The idea behind Social Security disability (SSD) is that it will help those who need it because of injury, a condition or illness. Unfortunately, given the backlog of people in the U.S. who are seeking benefits, there are more than a million people who are waiting for their claim to be heard. That includes approximately 40,000 people in Ohio. These delays can be exceedingly harmful. Some people even die before they have their cases heard. Others are unable to care for themselves and struggle to live as they await their hearing.
Some claimants are forced to wait at least six months before their eligibility for SSD benefits is determined. If there is a denial, that means a longer wait for an appeal. The wait time can accrue to more than a year-and-a-half. There were numerous attempts to reduce the wait time by automating the process to increase its efficiency and to hire more administrative law judges. These plans were meant to lower the backlog, but the number increased. By March of 2015, there were more than one million claims that had to be decided. By January of 2016, that number had grown to more than 1.1 million.
Adding to the struggle with SSD benefits is the relatively small number of people who are approved. Less than one-quarter of those who apply receive benefits on their first try. That means that those who are denied but believe their issues warrant benefits will have to go through the appeals process. The number of people who apply for disability has added to the woes that the Social Security Administration (SSA) is sifting through, as it rose by 66 percent in the past 15 years.
Another factor in the delays is that the job listings that are used to decide if a claimant is able to perform some form of work are not up to date with today's world. The Dictionary of Occupational Titles used by the SSA has not been updated in 25 years.
With all the problems that the SSA is having, it is no wonder that applicants are waiting so long only to be denied and are forced to go through the appeals process. Those who are considering applying for SSD might be concerned about the wait time. One way to understand how the process works and make certain that there are no mistakes made in the application and that the appeals process goes as smoothly as possible is to consult with a lawyer experienced in helping clients with Social Security disability claims.
Source: Springfield News-Sun, "Injured workers wait -- and wait -- for benefits," Chris Stewart, March 5, 2016
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