While delays in the Social Security decision making process have been in the news for several years, Social Security administrators have quietly been addressing the question of how to process quick approvals for claimants with incurable and extremely serious medical conditions.
Known as the “compassionate allowance” program, SSA has identified 100 medical conditions that will give rise to a rapid approval. The complete list of compassionate allowance conditions is on the SSA web site and new conditions are periodically added to the list. Several new conditions were just added in July, 2011. Many of the recently added conditions involve cancers or different types of dementia.
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with any of these conditions, here is what you should do to increase your chances of an early approval:
- identify and collect medical records that contain the diagnosis of one of these compassionate allowance conditions. Even better, ask your treating physician to draft a brief narrative letter confirming your diagnosis and stating the likely date when that condition began affecting you.
- submit this package of medical records directly to the Social Security adjudicator. I would mail your package return receipt requested and follow up with both letters and phone calls.
- I would also advise you to contact the Social Security liaison at Senator Isakson and/or Senator Chambliss’ office, and/or the liaison of the Member of Congress who represents you. Elected officials can sometimes cut through the red tape and help Social Security prioritize the process of making a decision
- make sure that you use the phrase “compassionate allowance condition” in your correspondence with Social Security
- if your claim is denied at the initial application stage, do not give up – continue to submit evidence supporting the diagnosis at the reconsideration appeal