown has occurred because there isn’t enough money to pay for government operations. Again, not so. The money is there but there is a dispute between President Trump and Congress over how to spend it, specifically over about $5 billion that the President wants for his wall. Congress doesn’t want the wall and it’s not just Democrats in Congress who don’t want the wall. Republicans aren’t too interested in it either. Mr. Wohlander also swallows age old Republican propaganda about how he’ll never receive his Social Security benefits because the money has been “stolen.” This is what passes for a thoughtful piece in a red state.

You Got Me: What's A "Trust Fund" Building?

     From the minutes of a meeting of the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB):

The board met with representatives of SSA [Social Security Administration] and the General Services Administration (GSA) [which handles a number of federal government tasks such as leasing office space] to learn how and why SSA makes changes to its field office spaces, what so-called “trust fund” buildings are and why GSA is paid for those by SSA.

     You got me. What's a "trust fund" building? No, the Social Security trust funds are not invested even a little bit in real estate. They're required by law to be 100% invested in U.S. government bonds. The Social Security Administration owns some office buildings but they're just what's needed for the agency's office space. I suppose there may be some extra office space that the agency leases out or which it no longer needs and is in the process of selling but that's not investments. Why would SSA be paying GSA rent on office space that SSA owns?

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The Hearing Backlog Remains Huge

     From USA Today:

It isn’t easy to be patient when you can’t work and you’re in pain, as Christine Morgan knows all too well.

Her chronic pain comes from fibromyalgia. Morgan, 60, also has spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spaces within the spine that pinches the nerves, most often in the lower back and neck. To top it off, she is diabetic, has kidney disease, high blood pressure and depression.

Yet Morgan has been turned down for Social Security Disability Insurance –  twice. “They sent me a letter that said I wasn’t disabled,” she said.

Morgan appealed her most recent denial in August 2017. Her appeal wasn’t heard until more than a year later, on Nov. 7, and she still hasn’t received a ruling. She is among more than 800,000 Americans waiting for their appeals to be decided. Each year thousands die waiting for an answer.

In fiscal year 2016, 8,699 Americans died on the disability insurance waiting list. That number rose to 10,002 in 2017. ...