Media Matters for America is a Web-based, not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media. They have compiled an excellent piece intended to debunk the misinformation that is being spread about SSA's disability programs. Notice of the piece and a link are included below.
The media has recently waged a concerted campaign against disability benefits. Unfortunately, that campaign has been filled with myths and lies. We've put together the complete resource debunking all of this hogwash. This is one of those pieces you're going to want to bookmark and return to: http://mm4a.org/11GzevK
Thursday, April 4, 2013
DO YOU (OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW) NEED HELP APPLYING FOR (OR APPEALING)
YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY BENEFITS?
Illness and injury can occur at any point in a person’s life. The government has programs for individuals who are unemployable. One such program is Social Security Disability. Social Security Disability is not a privilege. Sick and injured people have a right to draw Social Security Disability. New disability claimants should be aware of the effects sequestration will have when attempting to establish their Social Security Disability claim. In addition to discussing who is eligible to apply for Social Security Disability, Dr. C. Greg Cates, COO of Advanced Case Development will present facts and be available to answer your questions concerning the confusing social security claims and appeals process on April 14.
Who: C. Greg Cates, Ed.D., ADR
COO, Advanced Case Development, LLC
What: Free workshop to explain the effects
sequestration will have on new social security
disability claims and the social security
application and appeals process.
When: Sunday, April 14, 2013 from 2:30 pm-4:30 pm
Where: Benjamin L. Hooks Branch Library
3030 Poplar Ave., Meeting Room C
Memphis, TN
Why: To help individuals understand how to obtain
government benefits they may be entitled to
receive.
LIFE of Mississippi's 4th Annual April Health Fair
Jackson Medical Mall - Jackson, MS • 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Please come by and visit our exhibit! We will be offering FREE Social Security Disability Screenings on site! "LIFE of Mississippi's 4th Annual April Health Fair" is an event that allows vendors to do on site health screenings and communicate with the public at large to learn more information about the different businesses and organizations that exist in their communities. We hope to see you there!
Muse Disability is a proud partner of LIFE of Mississippi. The purpose of LIFE (Living Independence For Everyone) is to empower people with significant disabilities to be as independent and as fully involved in their communities as they can and want to be. For more information, visit LIFE on the web at www.lifeofms.com.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Social Security Announces New Conditions for Compassionate Allowances Program
Via www.socialsecurity.gov : Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced 52 new Compassionate Allowances conditions, primarily involving neurological disorders, cancers and rare diseases. The Compassionate Allowances program fast-tracks disability decisions to ensure that Americans with the most serious disabilities receive their benefit decisions within days instead of months or years. Commissioner Astrue made the announcement during his remarks at the World Orphan Drug Congress near Washington, D.C.
“Social Security will continue to work with the medical community and patient organizations to add more conditions,” Commissioner Astrue said. “With our Compassionate Allowances program, we quickly approved disability benefits for nearly 61,000 people with severe disabilities in the past fiscal year, and nearly 173,000 applications since the program began.”
The Compassionate Allowances initiative identifies claims where the nature of the applicant’s disease or condition clearly meets the statutory standard for disability. With the help of sophisticated new information technology, the agency can quickly identify potential Compassionate Allowances and then quickly make decisions.
Social Security launched the Compassionate Allowances program in 2008 with a list of 50 diseases and conditions. The announcement of 52 new conditions, effective in August, will increase the total number of Compassionate Allowances conditions to 165. The conditions include certain cancers, adult brain disorders, a number of rare genetic disorders of children, early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, immune system conditions, and other disorders. In his speech that opened the Congress, Commissioner Astrue thanked the National Institutes of Health for research they conducted which helped identify many of the conditions added to the list.
The agency also is improving its online disability application process, which is already substantially shorter than the standard paper application. Starting April 21, 2012, adults who file for benefits online will have the option to electronically sign and submit their Authorization to Disclose Information to the Social Security Administration (Form SSA-827). This improvement allows applicants to complete disability applications in a streamlined online session, rather than printing, signing, and mailing paper authorization forms to Social Security offices.
In March, Social Security approved eight research projects through its Disability Determination Process Small Grant Program. This new program aims to improve the disability process through innovative research by graduate students focusing on topics such as the Compassionate Allowances program, Wounded Warriors initiative, homelessness and SSI, and disability enrollment issues.
For more information on the Compassionate Allowances initiative, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/compassionateallowances.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Social Security Administration National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE) Webinar
Ticket to Work: Preventing and Managing Overpayments: A Webinar for Social Security Disability Beneficiaries
If you are a Social Security disability beneficiary and want to make more money through a good job that leads to a good career and a better, self-sufficient future, Ticket to Work can provide the support you need.
The March 28 national WISE webinar will present information about special Social Security programs and rules that may apply to you! In addition to learning about going to work, you will also learn:
What is an Overpayment?
What do I do if I get an Overpayment Notice?
How can I prevent Overpayments?
Date: March 28, 2012
Time: 3:00 p.m. EST
Register online at www.choosework.net/wise or call 1-866-968-7842 (V) or 1-866-833-2967 (TTY/TDD).
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Nashville Project Homeless Connect
Tennessee State Fairgrounds - Nashville, TN • 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Please come by and visit our exhibit! We will be offering FREE Social Security Disability Screenings on site! Project Homeless Connect is a one-day, one-stop event to provide people experiencing homelessness with access to a broad range of services, including medical check-ups, disability screenings, eye screenings, foot care, legal services, employment assistance, pet care, food, toiletries, and more. The event also helps participants contact long lost family members, obtain identification, and fill out applications for housing opportunities. The event will be held at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. We hope you will be a part of this great event!
Please contact Clifton Harris at clifton.harris@nashville.gov with any questions or to learn how to get involved. FREE PARKING is provided on site at the Fairgrounds, adjacent to the PHC building.
March 22-23, 2012
Mississippi NASW Annual Conference
Natchez Convention Center - Natchez Mississippi • Thursday: 8:00 AM to 5:45 PM and Friday: 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Muse Disability Services will be exhibiting at the Mississippi National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Annual Conference on March 22-23, 2012, at the Natchez Convention Center, Natchez, MS. The conference is entitled "Social Work Matters...to Clients, Communities, Policy, and to YOU!" Approximately 400 social workers representing various organizations, public and private agencies, and schools of social work attend the annual conference. We look forward to networking with other exhibitors and attendees to learn about their services and how we can help their disabled patients. We welcome you to attend the conference and visit our exhibit!
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Memphis Area Brian Injury Support Group Meeting
C. Greg Cates, Ed.D, Chief Operating Officer of Advanced Case Development (ACD), Muse Disability Services' subsidiary, will be speaking at the Memphis Area Brain Injury Support Group Meeting on Navigating the Social Security Disability Application and Appeals Process on Tuesday, February 28, 2012, from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM (CT) at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library, Meeting Room A, 3030 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, TN 38111. Cates' experience includes providing evaluations and testimony for the Social Security Administration for more than 25 years.
This meeting is FREE and open to the public. For more information, call 901-266-9970. In case of bad weather, call 901-545-8487 to learn if the meeting has been canceled. To learn more about the Brian Injury Association of America or to find a Brian Injury Association in your state, visit www.biausa.org.
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Multicultural All In The Family Summit 2012
Bruce Johnston, one of Muse Disability's social security disability representatives, will be speaking as well as participating in the panel discussion at the 2012 Multicultural All In The Family Summit. The Summit will be held on Saturday, February 25, 2012, from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM (CT) at the Learning Resource Center, 1005 Dr. D.B. Todd, Jr. Blvd., Nashville, Tennessee.
The Summit's goal is to provide information and strategies that will assist families in the journey to exercise leadership through active involvement in decision making processes related to members with special needs and to ensure Tennessee is a State that values cultural policies, practices, and procedures. Each of us have the ability to influence systems and effect positive change in our community, and this event has been designed to ensure resources to sustain and enhance advocacy with the extensive network of private and public entities. We hope you can attend the Summit!
Together We Can Bring Unity to Our Community of Mental Illness.
Visit the Summit's organization web sites to learn more: www.namitn.org and www.tnstep.org or contact Kelly Dorsey at kdorsey@namitn.org or call 877-7401-7002.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Social Security Announces 3.6 Percent Benefit Increase for 2012 Cost-of-Living Adjustment is First Since 2009
Monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for more than 60 million Americans will increase 3.6 percent in 2012, the Social Security Administration announced today.The 3.6 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits that nearly 55 million Social Security beneficiaries receive in January 2012. Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 30, 2011.Some other changes that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages.
Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $110,100 from $106,800. Of the estimated 161 million workers who will pay Social Security taxes in 2012, about 10 million will pay higher taxes as a result of the increase in the taxable maximum. Information about Medicare changes for 2012, when announced, will be available at www.Medicare.gov. For some beneficiaries, their Social Security increase may be partially or completely offset by increases in Medicare premiums.
The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated. To read more, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.
August 30-31, 2011
2011 MAER Conference
Muse Disability Services will be exhibiting at the 2011 Mississippi Association for Education and Rehab of the Blind and Visually Impaired (MAER) Conference at the River Room Conference Center in Flowood, Mississippi on August 30-31. We welcome you to visit our exhibit!
Muse's Jay Philley was on Fox40, explaining what Social Security Disability is, and how we can help!
Call one of our helpful representatives today. Toll Free Call 1-800-922-4011
