According to the Washington Post, the Social Security Administration (SSA), which handles disability claims, has received a boost in its staff funding as part of the large 2-year budget omnibus bill passed by Congress earlier this spring.
As written by the Post:
“Roughly $100 million of the increased allocation will target the disability hearing backlog, in which claimants on average wait around 600 days for a judge to decide whether they will receive benefits including health insurance and a monthly payment.
[…]
The agency’s administrative budget has remained roughly stagnant since 2010, even though the number of people receiving retirement and disability benefits rose by more than 7 million as a population bulge of baby boomers neared retirement benefits and reached an age when developing disabilities is more likely.
[…]
Advocates applauded the additional allocations but cautioned that while it may appear to be a lot of money, the agency’s needs are still great.”
