Getting disability benefits should be faster and easier for most people under new procedures recently announced by the Social Security Administration (SSA). Under the new application system, people applying for disability benefits will deal primarily with a single SSA employee assigned to their case.
Applicants and/or their representatives will be shown how they can help get medical evidence to support their claims. A person whose claim is denied can immediately file for a hearing.
An “Adjudication Officer” can approve a claim on appeal prior to a hearing by an administrative law judge, and will assist people through a streamlined appeal process. It is anticipated that the new system should reduce the time it takes to appeal from 2 years to about 7 months.
