Read our Latest Posts

Spotlight on Homelessness and Social Security

May 7, 2021

Yvonne Perret, the Maryland-based founder of the SSI/SSDI Outreach Access and Recovery (SOAR) program recently published a blog on Social Security's website that is well worth the read. The blog shares some factual insights into the challenges faced by homeless...

Social Security Looking for Feedback to Move Forward

Apr 30, 2021

Under the regulations of 2018's Evidence Act the Social Security Administration, as a federal agency, is required to seek public input into how they are doing and as to how they can improve policies and procedures. The SSA has put out a request for information from...

SSA’s New Webpage Looks to Help Those Helping Others

Apr 23, 2021

A recent press release by the Social Security Administration announced the creation of a new webpage dubbed "People Helping Others" that will serve as the hub for all manner of questions regarding SSA and SSI benefits. The page is primarily addressed to those in the...

Updated BPQY Handbook Released

Apr 16, 2021

In what would seem a confirmation of long term plans regarding the new BPQY (Benefits Planning Query) and the deletion of the IRS records(see the March 26, 2021 blog for more details) Social Security has published a 2021 edition of the BPQY Handbook. This year's...

Maryland Employment Network Is Hiring!

Apr 8, 2021

We're happy to announce that our colleagues at the Maryland Employment Network are looking for a bright and energetic individual to join their team as a full time Employment Specialist. The ideal candidate must have: Extensive experience and success in providing...

« Older Entries

Next Entries »

Working Works: It’s Still National Disability Employment Awareness Month

One would like to imagine that it was a failing of this writer's observational powers rather than the lack of promotional ability of the organizers that, but for a fruitless quest for HP sauce* at a local Wegman’s I would not have known that this rapidly diminishing...

COLAs for 2027 Announced!

Social Security published its 2027 Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) earlier this week. As is almost invariably the case monthly benefit payments will be higher, this year to the tune of 3.6%. For SSI recipients it means that the Federal Benefit Rate (FBR) will rise...

Goodnight, Virginia: SSA Closes VCU’s National Training Center

It was announced last Monday that the WIPA National Training and Data Center, would be shut down with immediate effect. The NTC, which was under the auspices of Virginia Commonwealth University, has been a primary source of training, education and support of Work...

In Exile: Impending Medicaid Eligibility Denials for Non-Citizens

Emma Lazarus’ 1883 sonnet ‘The New Colossus’ was written in the same year that she established in New York the Society for the Improvement and Colonization of East European Jews; an organization designed to provide aid to refugees escaping antisemitic violence and...

Education Matters: Maintaining Child’s Benefits at 18

Much to the dismay of students and teachers, another summer vacation has come and gone and one must again spend those long hours in the classroom looking wistfully out of the window as someone whitters on about some nonsense or other. For a small but significant...

In The Loop: SSA Changes Policy on Re-routing Calls

As anyone who has been obliged to call Social Security knows, the wait time has been prohibitively long. In the last year of the Biden administration the average wait was 60 minutes, which was bad enough, but in 2025 under the present regime that had increased to a...

An August Occasion: Celebrating National ABLE Savings Day

This year August 14 marks, amongst other notable events, the 236th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Väräla which brought about an end to the Russo-Swedish War; exactly 124 years later the arrival of British Expeditionary Force in France saw the beginning of...

Priority Treatment: SSA Adds to the Compassionate Allowance List

A fresh press release from Social Security will provide some good news to potential beneficiaries who experience a range of disabilities. Fourteen relatively obscure conditions have been added to the agency’s Compassionate Allowance policy. The policy allows Social...

Won’t Get Food Again: SNAP Eligibility in Decline

Recent articles in The Atlantic and by NPR have highlighted the growing concern in the reduction in the number of food stamp beneficiaries over the past year. The current figure, as estimated by the Department of Agriculture, stands at around 37 million recipients,...

Hear Ye, Hear Ye: Social Security Adds New Features to MySSA Accounts

A recent press release from Social Security looked to encourage applicants who have found themselves having to appeal a denial to use a My Social Security account when working through that process. Evidently very keen on getting you on board, the agency has produced a...