This month I would like to bring two important things to your attention: Overpayments As you have seen by now, Commissioner O’Malley has heard NOSSCR’s concerns and has taken action. As announced during his Congressional testimony, effective March 25, 2024, instead of withholding 100% of a Social Security Disability benefit to recover an overpayment, the…

Here at NOSSCR we are hard at work serving as your advocates with the Commissioner, the agency generally, and on Capitol Hill. This past week, NOSSCR was proud to represent you during hearings before Senate and House subcommittees where we heard directly from Commissioner O’Malley about the state of the agency, its need for vital…

NOSSCR’s advocacy is making an impact. In October, during CEO David Camp’s Congressional testimony, we raised the ongoing issue of a representative’s inability to know whether SSA had attached the 1696 to a claimant’s file. SSA heard us and introduced the IC/RC Status Report. We recently wrote the attached letter about the time savings produced simply…

We’re incredibly excited that our Conference is just over a month away—we’re looking forward to seeing all of you and hearing and learning from our esteemed slate of speakers.  Our General Session on Thursday morning is jam-packed with speakers who you won’t want to miss! Here’s a sampling of the speakers who will be joining…

When developing your theory of the case (you should always have a theory of why your claimant is disabled), one of the first things to look at is whether your claimant can grid out. The only six good grid rules are: >=45 yo, sedentary, illiterate, unskilled >=50 yo, sedentary, no transferable skills >=50 yo, light,…

Almost anyone requesting medical records regularly has heard of Ciox Health, MRO, Smart Corp., MedSouth, or any of a dozen other copy services for health care providers. Often, the copy service charges (or, at least, tries to charge) outrageous fees for the records. Often, too, the excessive charges violate state or federal law and the…

On March 8, 2024, NOSSCR sent the attached letter to Commissioner O’Malley, asking him to take immediate action on the improper overpayments that have been issued to Holocaust Survivors. We are incredibly grateful for the tireless work of two outstanding NOSSCR members, Avram Sacks and Michelle Spadafore, both of whom routinely represent these vulnerable beneficiaries,…

Social Security is soliciting comments on their proposed changes to the Overpayment Waiver forms, their collection of information for those who participate in post-award vocational rehabilitation programs, and their ability to identify callers to SSA’s 800# via digital SSN input. NOSSCR will carefully review these proposals and will submit formal comments at a later date.…

On March 11, 2024, the Biden-Harris Administration released the President’s Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 for the Social Security Administration. As the agency notes, “key investments focus on improving the customer experience, reducing wait times at all stages of the disability process and on our National 800 Number, modernizing our information technology, improving overpayment and…

Save your spot now for two annual conference events you won’t want to miss! May 8: Scully Networking and Awards Dinner May 10: President’s Reception How to register:

As we highlighted in our January 2024 issue, recent data has revealed troubling news for SSI child applicants with Sickle Cell disease. In response to that news (and the Congressional inquiry that followed), Commissioner O’Malley penned the following letter:

On December 6, 2023, Congressman Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) introduced H.R. 6640, the Marriage Equality for Disabled Adults Act. The bill has 4 cosponsors, all Democrats. H.R. 6640 was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, where it is awaiting further action. Currently, when a Disabled…

Ninth Circuit Remands Case Where the ALJ Failed to Expressly Describe “Medium” Work as Limited to “About Six Hours” of Standing and Walking. On March 26, 2024, the Ninth Circuit decided Conway v. O’Malley, No. 22-35427, 2024 WL 1263477 (9th Cir. Mar. 26, 2024). In Conway, the Court reversed and remanded the ALJ’s denial of benefits. The ALJ’s…

Are you admitted to a Federal District or Circuit Court? Are you willing to service as a pro hac vice application sponsor or local counsel for a fellow NOSSCR member? We routinely get questions from NOSSCR members seeking to file a federal court case in jurisdictions other than their own. If you are willing to…

In addition to May’s Conference, NOSSCR has an exciting schedule of upcoming events. So when you’re submitting your availability to ERAP, don’t forget to reserve time for these upcoming opportunities: April May June July August September October November December

SSA issued an Emergency Message clarifying their policy on Protective Filing Dates. The policy change indicates that “effective 03/12/2024, technicians will no longer create separate protective filing records (i.e., multiple protective filing records) for the same SSN if a protective filing record already exists for the same claimant and same benefit program (e.g., T2, T8,…

The National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) is coming to Nashville and NOSSCR’s Annual Conference this May. We are grateful for our continued partnership with NOSSCR and the opportunity to visit with conference attendees again this year. For those attending the conference, please stop by our booth and learn about our organization and becoming board-certified…

SSA’s Office of Retirement and Disability Policy has released the following: A Comparison of Annual Earnings Data in the Current Population Survey and in the Social Security Administration’s Detailed Earnings Record SSA has also released equity data on SSI applicants, showing 2021-2023 SSI receipts by age and underserved ZIP codes.

Contributions to the National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives PAC (NOSSCR PAC) are not tax-deductible as a charitable contribution for federal income tax purposes. Contributions to NOSSCR PAC will be used to support federal and state candidates, political parties, and other political committees.  Contributions are strictly voluntary.  You may refuse to contribute without reprisal. …

Please visit the links below to find the latest updates on SSA’s Caseload and ALJ data, contact information, policy changes, and proactive disclosures.