With Looming Budget Cuts, Getting Approved for Disability Social Security Can Become Tougher

For people living with disabilities, it’s been a case of “do you want the good news or bad news first.” Let’s begin with the good: based on several reports the lifetime of the Social Security Trust Fund has been deemed slightly healthier. This means the fund will have enough money to support the agency’s initiatives until 2028—a full five years longer than initial forecasts.

Now the bad news: the larger-than-expected fund is caused by a massive backlog in social security applications and payouts. It’s been revealed that people who have been rejected previously for disability social security benefits have to wait a record 596 days or 19.5 months before hearing anything back. This is up from 545 days in September of last year, and markedly longer than the 353 processing days in took in 2012 -- an increase of over 54%. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2wOj5eD

Disability Social Security Funds Outlook Seen as Bleak in the Coming Years

Recently, the Social Security’s board of trustees released a yearly report on the long-term financial health of its trust fund, saying that the numbers will likely drop in 17 years. These funds come from the Social Security taxes that both employers and workers pay, which are also invested and used to provide retirement, survivor and disability benefits to around 61 million Americans.

Unfortunately, disability social security is one of the programs that will be greatly affected if the gloomy prediction about the trust fund comes true. According to the report, the asset reserves of the Old-Age Survivors Insurance and Disability Insurance Trust Funds reached $2.85 trillion last year. That’s $35 billion higher than in 2016 and the figures are expected to continue increasing in the next few years. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2vaNyEo

Labor Force Participation Is Key Assumption Behind Proposed Disability Social Security Budget Cuts

Before he became commander-in-chief, President Donald Trump swore to his supporters that there would be no cuts to Social Security under his administration. That was then. Today, social security is facing significant budget cuts. In fact, it might not even survive during the ten years that it would gradually lose funding.

Drastic Budget Cut on Social Security Proposed Over The Next 10 Years

According to budget director Mick Mulvaney, the Trump administration is proposing a massive $72 billion spending cut on both disability social security benefits and Supplemental Security income. If approved, the said cuts would be done gradually over a span of 10 years. Previously, the Social Security Administration has already undergone a 10 percent budget cut back in 2010. Read more from this blog. http://bit.ly/2uYtPFP

New Bill Offers Disability Social Security Beneficiaries a Pathway Back to the Workforce

Americans who are on disability social security may soon find themselves back to work the moment they are able to. A new proposed bill in Congress aims to give recovering beneficiaries a pathway back to the workforce. This would give them the chance to start their life over after going through a series of medical treatments and recovery.

Earlier this year, Rep. French Hill, R-Ark. had introduced the Social Security Disability Insurance Return to Work Act of 2017 in the House of Representatives. On the other hand, Senators Tom Cotton, R-Ark.; Mike Lee, R-Utah; and Marco Rubio, R-Fla. introduced a companion bill in the Senate.

Hospitals and healthcare facilities need to be aware of these proposed changes so they can properly assess their patients’ eligibility for the program.

Read more on this article: http://bit.ly/2pCdFlf

Five Month Waiting Period for Disability Social Security May Soon Be Scrapped for ALS Patients

Currently, disability social security policies require a five month waiting period for the approval and release of disability benefits to victims of ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis or Lou Gehrig’s Disease). The length of the waiting period can be attributed to the sheer volume of applicants and the actual process required by the application.

Depending on where you sit in the queue, you sometimes can’t even be guaranteed that you will be approved within this waiting period. Any back payments can therefore be made past five months.

Immediacy of Need

For many citizens suffering such a disability, this amount of time may prove to be too long and perhaps, too late, especially when they are seeking treatment. For example, patients of ALS suffer from progressive symptoms, such as difficulty in walking, constantly tripping or falling and general weakening of the muscles. Eventually, they may even lose the capability of holding their head up, which affects breathing, speaking, swallowing and chewing. Read more from this blog. http://bit.ly/2mMCaKV

Potential Changes to Disability Social Security Under the Trump Administration

The recent executive order from President Donald Trump freezing federal hiring and the proposed Republican reforms to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would change eligibility for and utilization of disability social security. The changes are expected to be drastic.

Status of Disability Claims

Claims for Social Security disability insurance are rising. Applications jumped from 1.9 million a decade ago to 2.7 million. The rate of approval of the Social Security Administration, however, is low, at only 36% of all claims filed from 2004 to 2013. Around 25% received benefits for initial claim, 2% were approved through appeals, while 11% are still being considered at hearings. Social Security benefits give income support to people who paid contributions, but, because of disability, could no longer work for a year or more.

Approval for disability Social security is low, while processing takes a long time. At of the end of 2016, 1,650 judges studied and decided on disability claims. Around 1.1 million applicants with disability await their decision for eligibility. Furthermore, waiting for a hearing can extend the application process for a year or more. The entire processing puts the bulk of responsibility on the applicant who is expected to ensure that the right materials go to the right people at particular schedules. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2mB8ZaP

Neurological Criteria Updates for Disability Social Security You Should Know About

Neurological disorders are perhaps some of the most frightening illnesses because of their varying symptoms and ongoing debates about how to treat them correctly. Fortunately, social security disability is available for people suffering from disorders like chronic migraines, epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease. Yet, there is still confusion about eligibility for such benefits because Social Security has recently updated their listings for the first time in 30 years.

Updated Criteria

A lot of changes have been made to the criteria of neurological disorders. Disorganization of motor function, for example, can now be fulfilled by the inability to stand up from a seated position and the inability to use the upper extremities or maintain balance when walking.  Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2jkPuFZ

Developments in Disability Social Security Applications for Veterans

As hospitals know only too well, patients with disabilities are some of the toughest cases to handle. Aside from requiring specialized treatments, they also require more frequent visits to monitor progress. Oftentimes, it is veterans who suffer from the most serious disabilities as a result of protecting the country.


Not surprisingly, disability is one of the most expensive medical cases to treat—and has a high probability of becoming potential bad debt. After all, with all the medications and doctor visits required, a disabled veteran will find treatment a great financial burden.

Luckily, such patients can get social security disability benefits to help subsidize the cost of medical care. And recently, The Sequoia Project and the Department of Veterans affairs announced a health IT initiative to make it easier for them to qualify for such benefits. Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2imsLUP

Helping Patients with Social Security Disability

Applying for social security disability can be a lengthy process, often involving a lot of paperwork and medical terms your patients may not be familiar with. Give them the chance to use these disability rewards by lending a hand in the following ways.

Helping Applicants with Disability Social Security

There may be many patients you treat in your hospital that could qualify for disability social security. Better serve them by taking them through the process, making their lives much less stressful.

Providing Medical Evidence

For patients to get these benefits, they need to show that they are indeed disabled. You need to tell patients how they can do this, which includes making a list of the hospitals and doctors that they have consulted with. If it is your hospital, make sure to communicate with the doctor they have been seeing, and ensure that he can provide the pertinent medical records.

Patients Qualified for Social Security Disability

If you manage a hospital, you may want to focus more efforts on helping patients receive Social Security Disability (SSD). This gives them a peace of mind if they have a condition that leaves them disabled and are unable to continue working. Here are some factors that dictate whether your patients can receive SSD.

Outsourcing Help for Revenue Cycle Management Operations

Outsourcing has become one of the biggest ways that a company goes on with its operation. It is no different from hospitals and healthcare providers. They employ outsourced services for some of their tasks such as some of the administrative work that they process. Outsourcing a part or a whole operation solely depends on the company, but outsourced services are flexible in providing, no matter what the services are required of them.

How Your RCM can Help Ease Life for the Disabled

Living with disability is living a life full of obstacles. A disability, in the broadest sense, is a condition that impairs the ability of an individual. People living with disabilities are susceptible to experiencing more hardships, in the form of physical, mental, or social barriers, sometimes all at once.

Speed Up Your Social Security Disability Claim

It is not uncommon for people to be held on a standstill while waiting for the Social Security Administration (SSA) to process their claims. The waiting time for a hearing with an Administrative Law Judge can take a year or even longer. Even worse, some people patiently wait the entire time only to find out that their claim has been denied. If you can’t possibly afford waiting for the average amount of time it takes for the SSA to process your claim, you there are a few things you can do.

Three Tips to Win SSD or SSDI Benefits

The process for receiving benefits from the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) is no walk in the park. You’d think people with disability will get special attention, but it just doesn’t work that way. In fact, according to the SSA itself, denied disability claims have averaged nearly 53 percent or more than half of all the applicants denied. You should not lose hope just yet, though. There are many ways you can improve your chances.

Why You Should Check Your SSI Claim Status

It’s easy to think that all you have to do is wait once you’ve accomplished all forms and handed them all to the SSA. The truth is you can’t relax just yet, not at least after you get approved. Many things can go wrong while your claim is being processed—errors can end up delaying your claim’s approval, which could put all your hard work to waste and send you right back to square one.

Application Mistakes That Delay SSD Judgment

Generally, delays in social security disability (SSD) judgments are due to the number of disability appeals being filed, which is much more than what a small circle of administrative law judges can manage. Unfortunately, many applicants think that the process is a mere filing of forms. As such, they often make mistakes that contribute to further delays.

Inaccurate Medical Information

Disability claims are forwarded to the state disability agency to verify medical records and screen them for the SSA. This agency gathers all medical files from the medical sources an applicant indicates in his form. The wait usually lasts for months, and delays can be lengthened when the medical information gathered are not up-to-date (within the past 90 days) or the records do not completely match the condition claimed. In this case, the applicant may have to undergo a consultative medical exam under SSA’s charge.

Lack of Understanding About Qualifications

The SSD process can be complicated and not everyone functionally impaired may fit its description of “disabled”. An applicant must satisfy a certain set of conditions to qualify for the insurance. For instance, a 30-year-old electronic quality auditor who hurt his back in a workplace accident may not be considered disabled by SSD if the injury does not really prevent him from doing his job, unless he can present compelling evidence to the contrary.

Eligibility services help SSD applicants improve information accuracy and understanding, to hasten judgments for the applicant and reimbursements for the medical facility.

How Eligibility Services Can Help Your Hospital

To keep your hospital’s revenue cycle up to date, it is necessary to integrate some services that most patients inquire about or need. One of these is the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). The procedure of filing for SSDI can be overwhelming, especially for someone trying for the first time. This is the reason most hospitals hire professionals who are able to offer revenue cycle management improvement services.

Top 5 Social Security Disability Denial Reasons

Hospitals dealing with people who are on disability social security often discover problems in revenue management, especially when it comes to receiving timely payments. However, for the patient, an even more pressing matter may come to light: denial of the disability application. Hospitals who want to help patients afford care and get timely reimbursement should become familiar with these top five reasons for denials:

Social Security Disability Benefits Requirements

If you get hurt and have social security, you can be eligible for compensation. The Social Security Administration (SSA) will assess your condition and other factors influencing your application to determine just how much financial support you are entitled to receive.

The financial benefits will generally depend on the type of disability you sustain. There are SSA requirements any individual application for Social Security disability benefits must meet. Also listed are the major conditions the SSA considers as proof of entitlement to disability benefits. These include musculoskeletal problems, cardiovascular conditions, and others.