Social Security

Social Security Administration’s current commissioner, Martin O’Malley, was sworn in on December 20, 2023, pledging to bring sweeping changes to the Agency. This past week, Commissioner O’Malley submitted his resignation to President Biden. We expect that former Acting Commissioner, Carolyn Colvin, will once again step into the role of Acting Commissioner of SSA upon O’Malley’s […]

In December 2024, Social Security will implement a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2025. This annual increase will impact various benefit limits and thresholds for Social Security beneficiaries. For individuals and representatives navigating Social Security benefits, here’s a breakdown of what these updates mean. Key Changes for 2025 Simplified COLA Notices and Digital Access for

The Social Security benefit cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2025 will be 2.5%. Beneficiaries will see this 2.5% increase in their benefit amount starting January 2025. Additionally, representative fees are being increased for the first time since November 2022. Effective November 30, 2024, the maximum fee a representative can collect at the hearing level or below

Starting on September 30, 2024, Social Security will update how it calculates in-kind support for individuals receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI). In-kind support can reduce a claimant’s benefit by up to one-third, but these changes will make calculating in-kind support less complicated and more fair to SSI recipients. First, the Agency will stop reducing a

Since its inception, Social Security has seemed at risk for insolvency. Yet every time the program has been on the brink of demise, it has been saved. That being said, a confluence of factors, including an aging population, longer life expectancies, and economic downturns, have made many policymakers rethink how we distribute retirement benefits. However,

Recently Social Security announced, that if you created a My Social Security Account before September 2021, you will need to update your account. Social Security states it is trying to provide its users with a simpler login experience and more secure online access. Therefore, if you created a My Social Security account before September 18,

The final step (Step 5) of the Agency’s disability determination process is to determine if an applicant can perform any work with their limitations. At the hearing level, and the judge will ask an expert, known as a Vocational Expert (VE), to testify to jobs that the claimant could perform in the economy. VEs must

Social Security wait times for disability determinations are excruciatingly long. Initial application and appeal decisions vary in processing times, and waits may differ depending on the local office. Below is an idea of how much time, on a national average, it takes for an applicant to receive a decision from the Social Security Administration (SSA).

In 2023, a news investigation shed light on the high overpayment rates Social Security has made to its beneficiaries. Up until March 2024, Social Security’s practice to recover the money was to take 100% of a person’s monthly benefit until the overpayment was paid in full. This was the case even if Social Security was