Waiting for a Decision

Persons applying for disability benefits, many of whom are impoverished by their illnesses, often wait for years to get a decision.   Some die waiting.   Others lose their homes.   Here are two examples:

• A truck driver from Richmond, Missouri, became unable to work because of uncontrolled diabetes with neuropathy and shoulder and arm pain.   He applied for disability benefits in November 2005 and was turned down.   He then applied promptly for a hearing with an administrative law judge.   During the next two years his home was foreclosed upon and he had numerous problems with the child support authorities.   Despite a request for a hearing based on dire need, he was not scheduled for a hearing until April 2, 2008.   He died in the lobby of the Social Security hearing office on that day while waiting to be called for his hearing.   [Ford, M.: Statement for the House Committee on Ways and Means, April 23, 2008]
• Dexter E. Penny, of District Heights, Maryland, applied for disability benefits in February 2009 after being found to have colon cancer.   His initial application was denied.   Then his appeal was denied on the grounds that he didn't provide enough medical records.   In September 2010, with Mr. Penny nearly broke and in the hospital dying of end-stage cancer, the Social Security Administration wanted more documentation.   Then in December 2010, almost two years after his initial application, the Administration sent him a letter indicating that they had decided he was disabled.   The letter arrived the day of his funeral - Mr. Penny had died nine days earlier.   In January, the government sent him another letter saying his benefits had been revoked because he hadn't responded to their questions in a timely manner. [Paletta, D. and Searcey D. Wall Street Journal December 28, 2011, page A-12.]

The Social Security Inspector General recently found that 84% of those who had to wait for a decision by an administrative law judge suffered some impact, such as not being able to pay for food, clothing and shelter, the loss of their homes, the loss of medical care and disrupted personal relationships.   Cases have been known to take as long as 14 years to reach a final decision.

The backlog of applicants waiting for a decision started early in the program's history.   In a 1957 report on the disability program, Arthur Hess reported a backlog of about 280,000 applications.   He hoped it could be reduced to a tolerable level within a year.

In fiscal years 2016 and 2017, the Washington Post found that 18,701 people died while waiting for a decision by one of the Social Security Administration's judges.

The Social Security Administration doesn't like to talk about the true number of people waiting for decisions.   If it must, it would rather talk about the "backlog" of cases, which it defines as the number exceeding an "optimal" number.   From 1999 to 2006 it made 300,000 the "optimal" number waiting for a hearing.   In May 2007, it increased the "optimal" number to 400,000, magically reducing the "backlog" by 100,000.   In September 2008 it made the "optimal" number 466,000, again magically reducing its "backlog," by another 66,000.   Meanwhile, no one was helped by the reductions in what the Social Security Administration calls the "backlog."   The number of people waiting for decisions grew.

The measures used so far to reduce the backlog have failed because they do not address the root causes: (1) a disability program which encourages disability applicants to apply, appeal and reapply until they win the "disability lottery" (details), (2) very inadequate investigation of disability applicants (details) and (3) very inadequate federal support for vocational rehabilitation (details) for those who want to return to work.   In order to have a permanent positive effect on the backlog, any measures will have to address the root causes.   Until then, the backlog will continue and applicants will suffer the consequences.

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Last updated on 1/17/2020.