Perhaps the most frustrating part of dealing with the Social Security Administration is the length of the process. Historically, the initial and reconsideration determinations took a few months to several months to receive, and if an individual was denied at those levels, the request for hearing before an Administrative Law Judge could languish for years before a hearing was actually held and a decision made. However, the current state of Social Security is a bit different. It seems to be taking extremely long, sometimes close to 1 year depending on the state you live in, for an initial decision to be made. On the other hand, wait times for hearings are much more reasonable now than they were 5 or 10 years ago. Where that wait time was sometimes 2 years or longer in the past, we are now seeing hearings scheduled within a few months from when the hearing is requested, and sometimes within 1 year of when the initial application was first filed. These changes are most often dependent very heavily upon which component of Social Security is best funded, and therefore best staffed, at any given time.
Prior to your claim reaching the hearing level, your attorney can sometimes convince the Social Security Administration to expedite your claim if you meet certain criteria. If your impairment is expected to result in death, your case should be marked as a terminal illness case and given priority. In addition, your case should be expedited if you have been diagnosed with a condition the Social Security Administration has pegged on its “compassionate allowance” list. The list can be found here, Compassionate Allowances Complete List of Conditions (ssa.gov). However, it should be noted that “compassionate allowance” is a bit of a misnomer, since having one of these conditions does entitle you to an expedited process, but it does not automatically entitle you to disability benefits.
More commonly, cases are expedited because the claimant is a veteran who developed a disabling condition while on active duty (but regardless of whether it was a result of combat), on or after October 1, 2001; or because the claimant has established “dire need,” in that they do not have ready access to food, medical care or adequate shelter. If one of these situations applies to you, you should be sure your attorney is aware of it and notifies the Social Security Administration of the situation.
If you do not meet any of the criteria above for expediting your claim, once your case reaches the hearing level, your attorney can ask for an “on-the-record decision.” Judges will generally only consider issuing a decision of this sort, without the need for a hearing, in special circumstances. It is important that you work with an attorney who specializes in Social Security Disability, as they will recognize these cases. It is also important that you are working with an attorney who gives your claim specialized attention and who is willing to invest this sort of time prior to the hearing, where circumstances warrant this type of request.
