The National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives (NOSSCR), a specialized bar association for attorneys and advocates who represent Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claimants, discovered that many people who thought they appealed a disability decision in fact did not and a previous denial stood as the ruling authority. When this occurs it can have devastating effects for claimants who may have limited eligibility for SSDI because of recent work.
According to NOSSCR, approximately 60,000 people may have thought they appealed a decision online through Social Security’s website, but the agency did not process these requests because, according to their rules, an appeal was never filed. Here is more from NOSSCR’s report.
In March 2015, the Social Security Administration (SSA) changed how it processes electronic appeals of disability denials. In order to have an appeal processed, SSA started requiring people to fill out additional paper or online forms. SSA did not announce this new “single submission” process or explain it on the Appeals website.
This means people who started the electronic Appeals process and got a “re-entry” number might think their appeals are being processed when they aren’t!
SSA found about 60,000 people in this situation. Now they are trying to contact all 60,000 of these people to see if they really did want to appeal. They are calling this group of people the “abandoned iClaim workload.” If you get a call or letter from the Social Security Administration saying you started an online appeal and asking if you really meant to request “reconsideration” or a hearing with an Administrative Law Judge, you might be part of this group.
Even people in this group who filed new applications or had changes in their health or financial situation after trying to appeal might benefit from having their online appeals processed.
