Ram's blog

The number of pending initial claims for Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits has been backlogged for some years, but with the record setting 230,000 new applications for SSD received by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in May 2012, the wait time for reviews to be completed and eligibility determinations to be made is expected to increase significantly. In fact, the SSA anticipates pending claims to reach more than 860,000 before the end of the fiscal year (Sept. 30, 2012) and more than 1.1 million by the end of the 2013 fiscal year (Sept. 30, 2013).

The number of individuals receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) Benefits has hit a record high. Beginning in 2008 and continuing through to the present, the number of new applicants for SSDI benefits has increased substantially, with 2.8 million Americans applying for benefits in 2008 and 2009. That was a 21 percent increase in applications from 2007. It should come as no surprise then that the more than 10 million Americans now receiving disability benefits also sets a record high.

U.S. Congressman Allen West, a Florida republican with Tea Party ties, has found himself in the national spotlight several times over the past few weeks for comments in which he equates Social Security Disability with slavery.

The Social Security Disability claim process can be a long and complex undertaking. Most disability applicants must endure the disability appeal process in order to obtain the benefits they are entitled to. Part of this process involves filing timely appeals with the Social Security Administration (SSA).

One woman’s persistency earned her not only the Social Security benefits she had waited years for, but the intervention of the President of the United States.

Lois Dare is a cancer survivor who struggles with diabetes and heart problems. Several times a day, Dare has to be hooked to an oxygen tank to compensate for the damage to her lung, leaving her undoubtedly unable to stay employed.