CNBC: More than 1 million are waiting for Social Security to process initial disability claims
Writing for CNBC, Lorie Konish examines the impact of an historic backlog at SSSA and provides a breakdown of a recent hearing by the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. The hearing featured NOSSCR Interim CEO David Camp, who discussed ways to improve the Social Security disability claims process.
If you’ve applied for Social Security disability benefits and are still waiting for an answer, you’re not alone.
“For the first time in history, more than 1 million people are waiting on the Social Security Administration to process their initial disability claim,” Rep. Drew Ferguson, R-Ga., chair of the House Ways and Means Social Security subcommittee, said at a hearing last week.
“The real-world consequences for these individuals who are unable to work and wait for their disability decision is devastating,” Ferguson said.
‘He died from the conditions that he applied with’
It currently takes 220 days for claims to be decided, on average, which is more than 100 days longer than it did in 2019, Ferguson said. That is also more than 150 days longer than the Social Security Administration’s standard for minimum level of performance, he said.
Experts who testified at the hearing said they have seen the effect of the growing wait times firsthand.
One Social Security disability applicant finally had a hearing scheduled for this month but did not live until the scheduled date, according to David Camp, interim CEO at the National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives.
Share Post
Recent news
Reopening of Social Security offices expected to bring crowds and confusion
Angela Sutton was shot by a relative at age 14 in Germantown. Now 42 and living in Northeast Philadelphia with her two children, ages 21 and 15, Sutton has been unable to work because of...
What to expect when U.S. Social Security field offices reopen in April
If you need help filing for Social Security, Medicare or disability benefits, I have good news and bad news. The good news: The sprawling network of more than 1,200 Social Security field offices around the...
‘I can’t get no support from these guys’: closed Social Security offices pose a hardship for many
On a recent weekday morning, Will Smith had walked to the small Social Security Administration field office on Fifth Avenue in downtown McKeesport to get his Social Security card. He was met with a locked...
