Disability Policy Advocacy: Strategic Planning

1
Disability Policy AdvocacyStrategic Planning

• 2008 National Health Care for the Homeless Policy
  Symposium
• June 13, 2008
• Sarah Anderson, J.D.
• Greater Boston Legal Services

2
Overview

• Access barriers to SSI
• Advocacy priorities to remove barriers

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Access Barriers to SSI

• Excessive denials, delays in receivingbenefits
• Insufficient documentation of impairments
• Application barriers for homelesspeople with
  SPMI
• Inappropriate denials of applicants with DAA
  disorders

4
Excessive denials, delays

• Application to approval can be up to 3 years
• Denial rates are significantly higherfor
  claimants who are homeless
• Denials for procedural not medicalreasons

5
Insufficient Documentation of Impairments

• Homeless claimants have limited access to
  acceptable medical source
• SSA requires AMS to provide documentation
• AMS must be physician, PhD
• Yet other medical source (RN,LicSW)may have
  more contact with claimant
• Rigid rules dont reflect reality of todays
  practice

6
Barriers for people with SPMI

• SPMI severe, persistent mentalillness
• application requires extensive paperwork
• SPMI symptoms may limit claimantsability to
  cooperate in process

7
Identity documentation difficult

• SSA requires applicants to verifycitizenship and
  identity
• It takes ID to get ID
• Can lengthen application process

8
Inappropriate Denials of claimants with DAA
disorders

• DAA drug abuse and alcoholism
• SAA changed eligibility rules in 1996
• Does not prohibit receipt of benefitsin all
  cases
• SSA applies own rules inconsistently

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Advocacy Priorities

• Continue/expand federal funding forinitiatives
  that succeed in expeditingSSI/SSD benefits
• Mandate that SSA use system to trackall claims
  of homeless claimants
• Require SSA to use nationally procedures proven
  to expedite homeless claims

10
Advocacy Priorities

• Expand list of acceptable medicalsources
• Expand PD to homeless claimants diagnosed with
  schizophrenia
• Expand alternative documentation for proof of
  identity

11
Advocacy Priorities

• Assure that all DDSs properly apply SSA policy
  on DAA
• Repeal DAA exclusion (PROWRA 1996)