By Joshua Dieker
District Representative

Imagine waking up one morning no longer able to work. Maybe you were injured in an accident, or perhaps you have developed a debilitating illness, but whatever it was, you are no longer able to go to work each day. Despite his or her initial patience, your employer eventually has to find someone that can work your shift, and lets you go. You’ve always been able to provide for your family, but you now find yourself unemployed and sinking deeper and deeper into debt. The medical bills eat up your savings, and leave nothing to pay your house payment, your heating bills, or keep the lights on.

Sadly, this scenario is more common than you might think. Because of this, Social Security provides financial assistance to people who have become disabled. Nearly 8.6 million people currently depend on Social Security Disability Insurance. Unfortunately for many who need these benefits, the wait to begin receiving them can be months or even years.

The process for applying for disability benefits frequently involves multiple appeals. Many applications that have merit are initially rejected for a variety of reasons. When the applicant makes his or her third appeal, he or she is entitled to go before an Administrative Law Judge, to ask for his or her case to be reviewed. At this appeal, the applicant may produce evidence of his or her disability, and the judge makes a ruling shortly thereafter. It is this stage of the process that can take up to two years to complete.

Numerous factors have contributed to this wait, though it is largely the result of an understaffed and under-funded Social Security Administration. With so many cases on appeal, and so few judges available to hear them, applicants can expect to wait 18 to 24 months to even have their hearing scheduled. It is during this wait that so many face financial crisis.

Last week, Congresswoman Boyda met with senior officials from the Social Security Administration to discuss the problem and possible solutions. The Social Security Administration is taking steps to resolve the backlog of cases and reduce the wait time for applicants, and we hope to report soon that real progress is being made.

If you are currently awaiting a hearing for your disability benefits appeal and are suffering from dire financial need, our office will gladly work with the Social Security Administration to try to expedite your hearing.  Please give us a call for more information!  You can reach our Topeka office at (785) 234-8111 and our Pittsburg office at (620) 231-3011.