Indiana Accident News

New Social Security Disability Initiative Side Steps Backlog In Indiana

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has recently instated Compassionate Allowances program, which fast tracks the applications of those with a certain medical conditions. This will help some in Indiana, though it may mean an even slower process for others.

The news-sentinel.com reported on the story, writing that a Fort Wayne resident today will wait an average of almost two years for a hearing regarding their social security disability case. Actually receiving benefits takes even longer.  Currently, 18,843 Indianans were in line for SSD insurance, including over 5,000 in Fort Wayne alone.

Social Security Commissioner Michael Astruesaid at a December 2007 hearing, "People have died waiting for a hearing. This is America, and it is simply not acceptable for Americans to wait years for a final decision on a claim."

The Compassionate Allowances will shorten the process considerably, from years to weeks in some cases. Most of the allowances are for cancer. The remainder of the allotments are for rare diseases.

Among the 50 conditions on the Compassionate Allowances initial list are: breast cancer that is spreading to other parts of the body; inflammatory breast cancer, acute leukemia, inoperable kidney cancer, gallbladder cancer, two types of spinal muscular atrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Lou Gehrig's Disease, and Farber's disease, a metabolic disorder.

Some, such as the Fort Wayne disability advocacy group Fifth Freedom, is in favor of the program, but notes that many of the diseases listed are very rare and that they have not had people take advantage of the program as of yet.

This is the second fast-track program the SSA has instated. The first program, Quick Disability Determination (QDD) has already helped over one thousand Indianans receive attention early. QDD uses a predictive model to determine cases where the claimant has a high potential of being disabled. In addition the SSA has added new technology such as video hearings and electronic files that should also speed up the process and decrease the backlog.

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