Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

TexasTowelie

(116,554 posts)
Sun Jun 23, 2019, 07:51 PM Jun 2019

U.S. House approves funding boost for the SSA after request from Rep. Susan Wild

Testifying before a U.S. House panel in March, Lehigh Valley Congresswoman Susan Wild told her colleagues about a West Philadelphia woman who waited 878 days before gaining a favorable ruling from the Social Security Administration on her disability claim.

The woman, Adrianne Gunter, is unable to work due to multiple sclerosis. She also had the unfortunate luck of living in the city with the longest wait time for those appealing a denial of disability benefits, with the Philadelphia Inquirer finding an average backlog of 26 months.

Wild, a Democrat representing the 7th Congressional District, which covers Lehigh, Northampton and southern Monroe counties, called on the House Appropriations Committee to approve an additional $300 million in the upcoming fiscal year’s budget for the Social Security Administration, with the goal of reducing those delays.

The committee agreed, and a government spending bill that passed the U.S. House this week includes that higher amount of funding, which would be used for hiring more staffers and other resources for Social Security Administration field offices. Of that additional money, $50 million for activities to address the disability hearing backlog and $22 million would be directed for hiring at teleservice center operations.

Read more: https://www.mcall.com/news/pennsylvania/capitol-ideas/mc-nws-pa-congress-social-security-funding-wait-times-susan-wild-20190620-jbhnwf5avjaepfsgb443vrq6ge-story.html

Latest Discussions»Region Forums»Pennsylvania»U.S. House approves fundi...