by Kate
Giammarise, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS | January 16, 2020
PITTSBURGH
— A proposed change to federal disability assistance would result in millions
more case reviews, likely cutting off many recipients with disabilities if the
changes are enacted.
The
federal government is accepting public comments on the proposal until the
end of January.
Under
the proposal, millions more reviews would be conducted and hundreds of
thousands of people would have reviews more frequently.
“We think the real intent of this is just to
be a backdoor cut to the program,” said Jen Burdick, a supervising attorney
with Community Legal Services of Philadelphia, who assists people applying for
disability benefits.
Anyone
applying for Social Security Disability Insurance, Supplemental Security Income
or both already faces a lengthy and complex application process that can take
years to complete. Once approved, recipients are already subject to what’s
called continuing disability review.
The
proposal would create an additional review category where cases would be
reviewed every two years.
Social
Security officials declined to comment; the agency does not comment on any
proposed rule making or legislation.
Critics
say the agency has failed to provide any evidence or data about why it selected
who would be subject to the new category, and the additional reviews will be a
hardship to individuals with disabilities. They also fear it will lead to
people losing benefits — not because their conditions have improved and they
can now work, but because of the administrative and paperwork hurdles it will
create.
“While
a requirement to complete paperwork and submit documentation at the risk of
losing monetary benefits and health care would be challenging for anyone, it is
likely more difficult, stressful and time-consuming for disability beneficiaries,
who as a group are older, poorer and sicker than the general population,” wrote
Barbara Silverstone, executive director of the National Organization of Social
Security Claimants’ Representatives, which represents attorneys that represent
claimants applying for disability benefits.
Those
receiving such assistance often have barriers such as “unstable housing
situations, intellectual disabilities, limited educations, inability to leave
their homes, difficulty reading or writing, or other barriers to receiving,
completing and mailing back … documents.”
Among
those who could face more frequent reviews are people like Sonya Schlegel of
Westmoreland City. Schlegel was subject to a continuing disability review,
which she won last year with the assistance of an attorney from Laurel Legal
Services, but said it was a frustrating, demeaning and nerve-racking process.
“They
don’t make it easy for you at all,” she said. She gets $783 per month in SSI,
which is her only income. Schlegel, who has a brain injury and other
conditions, said she doesn’t object to the idea of cases being reviewed, but
said the ordeal dragged on for nearly two years, and it would have been more
efficient if the agency could have just dealt with her doctor instead.
“They
really put your mind in a fog. All you do is think about, ‘Are you going to
have an income next month?'”
The
proposal of the changes, described in the Federal Register, estimates it would
amount to a $2.6 billion cut in benefits over 10 years, though it would add
$1.8 billion in administrative costs.
Those
receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) can get a maximum of $783 monthly;
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits range from $800 to $1,800
and the average monthly benefit is $1,258.
U.S.
Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., who sits on the House Ways and Means Committee that has
oversight over Social Security, said he is supportive of the proposal.
“The
solvency and integrity of the Social Security program is of the utmost
importance for current and future recipients,” he said in a statement.
“Hardworking American taxpayers and businesses who fund the program deserve
effective oversight of the money they contribute. The proposal to allow for
more regular review of disability claims is the right one, because it will help
the Social Security Administration protect against waste, fraud and abuse while
ensuring that those in need receive the proper benefits.”
Some
legislators have criticized the proposal for potentially making sweeping
changes to what is already a complex process where fewer than four in 10
applicants qualify for benefits.
“I have
serious concerns about this proposed rule, which appears to be yet another
attempt by the Trump administration to make it more difficult for people with
disabilities to receive critical benefits,” U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, a Pennsylvania
Democrat, said in a statement.
In
December, Casey, along with other legislators, signed a letter to the Social
Security Administration asking for a 45-day extension of the public comment
period; that request was denied.
Such
reviews have “a long and troubled history,” the letter noted, referring to an
effort in the early 1980s when President Ronald Reagan’s administration made
aggressive use of them, leading Congress to intervene.
© 2020
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
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