Legal News

The days of people collecting Social Security disability and unemployment compensation at the same time may be coming to an end. In July of 2013 the chairman of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security introduced a bill in congress that would keep people from receiving Social Security disability and unemployment payments at the same time. U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson, R-Texas said he believes that the two programs, Social Security disability and unemployment, contradict each other, so people should not be able to collect both at the same time. When a person applies for unemployment they are indicating that they are physically able to work, but applicants for Social Security disability are claiming just the opposite, Johnson said. “Even though disability benefits are for those who can’t work and unemployment benefits are for those who can work, under current law someone can receive both benefits at the same time. That just doesn’t make sense,” Johnson said. The bill that was introduced is not just a Republican idea. President Barack Obama proposed a similar idea in his Fiscal Year 2014 budget. That proposal estimated that eliminating concurrent Social Security disability benefits and unemployment payments would save about $1 billion over 10 years. “President Obama agrees and in his budget, he included his own proposal to stop the double dipping. When we agree, we should act,” Johnson said. Currently, unemployment benefits are not counted under Social Security’s annual earnings test and do not impact benefits, but by receiving Social Security benefits it could impact your unemployment benefits. If you are receiving both Social Security disability benefits and unemployment benefits, Social Security recommends you contact your state unemployment office for information on how your state might apply any reduction. For more information about how Social Security disability benefits and unemployment benefits received at the same time can impact you click here.

It is true that most people who continue to pursue a Social Security disability claim face the probability of going to a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) because they have been previously medically denied on their claim, but some claimants get approved while waiting for that hearing. Social Security always holds the ability to medically approve a claimant for disability while a hearing is pending. The most common way this happens is through on-the-record (OTR) decisions.  The OTR process involves the screening of active Social Security disability claims by ALJs and Senior Attorney Advisors (SAA). When a favorable OTR decision is made, usually existing evidence on a claimant supports a fully favorable decision without a need for a hearing before an ALJ. This a valuable tool for not only the claimant, but also the Social Security Administration. By having SAAs issue fully favorable decisions this conserves the resources of ALJs for more complex cases that may be better suited for in-person hearings. The SAA program remains a fairly new program to Social Security since being implemented in 2007, but now the program is at risk as it is set to expire in August of 2013. The program was originally slated for extinction in August of 2010, but the program was twice extended. Unfortunately Social Security has not indicated as of yet that the program would be extended again. If the program does indeed go away by the end of August 2013 it will not only be bad news for over-worked ALJs, who will be faced with an increasing hearing load, but also bad news for Social Security disability claimants, who will face possibly even longer wait times for hearings. The national average wait time for a hearing before an ALJ is 12 to 15 months. For more information about the Senior Attorney Advisor program click here.

Despite the efforts of three Republican senators in supporting legislation that is aimed at influencing people receiving disability benefits to return to work, it remains unclear how the Return to Work Act of 2017 does anything to change the current system. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced the legislation in hopes that it would result in more people, who are receiving Social Security disability benefits, return to work after their condition medically improves. The main problem with the legislation is that it duplicates current regulations that already exists. Social Security never finds someone permanently disabled for the rest of their lives. Yes, some people do collect Social Security for the rest of their lives because they have significant medical impairments that never improve, but most people are reviewed by the agency to see if they continue to be disabled. Social Security routinely conducts Continuing Disability Reviews (CDR) mostly based on an Administrative Law Judge’s (ALJ) recommendation for people who are receiving disability benefits. Because some people who are reviewed are determined to be able to go back to work, disability benefits stop. It is unclear why this legislation is being introduced considering it would change very little about the current process. There are also the people who have serious medical conditions that, according to their medical providers, are never expected to improve. It is unclear how this legislation might create extra hassle in their lives.  

Qualifying for Social Security disability benefits was already difficult, but after implementation of new rules about how the agency was going to consider medical evidence, the hill just got a little steeper. Proving someone was medical disabled under Social Security’s rules was more difficult than nearly every other country in the world that also has disability programs for its citizens, but that didn’t stop Social Security from making two new rule changes that will likely increase the agency’s denial rate. The first major change is that Social Security has rescinded a rule that the agency should give “controlling weight to treating source opinions.” Although it did not always happen even when the rule was in place, Social Security was supposed to defer to the opinions of a claimant’s medical provider more so than independent medical evaluations. Most claimants have medical providers who have treated them for years and understand what their limitations are, but independent medical examiners evaluate a claimant typically one time for as little as 15 minutes. The new rule would not encourage Social Security to consider a claimant’s medical provider’s opinion over an independent medical examiner’s. A second major change is that Social Security will no longer give added weight to disability determinations that are made by other agencies. Many times a disability applicant has also been evaluated by other agencies, such and the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, or state medical agencies, which have deemed them impaired. These distinctions do not necessarily require Social Security to find an applicant disabled, but is supposed to ad influence, but that is no longer the case. Some people may believe these changes are being made because the number of people who qualify for Social Security disability benefits is growing out of the control, but that is not correct. The amount of people receiving disability benefits is the lowest it has been in five years.    

We realize it may be a stretch for ordinary people to want to keep up with the comings and goings of the Social Security Administration, but sometimes circumstances permit where someone does want to follow the latest news regarding the agency due to a possible retirement or disability interest. This blog is an ongoing piecemeal of recent stories that have involved Social Security. Some are tidbits and some are important things that should be known in the world of retirement or disability and others are just interesting stories and nothing more. Applications For SSI Benefits To Be Available Online As a Social Security disability law office we routinely file disability applications for our clients. Typically there are two different programs to file for, Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Unfortunately we have never been able to file the SSI application for a benefit because it involves complex issues related to income and assets due to the fact that SSI is a needs-based program. Social Security recently announced that it would provide limited access to online SSI applications. Beginning March 25, applications for SSI can be filed online, but there are some limitations. Those who meet the following conditions will be able to file an SSI application online: Anyone between the ages of 18-64; Any person that alleges disability, but not blindness; A person who has never been married. Obviously there are a limited number of people who fall into this category, so we will see how this new system works. Hearing Scheduled Blindly Recently it has been reported that Social Security is undergoing the practice of scheduling hearings without contacting a claimant’s representative or attorney beforehand. This is problematic in a number of ways even though Social Security insists this is done to “save time.” Representatives and attorneys have many disability clients and need to know when the hearing is going to be at the time of scheduling. If Social Security decides to schedule a hearing before consulting with a claimant’s representative there is a possibility the attorney will already have a hearing scheduled for that particular date and time and then it will have to be rescheduled. There is no way this will end up saving time. It can also put a wedge between the attorney and client if the attorney has to reschedule the hearing, which can push back a hearing date several months. Wait For The Other Shoe To Drop President Trump’s Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Mick Mulvaney announced that Trump may soon review potential reforms to Social Security and Medicare. Mulvaney insisted that current beneficiaries would see no changes, but he did not say that future beneficiaries would be so lucky. According the Mulvaney, the changes could specifically deal with Social Security disability payments. He has prevously said about disability, it’s “one of the fastest growing and probably one of the most abused mandatory programs in the country.” Unfortunately the OMB director is false on both claims, which should scare everyone involved. Once the administration and Republican supporters in Congress attempt to make changes to the Social Security disability program they are likely to see a backlash just like they are facing with the new healthcare bill.    

Nancy Berryhill became acting Social Security commissioner the day President Donald Trump was sworn into office. Berryhill was not appointed by Trump, but was serving as the second in command under previous Acting Commissioner Carolyn Colvin, who decided to step down at the end of President Barack Obama’s term. Considering that Trump has yet to name a new Social Security commissioner that means that the top job at Social Security is now Berryhill’s for the time being. No matter whether her term is a few months or lasts several years, it is important to have some background on the person who is in charge of a large government agency that impacts millions of Americans every year. In an introduction blog from the new commissioner, Berryhill is quick to point out that she is no Social Security novice. She has served in different capacities with Social Security for 40 years, so one has to wonder whether Trump is interested in keeping someone who has been in an agency that long regardless of Berryhill’s experience. One thing was certainly clear from Berryhill’s blog was that no one is going to mistake her for a Trump appointee as she praised the staff she has been working with for the last four decades. “The dedication of the workers in Social Security’s family is unwavering and unmatched,” she said. “I am looking forward to using our history of professional excellence to remain mission-focused and mission-driven. Social Security is with you through life’s journey, helping you secure today and tomorrow, and I’m proud to honor that promise.” There is no word coming out of the Trump White House about who may be a permanent replacement as the new commissioner of the Social Security Administration, but at least for the time being it looks like the agency is in good hands.  

There may be no more unsettling letter to receive than a Social Security notice indicating that your Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments will be stopped. This type of letter can arrive for a variety of reasons, but the main reasons are for earning too much income or Social Security determines that you are no longer disabled. If Social Security determines that you are no longer disabled and entitled to SSI payments you may appeal this decision and continue receiving SSI payments while Social Security makes a final determination of whether or not you are disabled. If Social Security decides that in fact you are no longer disabled you may have to pay back the SSI payments you received while you were waiting for a determination. If this happens you can always ask Social Security to waive any overpayment issues and file a new claim. Ineligibility due to work is a bit different. If you’ve been ineligible for SSI payments due to work, you may be able to restart your SSI payments again without starting a new application. If your work stops within five years of the time your SSI benefits ceased, Social Security may be able to start benefits again through the expedited reinstatement process. During this process Social Security will examine whether SSI payments should begin again. This can take some time, which is why Social Security offers temporary benefits to those waiting for Social Security’s decision. These temporary payments can last up to six months. Specifics Social Security looks at include: If benefits stopped because of earnings from work. Having an impairment that is the same as or related to the impairment that allowed you to get benefits at an earlier time. You are unable to work or earn Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). Each year Social Security sets SGA (an amount a person can earn from work each month and still qualify for benefits). For 2013 Social Security has set SGA at $1,040 of gross income per month. For more information about reinstating SSI payments click here.