Friday, October 11, 2019
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Do You Watch TV?
Do You Watch TV?
And you say you’re disabled?
The following is from
my book, How To Get Social Security
Disability and SSI Disability
While it seems absurd to have to explain “watching television” so as to
not be denied disability benefits (especially to a claimant with mental
impairments), it is a good example of how minute “facts” can be used against
people.
Television.
Sometimes an adjudicator who denies an application distorts
what appears as harmless information, such as watching television.
In one case which went to a federal court appeal, Social
Security had referred the claimant who was disabled because of mental illness
to a consulting psychiatrist; that doctor noted that the claimant said that she
watched television. In his denial
decision, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found that the claimant’s ability
to watch television was indicative of her ability to concentrate. The ALJ did not question the claimant at the
hearing about the details of her watching television. So while the “ability to concentrate” finding
did not per se justify the denial decision, it improperly contributed to the
theory that the claimant retained mental abilities that would enable her to
work.
In fact, in the case, there was no evidence as to how long
the claimant would watch television or the nature of the programming that the
claimant watched or whether the claimant indicated that she was able to
concentrate on television programs or to retain information from them or
indicate for how long she was able to retain information if any.
In reality many people leave a television on as background
noise or to offset other noise in an apartment building or on the street
outside, as a way to block out intrusive thoughts and/or as company when lonely
and depressed. Many people identify with
the characters portrayed in television series—they become almost like real
friends. Many people will doze off for
brief periods when watching television particularly people who are in constant
pain and people who are unable to sleep through the night. Perhaps a claimant may be able to concentrate
on television programs, and that while watching TV, his pain is somewhat
dulled.
While it seems absurd
to have to explain “watching television” so as to not be denied disability
benefits (especially to a claimant with mental impairments), it is a good
example of how minute “facts” can be used against people.
NOSSCR has published parts of the Social Security training
material for ALJs which include suggested questions for ALJs to ask at
hearings. Directly after asking about
memory issues, the ALJ is to ask: “Can
you follow the story on TV[?]” [3]
The claimant’s full answer to this question should explain
what kind of programming he watches, does the claimant watch repeated episodes
of his favorite shows, can the claimant remember the story line immediately
after the episode, later that same day, the following day, the following
week.
3Disability Hearing Guide for ALJs, Social
Security Forum, National Organization of Social Security Claimants'
Representatives, vol. 35, no. 10, Oct. 2013,
pp. 2, 11.
Sunday, September 1, 2019
Palliative Care
Interesting article at the HuffPost on Aug. 31, 2019.
Sometimes Treating Pain Is As Important As Treating Disease
Why ‘palliative care’ can make such a difference, and why so
few people get it.
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Social Security Will Spy On You
In my book, How To Get
Social Security Disability & SSI Disability, at page 26, I advise the
following regarding social media:
“Don’t use social
media, Facebook or You Tube, etc., in ways that can contradict or confuse your
claim of disability.”
I go on to say:
“Remember what may
appear clear to you may be taken out of context or distorted. Posting five or ten-year old photos of
yourself skiing, may make you feel good, but can lead the office of the
inspector general to a different conclusion.”
Now, The New York Times and Huffington Post report that the
Trump Administration has pressured the Social Security Administration to
develop a program to monitor social media particularly for people collecting
disability benefits.
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