The Clock Is Ticking

     Today's SSI story concerns a claimant who was approved for both SSI disability benefits and Disability Insurance Benefits on June 17. Her monthly checks have started but he's yet to receive any back benefits. The holdup is called the windfall offset, which was designed to pay the claimant SSI benefits as if the Disability Insurance Benefits had been paid when they were due. The windfall offset in practice is bizarrely convoluted. But, still, it's been more than six months. Why haven't they done the windfall offset? We can't get an answer but we know that the underlying problem is understaffing at the field office.

Why Does SSA Keep Using The DOT?

      Lisa Rein at the Washington Post has a long piece out on Social Security’s use of the horribly outdated Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT) in making disability determinations. Everyone involved knows the DOT is completely unreliable. 

     Social Security has been working on a replacement for the DOT for decades. Supposedly it’s ready but they aren’t using it. Why? The only thing I can surmise is that a new occupational information system will end up affecting who gets approved and who gets denied and that’s unacceptable to Social Security. They want something “new” that’s exactly the same as the outdated data they’ve been using since 1979.

Happy Day After Christmas

 

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas

 

Merry Christmas

 

Didn't Know This

     Social Security does a little, probably a very little, conflict of interest checking on its Administrative Law Judges. It sounds ineffective. Do any other agency employees receive similar treatment?

Merry Christmas