All Roads Are Paved With Good Intentions: Social Security Disability and the Lengthy Waiting Process
Recently, I read an article that proclaimed, “President’s record blurred by economy”. Every President is faced with the responsibility of inheriting the assets and liabilities left over from the prior administration. Obama is no different. In fact, it’s arguable that he, more than any other President in U.S. history, has inherited the worst problems. And with the economic troubles we’re facing, relief for those who are suffering will be slow, no matter how brilliant the policies his administration implements. In an interview, President Obama made it clear he is very aware of this when he stated that even if the country does see some economic improvement, the person who is still unemployed won’t share in that improvement until he/she has a job.
I understand the President’s position. Now, I am not an employee of the Social Security Administration, but I have watched them take some aggressive steps to improve the long ‘waiting process’. I’ve written a few times about the little things that you, as the claimant, can do to make sure that you don’t have to wait that long. Understandably, SSA, is working to speed things up as well.
Here are a few observations that I have seen in the last few years:
1) Electronic files – now, you can file your application and appeal online. You get a copy of your file on a CD and not a monstrous paper folder.
2) National Hearing Center – to ease up the slack of some of the hearing offices, SSA has created a National Hearing Center so judges can schedule hearings for claimants via video teleconference for the whole country.
3) Disability Determination Services – more and more cases are being handled by these agencies in areas beyond their jurisdiction.
Now, these are just a few things but I can tell you that SSA is legitimately trying to speed up the process. Unfortunately, most people applying for SSA are in the worst position of their lives. They aren’t working. They have no insurance. They have no money. Their health is in the worst shape possible. And to make matters worse, they have to WAIT for their case to go through this process to see any relief.
So despite all of these improvements and major changes that the agency has implemented, the process is still slow. For the person who is living on the couch of a friend with no ability to sustain him/herself, improvements mean nothing without any results that benefit that particular individual.
