Disability Determination Services (DDS) are the state agencies that make initial and reconsideration determinations for Social Security disability and SSI claims. That is where the medical records are ordered and the claim is evaluated by a disability adjudicator.
For quite a while, there has been a bottleneck at DDS for claims awaiting medical review, and…
Once the field office processes an initial claim for Social Security disability or SSI, the claim gets sent to DDS for a determination. DDS assigns a disability adjudicator who manages the claim. That person will order medical records, send forms to the claimant for completion, and ultimately will make a determination of whether or not…
When Social Security denies a claim for disability benefits at the initial or reconsideration level, the SSA provides a personalized “Explanation of Determination,” usually on the last page of the denial letter. The rest of the denial letter is a form letter. Often my first contact with a prospective client is after that person has received…
A long-awaited improvement to the Social Security e-file has arrived. The Electronic Folder now provides access to Sections A and B at Initial and Reconsideration levels. This is great news for Social Security disability Representatives, and also for the staff at local Social Security field offices.
Having access to the A section of the folder…
I have a client with a claim for disability benefits that has been pending at the initial level of review for over 365 days. That is just too long.
This client applied online with me in my office, on April 10, 2024. The claim was sent to DDS on June 7th. After 3 months in…
Here in Maine and New Hampshire, where I attend Social Security disability hearings with administrative law judges, the hearing offices have caught up. Hearings are being scheduled promptly, with 75+ days notice, after the hearing request is processed. Many years ago, when I started handling these cases, the hearing offices had a large backlog of…
For many years I have written briefs for judges prior to hearings on disability claims. Since I have started writing short briefs for disability examiners at the initial or reconsideration level, I have won many more cases at the DDS levels of review.
I write short, one or two-page letters to the disability examiners, setting…
I have started writing short, one-page letters to the disability examiners at the initial or reconsideration level, setting forth my theory of the case. The letter briefly describes the claimants limitations, and then makes the vocational analysis based upon the claimant’s work history. For many years I have written detailed briefs for judges at the…
Reconsideration is the next step in the Social Security disability adjudication process for those who are initially denied after applying for disability. As the waterfall chart shows, obtaining disability benefits at Reconsideration is the exception, rather than the rule.
I have written before about winning at Reconsideration. That earlier post discusses additional medical evidence…
There is an organization within Social Security called the Quality Review Board, also known internally as the Disability Quality Branch (DQB). The DQB samples initial and reconsideration determinations from state DDS agencies to ensure that Social Security’s disability rules and regulations are being interpreted and implemented properly by the various state DDS agencies – a…
