New York Social Security Disability Lawyer Blog

One of the many factors that the Social Security Administration (SSA) considers in reviewing a disability benefits claim is the claimant's ability to continue working. The Third Circuit's recent decision in Diaz v. Commissioner of Social Security provides a roadmap for how this question is often resolved, drawing on input from the claimant, his or her doctors and (sometimes) an independent expert. However like any roadmap, there may be different routes that the Judge can take and part of the attorney's role is to try to point out the best one to the Judge, from the claimant's point of view!

Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) is a person's ability to engage in work related activities despite mental or physical impairments. A claimant whose RFC allows them to do their prior work is considered ineligible for disability benefits. An SSDI applicant whose claim is denied can appeal the decision, usually resulting in a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge.

At hearing, the ALJ may make use of a Vocational Expert (VE), whose role is to gauge both the claimant's ability to work in jobs the claimant has performed over the last 15 years and their ability to work any other jobs that are available in the national economy based on their residual functional capacity (RFC). The RFC given to the VE is crucial in forming their response and is based on the totality of the medical and other evidence.

In Diaz, the Third Circuit upheld the SSA's denial of Plaintiff's Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefit claim, finding that although she was "extremely impaired," the applicant retained the capacity to perform light work similar to the work she had done before her impairment.

Plaintiff Marta Diaz worked as a clothing presser in a New Jersey laundry from 1997 to 2006. She applied for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits in March 2006, stating that she was unable to work due to depression and a variety of physical ailments. Her claim was initially denied and Diaz appealed this decision in an ALJ hearing. The Third Circuit explains the testimony from Diaz's treating physicians as follows:

Examinations by Dr. Reyes, her primary treating psychiatrist, revealed Diaz had intact cognition, no perceptual disturbances, good memory and judgment, unimpaired concentration, and average intellect. Other examiners, Drs. Arrington and Weistuch, concluded Diaz had restrictions in her ability to learn new tasks, concentrate, and make appropriate decisions, based in each case on one-time consultative examinations.

In addition, a VE testified that Diaz's prior work as a presser was considered "light work." According to the Third Circuit, "[t]he ALJ then asked the vocational expert if a hypothetical individual could work as a clothing presser given the limitations that the ALJ identified in Diaz's RFC. The vocational expert responded affirmatively." The ALJ then determined that Diaz was not eligible for SSDI benefits.

Continue reading "A Good Social Security Attorney Provides a Roadmap for the Judge: Diaz v. Commissioner of Social Security and Residual Functional Capacity" »

While our elected officials in D.C. fritter away the summer days with partisan handwringing and political point scoring, the clock continues to tick on the deadline for Congress to do something about the federal debt ceiling. Without a deal, the 27 million Americans who depend on Social Security benefits could be left in financial limbo.

On Monday, President Obama warned that if a deal can't be reached to raise the debt ceiling - the legally imposed limit on money that the U.S. government can borrow, which the feds expect to hit by August 2 - he "cannot guarantee" that the 27 million Social Security payments due out on August 3rd will be made as scheduled.

In an interview with the CBS Evening News' Scott Pelley, the President said "I cannot guarantee that those checks go out on August 3rd if we haven't resolved this issue. Because there may simply not be the money in the coffers to do it."

As we've previously noted, the debt limit debate has been the talk of Washington this summer, despite little progress. As CBS News explains

[u]ntil 1917, Congress had to pass a new law every time the government wanted to borrow money. But with America needing to finance its involvement in World War I, lawmakers passed a law to give the Treasury Department leeway to borrow on its own - so long as it didn't exceed a certain amount. That's the debt limit, or debt ceiling - the amount that Treasury can borrow without going back to Congress for permission. Since America has made a habit of spending more money than it takes in, that limit has continually needed to be raised.

The debt ceiling has been raised 10 times in the last decade. But this time Republicans in both the House and Senate are demanding major spending cuts in exchange for another debt level raise.

Many of them - notably Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) and Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.) - are demanding that any deal on the debt ceiling include plans to revamp both Social Security and Medicare. Under Hutchison's plan, the Social Security retirement age would gradually rise, finally reaching 69 in 2027, and the yearly cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) would be shaved by 1 percent. Ryan has called for significant cuts in Social Security, albeit without concrete details on how to achieve them. Democrats, on the other hand, aren't willing to budge on these programs, nor agree to certain tax cuts. Thus, the gridlock in the nation's capital.

Continue reading "Obama Warns August Social Security Checks May Be Withheld if No Debt Ceiling Deal Reached" »

Wishing everyone a happy Fourth of July!