Alzheimers and Social Security

Average SSD Payment

The average SSD payment in 2008 was $1,063 a month. Once you have received disability payments for two years, you automatically qualify for Medicare coverage.

Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Nebraska, Illinois, Missouri, the District of Columbia and Alabama face the 10 worst Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) hearing-level processing backlogs.

Hearings are held when an SSDI decision is appealed, many people have already waited 12 or more months following their application, denial and, for many, reconsideration. By the time they reach the hearing, it's not unusual for applicants to have waited two to four years for an SSDI decision.

The 10 states with the lowest wait times are Delaware, Maine, Texas, Louisiana, West Virginia, Utah, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Connecticut and Hawaii.

The SSA reports the national average processing time for a hearing decision is now 442 days, down from 514 days in September 2008. The total hearings backlog has decreased by more than 71,000 cases since December 2008.

Last year, more than 2.8 million people filed SSDI applications, and the SSA projects 3.3 million will file disability claims in 2010. The SSA recently reported that the level of initial claims pending now exceeds 1 million people - nearly a 40 percent increase over the level from FY 2008.

High Rate Claim Denial in Texas

In Texas at the initial claim level (the application), SSD and SSI claimants have been denied at the rate of 61.5%.

For those who were denied and chose to file appeals, Texas claimants were again denied at an even higher rate: 84.2%.

More initial claims are denied than are approved and an astoundingly high percentage of first appeals are likewise denied.

Steps to protect your Social Security Disability, Veteran's or Pension Benefits:

Do NOT commingle Social Security and exempt benefits with nonexempt funds.

Do NOT obtain a loan or credit card from the bank where your Social Security or pension is deposited. If sued, go to court and demand proof of the debt.

If your bank account is frozen, file an exemption claim within 10 days.

IRS and SSD

The IRS can take money each month from a Social Security disability check.

The practice is part of the agency's Federal Payment Levy Program, which allows up to 15 percent of any federal payments a delinquent taxpayer receives to go directly to the IRS until their overdue taxes are paid in full.

The IRS employs an automated levy system that withholds Social Security payments to taxpayers with incomes below the poverty line. If this is happening to you ... call.

Ask for a person -- not a computer -- to provide a review. You may be classified by the agency as unable to pay.

IRS Taxpayer Advocate: 1-877-777-4778

If your reasonable expenses are more than your income you may be eligible to have an IRS levy from your bank account refunded. The IRS will have a telephone interview with you to determine your ability to pay. This includes and discussion of your assets and resources. They will then ask for your monthly expenses. Typically you will have to fax the IRS your last three months of bank statements.

While the IRS has ten days to decide on a refund they actually can and usually do act more quickly. You bank may require 72 hours to restore your funds. In reality the IRS may act more quickly than your bank.

There is a possibility that you will have a partial restoration of funds rather than a full restoration.

A restoration of funds for hardship and a classification of 'unable to pay' does not mean your debt is forgiven. You will continue to owe your debt. However, your funds for living expenses may be partially or fully restored.

Posted by admin • February 17, 2010 • Printer-friendly

The Social Security Administration has included early-onset Alzheimer's disease among the medical conditions that will be given automatic approval for disability benefits, rather than have individuals go through what could be a lengthy qualification process.

Fast-tracking the process to obtain benefits, the Social Security Administration is assisting countless younger individuals with Alzheimer's disease and their families whose quality of life depends on this type of support. The Compassionate Allowance will make an enormous difference in enabling affected individuals to move toward managing their diagnosis and planning for the future.

Early-onset Alzheimer's disease is a rarer form of the brain disorder in which symptoms appear prior to age 65, even occurring in individuals in their 30's and 40's. More commonly, Alzheimer's disease affects individuals 65 and older.

Last September, in a comment letter to the Social Security Administration, AFA had pressed for fast-tracking in light of the significant number of individuals with early-onset Alzheimer's disease as well as the additional issues they often face due to their younger age. For example, AFA had noted, they are less likely to be diagnosed because healthcare providers generally don't look for this brain disorder in younger people; and many who are still employed when symptoms emerge are forced to give up work and other responsibilities due to their declining cognitive function.

In its recent announcement, the Social Security Administration said that it is adding 38 conditions, including early-onset Alzheimer's disease, to its list of Compassionate Allowances--a way of quickly identifying diseases and other medical conditions that clearly qualify for Social Security and Supplemental Security Income disability benefits. It allows the agency to electronically target and make speedy decisions for the most obviously disabled individuals. Electronic identification of the additional conditions begins March 1.

Social Security Commissioner Michael J. Astrue said the expansion means that "tens of thousands of Americans with devastating disabilities will now get approved for benefits in a matter of days rather than months and years."

You may contact the Alzheimer's Foundation of America which is a nonprofit organization based in New York City that focuses on providing optimal care to individuals with Alzheimer's disease and related illnesses, and their families, and unites 1,200 member organizations nationwide that provide hands-on programs. AFA's services include a toll-free hot line with counseling by licensed social workers, a free caregiver magazine, a National Memory Screening Day initiative and the AFA Quilt to Remember. For information, call 866-AFA-8484 or visit www.alzfdn.org.

Lee Ann Torrans
Attorney at Law
6532 LBJ Freeway
Dallas, Texas 75240

http://socialsecuritystrategy.com

ltorrans@gmail.com

214-500-5410 (cell)
214-231-2886 (E-fax)