By Lisa Rein: For Complete Post, Click Here…
State operations that review claims face massive backlogs, leaving disabled Americans waiting months and even years for judgments.
ngd-They hit the breaking point 30 years ago. Now it is in Chernobyl territory. They must need more money for bureaucratic goals, because customer service is never a part of SSA disability benefits…
The Disability Determination Division in Austin was at a breaking point.
Inside its vast two-story warehouse, close to 130,000 claims were awaiting review by the state employees who help decide whether Texans will get disability benefits from the Social Security Administration — a backlog that would take at least a year to clear. Nearly 40 percent of the examiners had quit since January, driven out by crushing workloads and low wages that could not compete in the high-tech boomtown.Those who stayed toiled in long rows of cubicles or at home reviewing massive medical files.
Then, one week in September, came the unthinkable: 75,000 new claims suddenlywere routed to an electronic queue already buckling under 2½ years of strain during the coronavirus pandemic.
