Social Security working on improving hearing backlog
Disability lawyer in Beaver County, PA
The Social Security Administration is reportedly working to speed up the disability appeal process and has shown signficant gains in the amount of time that a disabled person waits for their disability hearing. The Social Security administration is working on having a disability appeal hearing within 270 days of the filing of the disability appeal.
Currently the process is taking just over a year, though this time frame has improved recently despite an increase in the number of claims filed in the past three years. The target time of 270 days is estimated as a reasonable amount of time to allow a person whose claim has been denied to hire a lawyer, build a medical file and properly prepare for the hearing.
Several processes within the Social Security Administration have contributed to the decrease in time a person waits for their disability hearing. Improved computer services within the SSA and available to the disabled and their attorneys is helping to speed up the system, as is the increase in the number of judges and staff available to hear the cases. Interim reviews of pending cases also has helped to improve the processing of disability claims and to reduce the backlog of cases waiting for a disability hearing.
This all means that if you are initially denied disability benefits, you will wait nearly a year for your hearing. You can use this time to hire a disability appeal attorney and to obtain and organize your medical records for the hearing.
From offices in Bridgewater, Beaver County, the law offices of Palmieri & Matvey, P.C. serves the personal injury, Social Security Disabilty appeal, and estate administration needs of Western and Southwestern Pennsylvania including the communities of Aliquippa, Center Twp, Beaver, Ambridge, Baden, Beaver Falls, Bridgewater, Chippewa Twp, Conway, Coraopolis, Cranberry Twp, Economy, Ellwood City, Freedom, Harmony, Hopewell, Leetsdale, Midland, Monaca, Moon Twp, New Brighton, New Castle, Patterson Twp, Pittsburgh, Rochester, Shippingport and Vanport; as well as Beaver County, Allegheny County, Washington County, Butler County and Lawrence County and other areas of Western PA. Hearings frequently held in Social Security’s Seven Fields Office.