Social Security Disability & The "Critical Case"
As anyone knows who has applied for Social Security Disability benefits, it can be a notoriously long wait for a hearing before a Social Security Disability Administrative Law Judge.
NEW YORK, NY, April 04, 2013
You are disabled and unable to work - your rent comes due, your gas and electric bills and grocery bills go unpaid - but you are still made to wait for your day in court, because of a "backlog" of Social Security Disability cases and "budget constraints," that limit the number of judges the administration can employ. This is a terrible and unjust situation, and we call on the administration, and our congressmen and women, and our senators, to address this all-important situation as quickly and effectively as possible.Meanwhile, the "Critical Case" is a way around the long wait. It is not easy to obtain this exception, but it is possible.
The Social Security Administration publishes a manual of regulations called HALLEX. In HALLEX are rules governing the "Critical Case." If you are successful in being determined to have a "Critical Case," you will be treated as an expedited priority and will see a judge much faster.
To be determined as having a "Critical Case," you must prove either:
-That you have a "dire need," for an expedited hearing; or
-That you are suicidal or homicidal; or
-That your condition is terminal.
As you can imagine, the Administration most frequently sees applications for an expedited hearing on the basis of "dire need." To qualify as having a "dire need," you must prove not merely that you are in a bad situation where money is concerned, but that you are unable to provide yourself and your loved ones with life's basic necessities: shelter, food, or vital medications.
Although every single disabled man and woman deserves a speedy day in court, it should offer some comfort to the neediest of the disabled that there is a way, as a "Critical Case," to cut through some of the red tape to swifter justice.
The Klein Law Group, P.C., is an experienced and dedicated group of New York social security disability lawyers led by founding attorneys Susan Klein and David Klein. To contact their New York office please call 212-344-9022.