Harrell and Harrell's Personal Injury law blog » Veteran’s Affairs

Remembering Pearl Harbor

admin — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 21:32:32 +0000

More money for Social Security

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:46:03 +0000

The Social Security Administration received a 10% increase in fiscal year 2010 over the fiscal year 2009 appropriation. Part of this increase is intended for hiring 226 new Administrative Law Judges, 950 support staff, 60 hearing office managers, and additional staff for the Appeals Council.

What this means, hopefully, for Social Security Disability Claimants is less waiting for their claims to make it to hearing. In a previous post, we stated that it was taking the Jacksonville Hearing office approximately 15 months to schedule a hearing after a Request for Hearing is filed. We hope some of those resources make it to the Jacksonville Hearing office.

Give us a call at 251-1111 or visit our website to answer any of your Social Security benefits questions.

Compassionate allowances – Schizophrenia

admin — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 16:28:23 +0000

Here’s the latest press release from the SSA concerning mental health disabilities like schizophrenia. They are continuing to have public hearings to determine the best way to include this devastating mental illness under the compassionate allowances umbrella.

If you have any questions concerning Social Security benefits please feel free to contact one of our Social Security attorneys for your free consultation. We are able to serve all of the Jacksonville area and our surrounding North Florida and Southeast Georgia communities.

Happy New Year!

www.harrellandharrell.com

Disability claims rise dramatically

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:07:25 +0000

Kudos to Mark Papa, a social security attorney who works for Harrell & Harrell in our Mandarin/Southside office, for feeding me with great blog information regarding the SSA and your Social Security benefits.

The article by Senior Editor Jason White at msnbc.com sums it up very nicely. Aging baby boomers and the struggling economy are driving up Social Security claims to staggering levels. According to Jason’s statistics he quotes from the SSA, new claims for disability benefits rose nearly 17 percent in fiscal year 2009 and disability filings are projected to rise another 10 percent in fiscal 2010. Add that to the already 12 million Americans who receive disability benefits at a total cost of $161 billion in fiscal 2009.

Wow!

Read the article because Jason sums it up better than I ever could and then call Mark Papa at (904)251-1111 to schedule your free consultation. If you are outside of the Jacksonville area, feel free to use our toll free number or submit your information on our “Do I Have a Case” form.

www.harrellandharrell.com

Improving access to benefits for Wounded Warriors

admin — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:58:03 +0000

Everyone has probably heard the term Wounded Warriors but do you know what it means or who qualifies? Typically it is referring to those members and veterans of the US Armed Forces who were injured or became ill while on active duty since 2001 in the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan.

In 2007, the Social Security Administration (SSA) increased its efforts to serve our Wounded Warriors. For those of us that have served or are serving, we have all seen the signs at the Exchange/PX saying personnel in uniform have head of the line privileges, well that is what the SSA program equates to according to a newsletter written by the NOSSCR. It’s a long article and I could not find an electronic version of it but I will take the liberty of using some of their “bullet” points.

First of all a Wounded Warrior needs to be identified in the SSA system which can occur in two ways – through self-identification on the application or through weekly electronic updates from the DOD. Once identified in the system, SSA uses the “critical case/TERI” expedited process to adjudicate the Wounded Warrior claims as summarized below.

- if the claim comes through the SSA 800 number, an interview must be scheduled at an SSA field office within 3 working days.

-once the application is sent to the DDS, the filed office must follow up with the DDS within 7 days to ensure receipt. DDS or Disability Determination Services is a state agency that determines disability.

-DDS staff must prioritize the case for adjudication and explore all potential physical and mental impairments, including suggestive signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

-at the hearing level, cases are to be scheduled in the first available open hearing slots.

The NOSSCR Social Security Forum newsletter contains a lot more information describing other problems and delays and how the SSA, DOD and VA are working on improving the processes involved.

If you know a Wounded Warrior, first of all thank them for their service and if they need help give them a hand. We would be glad to speak with them about any Social Security Benefits for which they may be entitled.

Our team of experienced lawyers and staff of the Harrell and Harrell law firm is proud to serve the many veterans in Jacksonville and surrounding communities of North Florida.

www.harrellandharrell.com

Welcome

admin — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:17:05 +0000

Thank you for visiting Harrell and Harrell‘s Personal Injury law blog. It’s no secret that personal injury law is complex territory, and it takes significant work to know the constantly changing subtleties of law so we can protect our clients. As a firm, our lawyers and paralegals all remain thoroughly educated by reading the latest legal decisions, law publications and blogs, as well as communicating with the best attorneys from around the country to stay up to date with legal trends in other states.

We have always been proud to serve our clients and to be a resource to other great attorneys. As we begin our venture into blogging, we hope to be able to be a resource to our readers, and encourage you to send us your questions. Although we cannot give advice on this blog specific to your legal case, we can shed light on how the law works in many situations, and we’re happy to help in any way we can.