Social Security Disability

If your claim has been denied, you’ll need to attempt a Social Security Disability appeal so you can get the benefits that you need to survive. That means going through a hearing in front of a special judge called an ALJ (administrative law judge).

As a Social Security Disability attorney, I can tell you that everyone going through a Social Security Disability appeal has to have an ALJ hearing. You may be assigned an in-person hearing or a video hearing, but one way or another you’re going in front of a judge.

Because video hearings are cheaper for the SSA, they want more of them and have been working hard to increase the number of facilities out there that can do this. Under the current rules you can refuse video hearings for any reason, but that may not be the case in the future.

SSA rules for a Social Security Disability appeal hearing clearly say that vocational experts (VEs) are expected to testify in person or by using video conference. Unfortunately, some judges seem to think that this is just an arbitrary guideline.

It doesn’t happen often, but there have been times when I’ve taken a client in front of a judge and we’ve been notified right then and there that the VE offering evidence from the government will be calling in on their cell phone. Blindsiding claimants and their representatives in this way is not only unethical, it’s completely against the SSA’s own rules for Social Security Disability!

If you’re in the middle of a Social Security Disability appeal, you want to ensure two things: that you have a great legal team, and that the medical consultants (MCs) you hire are the best of the best. But want if those consultants already work for the Social Security Administration (SSA) or even a completely unrelated state agency? Can you use them?

According to a 2010 finding from an SSA Office of General Counsel, the answer is absolutely not. Even if the medical consultant is only a contractor, it’s considered to be a “conflict of interest” and you have to find someone else for your case.

Social Security questions about losing benefits are common. What’s not as typical is people having their benefits taken away because of problems with the IRS.

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what’s happening to some beneficiaries. The IRS tells the Social Security Administration that they’ve claimed income so their award is reduced or taken away completely. The problem is that these people haven’t actually been earning any extra money—they are victims of identity theft.

If you’re considering filing a disability claim, you might have Social Security questions about what Quick Disability Determinations, or QDDs, are and how they work. As an experienced Social Security Disability attorney, I get these questions all the time.

Basically, when someone has a condition that clearly meets disability standards, Social Security tries hard to ensure that they get benefits quickly. To speed up these claims, conditions that qualify as QDDs bypass the often lengthy approval process most applicants have to go through.

As a Texas Social Security Disability attorney, I try to pay attention to what’s going on in Washington so that I can ensure that my clients are prepared for what they’re likely to face when they start dealing with Social Security.

Recently, I read something that made my blood boil. In an effort to “reduce improper payments” (which really means helping the government get more money back), the SSA Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report that criticized Social Security’s policy of administrative finality.

What exactly is “administrative finality”? Basically, it’s a policy that prevents the government from continually reopening your case to take money away from you after Social Security has made a final decision and a certain amount of time has passed. The policy was designed to protect people but now the government wants Social Security to get rid of it.

Some of the most common Social Security questions I get are about Compassionate Allowances (CAL). Clients want to know what they are, how they work, and what disabilities qualify as CAL conditions.

Their desire to know is completely understandable, because CAL conditions are processed much more quickly than regular Social Security Disability claims. That means you get your benefits a lot faster!

On December 27, 2011 we reported on this blog about the Social Security Disability system’s new secrecy rule keeping the identity of the judge who will handle a claimant’s hearing secret until the day of the hearing.

The National Organization of Social Security Claims Representatives (NOSSCR) is reporting that under pressure from repeated Freedom of Information Act requests that this unfair rule is being overturned. According to NOSSCR SSA will “… once again, provide the name of the ALJ assigned to each case beginning April 20, 2013….Congressional interest in advocating that the policy of non-disclosure of ALJ names be rescinded was very important. We thank all of you who brought this matter to your Congressional delegation….It is clear that successful FOIA litigation increased the pressure to rescind the policy… [from SSA] As we discussed this morning, we have reviewed our decision to not disclose the name of the ALJ assigned to hear a case until the day of the hearing. We are making the following changes as a result of our review…Beginning on April 20, the agency will resume disclosing the name of the ALJ assigned to a hearing when it sends out a Notice of Hearing.”

People are always asking me Social Security questions about how the government plans to keep up with costs so that they don’t lose out on benefits, and I always tell them not to worry—when push comes to shove, politicians always find the money somewhere because no one wants to lose millions of votes.

That being said, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t learn more by reading our free eBook and pay attention to the various proposals out there to change the program. As a Social Security Disability attorney, I always keep my ear to the ground. Lately, it seems like everyone out there just keeps coming up with new ways to make cuts.