Social Security Disability Payees Under Scrutiny

Unfortunately, Social Security Disability beneficiaries often are the victims of predators who abuse them and steal their monthly checks.  Perhaps one of the most dramatic cases involving this problem was the "Tacony Dungeon Case" in Philadelphia where four mentally disabled persons were held captive in a filthy basement in a scheme to steal their benefits.  Now, the Social Security Administration has launched a new initiative that bars persons with a criminal record from serving as a payee for SSI or SSDI beneficiaries.

However, it is not clear how well Social Security employees will be able to carry out this new initiative given the fact that they are understaffed and don't have access to the FBI's criminal database.  Instead, agency employees are going to be relying on private third party databases and other public records.  

Pursuant to the new program, representative payees who collect payments for those who are unable to handle their own finances would be rejected if they have committed one of 12 crimes: human trafficking, false imprisonment, kidnapping, rape/sexual assault, first-degree homicide, robbery, fraud to obtain government assistance, fraud by scheme, theft of government funds,/property, abuse/neglect, forgery and identity theft.

In some cases non-profit corporations act as payees for social security disability beneficiaries who cannot handle their own finances.  Just this week, sad news came in from Portland, Oregon where a non-profit group called Safety Net is under investigation for mismanaging the funds of the disabled. A federal warrant has closed Safety Net's facilities and now approximately 1,000 Social Security Disability beneficiaries are in danger of loosing their next check.  Obviously, much more needs to be done to prevent payee fraud and mismanagement.  Unless immediate action is taken to address this problem and appropriate funds and resources are assigned to implement the new initiative, it is likely that this problem will continue.       

Support "The Social Security Fraud Prevention Act of 2014"

Ranking member of the Ways and means Social Security Subcommittee Xavier Becerra (D-CA) has announced that he is introducing legislation to give the SSA the real effective tools to fight fraud and abuse of the disability benefit programs.

While many opponents have wasted time and efforts criticizing the Social Security disability programs, H.R. 4090 provides "a secure stream" of funds to allow the agency to implement a system of fraud prevention.  This bill will give the SSA the funds it needs to perform much needed continuing disability reviews (CDR's).  Currently there is a backlog of 1.3 million cases that have not been reviewed by the agency as they were supposed.  

This proposed bill would require the Social Security Commissioner to create "Cooperative Disability Investigations Units" in all 50 states and its territories by October 1, 2017. 

I applaud Congressman Becerra's efforts and urge the Connecticut and Massachusetts Congressional Delegation to support H.R. 4090.  To see Congressman Becerra's statements before the Ways and Means Committee watch the video below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83AuSRqlIBw

What to Expect in a Video Social Security Disability Hearing

If your SSDI or SSI hearing has been scheduled, it is possible that your case will be one of those in which Social Security conducts the hearing via video.  You might be wondering what such hearings are like and how best to prepare for it.  Here are some tips, as well as some important information on what to expect from your video hearing.

The best way to be mentally prepared for this type of hearing, is to understand that the technology used in these types of proceedings is very similar to the technology used when conducting conversations via skype.  Therefore, you should think of your video hearing as if it were a skype interview conducted by the judge.

In a video hearing you will be able to see all the participants in a really large T.V. screen. The administrative judge stays in his or her office, while you sit in a room that is close to your residence.  A technician hired by the Social Security Administration is present at all video hearing to assure that the equipment works properly.  Except for the equipment, a video hearing is no different than a hearing at which you appear in person.  Video hearings are very common in remote areas of the country where it is difficult for Social Security claimants and their lawyers to be present directly in front of the judge. 

The number of video hearings is currently on the raise.  It is estimated that in fiscal year 2013 the SSA conducted 179,308 video hearings.  This is more than twice the number of video hearings conducted in 2009.  Often an appearance by video hearing can be scheduled faster than an in-person appearance.  For this reason, it is estimated that the use of video technology has helped considerably in decreasing the backlog of pending claims.

SSDI for Persons Who Have Low Vision or are Blind

I receive frequent calls from persons who want to know whether they qualify for Social Security Disability Benefits based on their poor vision.  Most people don't seem to be aware that the legal requirements needed to qualify for disability benefits due to this condition are fairly strict. 

 

With respect to blindness and Social Security Disability, there are two important points that must be kept in mind:  First of all, Social Security determines whether a person qualifies for benefits based on their vision on the better eye.  Therefore, if you are completely blind in one eye but have 20/20 vision on the other, you will not meet the blindness listing.  Second, Social Security determines whether you are blind based on your corrected vision, not on the vision that you have when you are not wearing glasses.

 

In essence, Social Security will find that you are eligible for benefits if your vision cannot be corrected better than 20/200 in your better eye, or if your visual field is 20 degrees or less, even with a corrective lens.

 

If you do not meet the definition mentioned above, you may still be able to qualify if other health problems combined with your age prevent you from working.  There are a number of Social Security Rulings that evaluate a person's ability to do work if they have problems with visual acuity.  In this respect Social Security Ruling 96-9p states:   

 

    Visual limitations or restrictions: Most sedentary unskilled occupations require working with small objects. If a visual limitation prevents an individual from seeing the small objects involved in most sedentary unskilled work, or if an individual is not able to avoid ordinary hazards in the workplace, such as boxes on the floor, doors ajar, or approaching people or vehicles, there will be a significant erosion of the sedentary occupational base. These cases may require the use of vocational resources.

 

If you feel that low vision or blindness is preventing you from working, you should talk to an experienced Social Security Disability Lawyer as soon as possible.  Most Social Security Lawyers like me provide free legal consultation and don't charge any fees unless we are able to get benefits for you.  As you can see from this posting, Social Security Rules with respect to blindness can be quite complicated and it is never a good idea to go at it alone.

Social Security Disability for Veterans: An Update

Our office takes great pride in helping disabled veteran’s obtain Social Security Disability Benefits.  Many veterans who are applying for veteran’s disability benefits do not seem to be fully aware that they may also be eligible for SSDI.  In fact, some of the findings made by the VA in a veteran’s disability case may be very persuasive in convincing the Social Security Administration that the Veteran is also eligible for Social Security Disability.   

Veterans who are applying for VA disability benefits should also contact a Social Security Disability Attorney who can evaluate their case and determine whether they should also apply for SSDI.  There are approximately 9.5 military veterans receiving Social Security Disability; which means that almost one in every four adults receiving SSD has served in the military. 

Recently the VA has come under fire due to its large backlog in processing and adjudicating disability claims.  In March 2013, the backlog was estimated to be 600,000, with over 900,000 pending to be processed.  In response to this problem, the Veternan’s Adminstration and the Social Security Administration have enacted the following initiatives:

• VA Secretary Eric Shinseki claims to be implementing a new automated system to try to get rid of the old inefficient paper based system that has contributed to the backlog.  The VA Secretary has announced that this initiative is yielding positive results and that between March and December 2013, the backlog decreased by 36.5 percent.  However, it is important to point out that over 50 percent of the VA disability claims are still waiting to be processed.

• Acting Social Security Commissioner Carolyn W. Colvin has announced a joint initiative with the Department of Veterans Affairs to give high priority to veterans with 100-percent VA disability ratings. This will allow Veterans that have very severe conditions to receive a much faster processing of their SSDI claims.  This new program is supposed to start in just a few weeks.

Inability to Stoop or Bend and Social Security Disability

A person's inability to stoop could have great significance in the outcome of a Social Security Disability case.  This limitation should never be overlooked by claimants and their attorneys.  While limitations with respect to other activities such as walking, standing, sitting or lifting are important, I find that in many instances a person's inability to stoop can be crucial in getting Social Security to issue a determination that the claimant is disabled.

 

The Social Security Administration defines stooping as: "Bending the body downward and forward by bending spine at the waist, requiring full use of lower extremities and back muscles."  Claimants with lower back conditions (such as spinal fusions, degenerative disc disease or spinal stenosis) are the most likely to suffer from limitations in this area.

 

Social Security Ruling 96-9p provides that a complete inability to stoop significantly erodes the unskilled occupational base and usually results in a finding that the individual is disabled.  However, it must be emphasized that for there to be a determination that the person cannot perform unskilled sedentary work, the limitation with respect to stooping must be absolute.

 

In addition, Social Security Ruling 83-14 provides that in most medium and heavy jobs a person must be able to stoop from one third to two thirds of the work day.  Therefore, a person who is unable to stoop more than a third of the time, must be found to be unable to perform medium or heavy work.  This limitation could be a significant factor in winning cases for older claimants who have never had a light or sedentary job in the fifteen year period prior becoming disabled.

 

In light of the rules discussed in this blog posting, it is important for claimants to properly document any limitations that they might have with respect to stooping.  If possible, they should ask their doctors to comment how often they can or cannot stoop or bend in an eight hour day.

Disability Claims Involving Borderline Intellectual Functioning

Representing Social Security Disability clients with borderline intellectual functioning is something that I am particularly passionate about.  (Borderline intellectual functioning was formerly called "borderline mental retardation".)  I must confess that these cases can be very challenging and, at times, totally frustrating.  The main reason why these cases are so difficult is that determining a person's intelligence is a complicated matter. Test scores and psychological evaluations are very imprecise indicators of a person's ability to function.

Pursuant to Social Security Listing of Impairments 12.05, a person with "a valid verbal, performance, or full scale IQ of 59 or less" is eligible for Social Security Disability benefits.  (Section 12.05 B of the listing)   For purposes of Social Security Disability, a person with an IQ of 59 or less is considered to have low intellectual functioning.  

The situation is a bit more complicated when a claimant obtains a score between 60 and 70.  For purposes of Social Security Disability, a score between 60 and 70 is considered "borderline intellectual functioning". Listing section 12.05 C states that a person is entitled to benefits if he or she has "A valid verbal, performance, or full scale IQ of 60 through 70 and a physical or other mental impairment imposing an additional and significant work-related limitation of function".  (Emphasis added.)  The important question in cases when a claimant scores between 60 and 70 is determining what constitutes "an additional and significant work-related limitations of function".  There has been much litigation regarding what this particular phrase means.  The Court of appeals of several circuits have defined this term as follows: "an impairment imposes a significant work-related limitation of function when its effect on a claimant's ability to perform basic work activities is more than slight or minimal.  See Fanning v. Bowen, 827 F.2d 631, 632-33 (9th Cir. 1987). (citing Pullen v. Bowen, 820 F.2d 105, 109 [4th Cir.1987]; Cook v. Bowen, 797 F.2d 687, 690 [8th Cir.1986]; Nieves v. Secretary of Human Services, 775 F.2d 12, 14 [1st Cir.1985]; Edwards by Edwards v. Heckler, 755 F.2d 1513, 1515 [11th Cir.1985].)  (See also District Court decision in  Magray v. Shalala, 880 F. Supp. 1278 (E.D. Wis. 1995))  Generally, this means that additional mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety in addition to an IQ between 60 and seventy might be considered an "additional significant work-related limitation" within the meaning of Social Security listing 12.05 C.  Other relatively common physical conditions might also be considered an additional work-related limitation.