If you were scheduled to have a disability hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) it is likely that this hearing will not be conducted in the same manner as you expected it to be. Most hearings are before live judges with a representative and other people within the same room, but the outbreak of the Coronavirus has made this unsafe and all hearings, if they are still held, will be conducted by phone where all parties are in separate locations. Some hearings may be postponed as well. Obviously this is a frustrating situation for claimants, but when there is a pandemic on the loose all bets are off and business as usual can’t continue.
According to Social Security, “If you have a hearing scheduled, we will call you to discuss alternatives for continuing with your hearing, including offering a telephonic hearing. Our call may come from a PRIVATE number and not from a U.S. Government phone. Please remember that our employees will not threaten you or ask for any form of payment.”
Phone hearings are typically not preferable for all involved because it relies on technology working correctly, which sometimes does not happen. There are also foreseeable issues with too many people trying to talk at once, which can create a lot of confusion. Additionally, evidence is very important in a disability case and if everyone involved in the phone hearing does not have access to see the evidence being discussed and it can be a very problematic situation. Social Security understands these are not the best situations, but with the pandemic likely to last months rather than weeks Social Security runs the risk of falling further behind on the hearing scheduled, something that it has worked on and made great success over the last couple of years. Like it or not, phone hearings might be everyone’s best alternative these days.
