Excerpt from: denverpost.com (click for full article)
Social Security's disability program is
overwhelmed by so many claims that judges sometimes award benefits they
might otherwise deny just to keep up with the flow of cases, according
to a lawsuit filed by the judges themselves.
The Social Security
Administration says the agency's administrative law judges should decide
500 to 700 disability cases a year. The agency calls the standard a
productivity goal, but the lawsuit claims it is an illegal quota that
requires judges to decide an average of more than two cases per workday.
"When the goals are too high, the easy way out is to pay the
case," said Randall Frye, president of the Association of
Administrative Law Judges and a judge in Charlotte, N.C. "Paying the
case is a decision that might be three pages long. When you deny
benefits, it's usually a 15- or 20-page denial that takes a lot more
time and effort." The lawsuit raises serious questions about
the integrity of the disability hearing process by the very people in
charge of running it. It comes as the disability program faces serious
financial problems.
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