Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits are going up in 2012. After three years of no cost of living (COLA) benefit increases, benefits are finally getting nudged upwards from a maximum of $674 per month for individuals (and $1011 per month for couples) to $698 for individuals and $1048 for couples.

 photo credit: charlieambler

Social Security recipients will get a raise in January — their first increase in benefits since 2009.

…

Based on consumer prices in July and August, the COLA for 2012 would be about 3.5 percent. Vlasenko [an economist at the American Institute for Economic Research] estimates the COLA will be from 3.5 percent to 3.7 percent.

Via Washington Post.

UPDATE: The number is out, and it’s 3.6%.

UPDATE: SSI benefits are going up in 2012 from a maximum of $674 per month for individuals (and $1011 per month for couples) to a maximum of  $698 for individuals / $1048 for couples, per month.

Social Security judges and employees in Florida, Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and Arizona were among those instructed to set aside disability cases this week, with the slowdown allowing managers to boost their performance numbers for the coming fiscal year, which starts Monday.

Top officials, in a bid to meet goals to win promotions or thousands of dollars in bonuses, directed many employees to refrain from issuing decisions on cases until next week, according to judges and union officials.

How did Social Security judges respond?

Fortunately, the article goes on to say that Social Security’s chief judge Debra Brice issued a memo instructing judges to close cases normally — that is, without an artificial delay.

While the implication that SSA is slowing to boost number will raise the temperature under many collars, consider this analysis from Dallas Texas disability attorney Stanley Denman:

Consider that at any one time an Administrative Law Judge has 100+ cases – all at different “stages” of development. There are some cases in which she has to review the file before setting it for hearing, others she has new medical evidence that has been submitted that she has to review, other cases she has not yet decided the case, and others she has decided and has not written the decision yet. So if she is instructed to not “close” cases for one week, do you think she is just sitting around that week? Of course not! She will turn her attention to any number of tasks that will lead to decisions getting out the door. Isn’t it just common sense that she would simply make a nice neat pile of the cases that ready to be “closed” until the next week? So that the next week “two weeks worth” of cases get out the door. “Closing” cases is just part of the job: the fact that for one week cases are not to be closed is hardly a noteworthy event.

I do not agree that this is not noteworthy. I agree with Denman that judges are not going to sit on their hands for a week. Case numbers are increasing, staff and hours are being cut. If judges are told to reduce focus on one task, there are other tasks they will direct their attention to in order to keep cases moving through the Social Security system.

This is not equivalent to “stopping the trains from running.” However, even adding one week to a disabled individual’s wait can considerably add to their hardship. It make one wonder if Social Security has forgotten who it is there to help and who it is working for.

The rates cover September 25, 2010 through July 29, 2011 and provide:

• Total number of decision.
• Full approvals.
• Partially favorable approvals.
• Denials.

The chart also lets you sort by each column. So, if you want to see how your judge stacks up to the other judges in the same hearing office, click the second column to sort by ODAR office.

New congressional estimates say the trust fund that supports Social Security disability will run out of money by 2017, leaving the program unable to pay full benefits, unless Congress acts.

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The trustees who oversee Social Security are urging Congress to shore up the disability system by reallocating money from the retirement program, just as lawmakers did in 1994. If Congress does not act, the disability program will collect only enough payroll taxes to pay about 85 percent of benefits after the trust fund is exhausted in 2017.

So, Social Security may not have enough coming in to pay out full disability benefits as soon as 2017. Whether this will prompt the described reallocation or if this means cuts to the nation’s 13.6 million on disability remains up in the air.

Via The Raw Story

As of August 15, 2011, the Colorado Springs Social Security office will be open to the public from 9am to 3:30pm.

Social Security is encourage use of the Social Security website for most tasks. However, if you need to speak to a Social Security employee in person, get there early folks!

Source: Colorado Springs Gazette

This Friday, June 3, 2011, the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation and Independence Center, in partnership with the Access 2 Sign Language and Sign Language Network present the Deaf / Hard of Hearing / Deaf Blind Resource Expo.

The expo will be held at the Independence Center at 729 Tejon Street in Colorado Springs between 9 am and 1 pm. For more information, contact Angela at 719-471-8181 V/TTY or 719-358-2513 VP.

After a two years freeze in Social Security benefits, a thaw may finally be coming. The Baltimore Sun reports:

The Social Security trustees’ annual report released this month estimates that the cost-of-living adjustment in next year’s checks will be 0.7 percent. The increase, which will be announced in October, could be higher, depending on where prices head in the coming months.

So, we won’t know for sure until October and the increase may be as small as 0.7 percent, and not put into effect until 2012.  Hurray(?)

UPDATE 10/18/11: The 0.7 increase was the only news of an increase in 2012 for a long time. AP reports a real cost of living increase is coming to Social Security in 2012.

What will happen to Social Security if/when the government shuts down on midnight April 8, 2011?

Fortunately, for those already on Social Security, the checks (including direct deposit) will keep coming.

However, those needing to take care of business with Social Security, or need to get problems resolved, may have more problems. Social Security has a shutdown contingency plan (pdf link – 1.85 mb) indicating the following continuing services, cutbacks and reductions:

We will keep on duty those employees providing front-line services to our beneficiaries and claimants. … We will limit the services we provide during the lapse to those needed to ensure that we pay benefits accurately and timely over the long term.

For example, we will continue taking and adjudicating applications and processing appeals.

However, we will not provide other services that the public has come to expect, such as issuing new and replacement Social Security cards and updating earnings records.

In addition, we will reduce the hours we are open to the public to ensure we complete services without the need for overtime.

…

We will authorize State disability determination services (DDS) to continue limited services during a lapse. The DDSs make medical determinations on our disability claims. We fully fund the DDSs, but the DDS employees are State employees. The DOSs are an integral part of our claims processing; without their contributions, we would be unable to adjudicate our disability claims. Therefore, during a lapse in appropriations, we will authorize the DDSs to continue claims processing activities.

This letter also described which activities will continue and which will be discontinued in the event of a shutdown:

Continued Field Office operations:

• Applications for benefits (including appointments).
• Requests for appeals (reconsiderations, hearings, and Appeals Council)
• Benefit verifications
• Normal post-entitlement actions (change of address, Supplemental Security Income living arrangement changes, non-citizen verification/changes, direct deposit, death reviews inputs, etc).
• Non-receipts and critical payments
• Payee changes
• Critical information technology (IT) support for daily processing activities

Discontinued Field Office Activities:

• Original and replacement Social Security cards.
• Benefit verifications
• Earnings record corrections and updates
• Payee accountings
• Completing program integrity workloads (redeterminations, continuing disability reviews (CDR), overpayments)
• Prisoner activities
• Requests from third parties for queries
• Request for Numi-lites (i.e., Social Security number verifications)
• Freedom of Information Act (FOJA) requests
• Replacement Medicare Cards

photo credit: HaPe_Gera

Social Security announced today that there will be no increase in Social Security Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability benefits for 2011. The Federal Benefit Rate (FBR) – the maximum monthly rate for SSI benefits – will stay at $674 for individuals per month, and $1,011 per month for couples.

Historically, SSI benefits have increased annually. The last increase was in 2009 increasing maximum SSI benefits from $639 to $674. This makes 2011 the third year in a row that SSI benefits are staying at the same rate. More information about changes to Social Security in 2011 including substantial gainful activity (SGA) and trial work period (TWP) amounts can be found here.

The new rules allow disability examiners to make fully favorable determinations for adult cases under the agency’s Quick Disability Determination (QDD) and Compassionate Allowance (CAL) processes without medical or psychological consultant approval. It also will help the agency process cases more efficiently as it will give medical and psychological consultants more time to work on complex cases where their expertise is most needed.

“The new rules we are publishing today will help us get disability benefits to the most severely disabled Americans even faster,” Commissioner Astrue said. “This year, more than 100,000 people benefited from our fast-track disability processes and received decisions in a matter of days rather than the months and years it can sometimes take.” … Under Social Security’s QDD process, a predictive computer model analyzes specific data within the electronic disability file to identify cases where there is a high likelihood that the claimant is disabled and we can quickly obtain medical evidence. The CAL process currently identifies 88 specific diseases and conditions that clearly qualify for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income disability benefits and can be fast-tracked.

This lets Social Security technicians at Disability Determation Services (the part of Social Security that works up cases after an application is filed and makes the initial decision) decide cases without waiting for approval from a medical consultant.

What does this mean for most applicants? It may speed up the approval process for part (not all) of the 32% of disability cases approved following the initial application. That is good news for those individuals.

For everyone else, it may mean medical consultants will have a lighter load allowing shorter wait times for cases to be evaluated. Note: these consultants are the not same as consultative examiners. The consultants Social Security is referring to are the doctors who work with Social Security Disability Determination Services to do a paper review of medical records to assess disabilities. These consultants do not see applicants for examinations.

The new rules will become effective November 12, 2010.

During the Q&A section, I had to ask whether this meant that the Appeals Council would begin approving more cases outright or if this would result in, effectively, “post hoc” fixing of Administrative Law Judges’ decisions.

The response was that this would not likely increase the number of approvals at the Appeals Council level and, again, this was designed to fix technical errors.

This is disconcerting as some of these “technical errors” might well result in sending cases back for another hearing. If the Appeals Council gets to correct errors that would otherwise lead to a second hearing, but now lead to affirming a denial, that just leaves claimant’s out in the cold.

CC photo credit: Untitled blue

Ever wonder what the Social Security disability approval rate is? Vicki Johnson, Director of the Colorado Disability Determination Services office presented at the September 2010 Social Security CLE (continuing legal education) program and discussed the percent approved in Social Security disability cases.

Note: Disability Determination Services (DDS) is the part of Social Security that evaluates Social Security case for medical disabilities and makes the initial decision.

Ms. Johnson reports that DDS approves 38% of Social Security disability cases.

Penrose St Francis Hospital, one of the two major hospitals in Colorado Springs, sent me the following canned response to a (faxed) request for records for one of my clients.

Please note that the fax number you are sending your request to is for physician use only.

…

Medical records requests from law firms need to be mailed to our facility in order to be processed.

Penrose St Francis is refusing lawyers from faxing requests for medical records. Penrose St Francis has a fax number for requests. They even use an third party medical copying service for processing record requests (so, it is not like nurses have to take time out from helping patients to copy files). They just do not want lawyers using the fax line. If you are doctors’ office, fax away. However, lawyers representing disabled patients are prohibited.

How does this affect you as a patient and Social Security claimant? Longer wait times for records! It is already common to wait 30 days or longer for medical copiers to provide records (especially if the copier is out of state). Now, Penrose St Francis is adding delays in getting records to patients and their attorneys, thereby creating another delay in the Social Security system!

Thirty-eight additional medical conditions have been added to Social Security’s list of conditions which qualify for fast-track Compassionate Allowances in Social Security disabilty claims.

The addition of these new conditions expands the scope of Compassionate Allowances to a broader subgroup of conditions like early-onset Alzheimer’s disease … The expansion we are announcing today means tens of thousands of Americans with devastating disabilities will now get approved for benefits in a matter of days rather than months and years.

Here are the 38 new Compassionate Allowance conditions:

• Alstrom Syndrome
• Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia
• Ataxia Spinocerebellar
• Ataxia Telangiectasia
• Batten Disease
• Bilateral Retinoblastoma
• Cri du Chat Syndrome
• Degos Disease
• Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease
• Edwards Syndrome
• Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva
• Fukuyama Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
• Glutaric Acidemia Type II
• Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), Familial Type
• Hurler Syndrome, Type IH
• Hunter Syndrome, Type II
• Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
• Junctional Epidermolysis Bullosa, Lethal Type
• Late Infantile Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses
• Leigh’s Disease
• Maple Syrup Urine Disease
• Merosin Deficient Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
• Mixed Dementia
• Mucosal Malignant Melanoma
• Neonatal Adrenoleukodystrophy
• Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinoses, Infantile Type
• Niemann-Pick Type C
• Patau Syndrome
• Primary Progressive Aphasia
• Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy
• Sanfilippo Syndrome
• Subacute Sclerosis Panencephalitis
• Tay Sachs Disease
• Thanatophoric Dysplasia, Type 1
• Ullrich Congenital Muscular Dystrophy
• Walker Warburg Syndrome
• Wolman Disease
• Zellweger Syndrome

Social Security will begin electronically identifying cases with these conditions starting March 1, 2010.

Click for more information about Compassionate Allowances from Social Security, click here.

Sadly, Social Security is not increasing SSI benefits for 2010. SSI benefits are staying at $674 for individuals and $1,011 for couples.

This is the first year in a decade that SSI benefits have stayed the same for two years in a row!

We increased the Substantial Gainful Activity SGA amount for individuals with disabilities, other than blindness, from $980 to $1000 for 2010.

The SGA amount for individuals who are blind is $1,640 for 2010. The amount is unchanged from 2009.

We increased the monthly earnings amount that we use to determine if a month counts for the Trial Work Period TWP from$700 to $720 for 2010.

For 2010, the Supplemental Security Income SSI Federal Benefit Rates FBR is $674 for an eligible individual and $1,011 for an eligible couple. The amounts are unchanged from 2009.

For 2010, the income amounts that will have no effect on eligibility or benefits for SSI beneficiaries who are students is unchanged from 2009.

For 2010, the monthly amount is $1,640 and the yearly maximum is $6,600.

For 2010, the monthly Medicare Part A Hospital Insurance Base Premium is $461, and the 45 percent Reduced Premiums is $254. The Part B Supplementary Medical Insurance monthly Base Premium is $110.50.

via Social Security – The Red Book – What’s New In 2010?.

We love our clients and want to make working with our office the best experience possible!  So, we are sending out this  letter to all of our clients asking what we can do better:

As the New Year arrives, I am grateful for the opportunity to continue to serve you.  For 2010, I am resolving to serve you better.  That is why I am asking you the following question:

If you could make one change in my office, what would it be?

Nothing is off the table. If you think we need to communicate differently, bill differently, stay open longer, use different technology, or even answer the phone faster, let me know.  I am committed to making working with my office a better experience for you.

Send me a letter, email tomasz AT stasiukfirm.com, or leave a message at (719) 359-9311.

I will collect the answers, and post them in our office for everyone to see.  On January 31, I will choose (at least) one to implement in 2010.

Of course, I may ask you for some help in getting everything “just right.”

Thank you again for choosing the Stasiuk Firm and for helping us to become the law firm you deserve!

We also love our readers on this site! If you have a suggestion, stories about good or bad experiences with lawyers, or anything else, make a comment, send me at email at tomasz AT stasiukfirm.com or call the message number (719-359-9311). We would love to hear from you!

This is your chance to say what you really want when working with a lawyer!

Thanks to Matt Homann for the idea!

Mark E. Smith’s great blog Wheelchairjunkie.com, has a great article about powerchairs — a topic which combines two issues I am passionate about: disabilities and technology.

I have seen some amazing powerchairs, from a super speedy model with an Herman Miller Aeron chair, running circles around people at Sam’s club, to a Dean Kamen Segway filled with a small bench (!) at Whole Foods letting the rider sit much higher that in a traditional chair, aiding in shopping and interacting with people at a common height. It is exciting seeing the developments in this area. These advances create an expectation of more than just simple mobility but also freedom.

So, do powerchairs chairs really cost as much as a car.

Not long ago, I saw a television news story about an amazing young woman who happened to use a power wheelchair. … However, just as I was enjoying the story, watching the young woman walk her dog through the grass at a park, the reporter uttered the very words that make me want to rip my flat-screen cable television from the wall every time I hear such statements: “Her power wheelchair cost $30,000, as much as a car,” the reporter said.Like a football fan whose quarterback just dropped the ball, I wanted to jump into the television and choke the reporter. “Power wheelchairs dont cost as much as cars – thats a $5,000 wheelchair configuration, not a $30,000 one!” I screamed, rolling close to the TV, trying to get in the reporters face.

via Cars VS. Chairs – WheelchairJunkie.com.  Also check out Mark’s other blog, PowerchairDairies.

Well, it looks like there may be an extra stimulus payment to seniors to help offset the increase.

President Barack Obama called on Congress Wednesday to approve $250 payments to more than 50 million seniors to make up for no increase in Social Security next year.

Check out this article for more information: Obama calls for $250 payments to seniors – Yahoo! News. Unlinked – page no longer available. Sorry folks.