2024
Final Rule, Expand the Definition of a Public Assistance Household ( (April 19, 2024)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed rule to expand the definition of a public assistance (PA) household for purposes of our programs, particularly the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, to include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as an additional means-tested public income-maintenance (PIM) program. We are also revising the definition of a PA household from a household in which every member receives some kind of PIM payment to a household that has both an SSI applicant or recipient, and at least one other household member who receives one or more of the listed PIM payments (the any other definition). If determined to be living in a PA household, inside in-kind support and maintenance (ISM) would no longer need to be developed. The final rule will decrease the number of SSI applicants and recipients charged with ISM from others within their household. In addition, we expect this rule to decrease the amount of income we would deem to SSI applicants and recipients because we will no longer deem as income from ineligible spouses and parents who live in the same household: the value of the SNAP benefits that they receive; any income that was counted or excluded in figuring the amount of that payment; or any income that was used to determine the amount of SNAP benefits to someone else. These policy changes reduce administrative burden for low-income households and SSA.
Final Rule, Intermediate Improvement to the Disability Adjudication Process, Including How we Consider Past Work (April 18, 2024)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed regulation to revise the time period that we consider when determining whether an individual’s past work is relevant for the purposes of making disability determinations and decisions. We are revising the definition of past relevant work (PRW) by reducing the relevant work period from 15 to 5 years. Additionally, we will not consider past work that started and stopped in fewer than 30 calendar days to be PRW. These changes will reduce the burden on individuals applying for disability by allowing them to focus on the most current and relevant information about their past work. The changes will also better reflect the current evidence about worker skill decay and job responsibilities, reduce processing times, and improve customer service. This final rule also includes other minor revisions to our regulations related to PRW.
Final Rule, Expansion of the Rental Subsidy Policy for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Applicants and Recipients (April 11, 2024)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed regulation to apply nationwide the In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM) rental subsidy exception that has until now been available only for SSI applicants and recipients residing in seven States. This final rule provides that a “business arrangement” exists, such that the SSI applicant or recipient is not considered to be receiving ISM in the form of room or rent, when the amount of monthly required rent for the property equals or exceeds the presumed maximum value (PMV).
Final Rule, Omitting Food from In-Kind Support and Maintenance Calculations (March 27, 2024)
Summary: We are updating our Supplemental Security Income (SSI) regulations to remove food from the calculations of In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM). We are also adding conforming language to our definition of income. These changes simplify our rules by making them less cumbersome to administer and easier for the public to understand and follow, and they improve the equitable treatment of food assistance within the SSI program. This final rule also includes other minor revisions to our regulations related to income, including clarifying our longstanding position that income may be received “constructively."
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Use of Electronic Payroll Data To Improve Program Administration (February 15, 2024)
Summary: Section 824 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA) authorizes the Commissioner of Social Security to enter into information exchanges with payroll data providers to obtain wage and employment information. We use wage and employment information to administer the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) disability and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). We are proposing these rules pursuant to section 824 of the BBA, which requires us to prescribe, by regulation, procedures for implementing the access to and use of the information held by payroll data providers. We expect these proposed rules will support proper use of information exchanges with payroll data providers that will help us administer our programs more efficiently and prevent improper payments under titles II and XVI of the Act, which can otherwise occur when we do not receive timely and accurate wage and employment information.
2023
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Intermediate Improvement to the Disability Adjudication Process: Including How We Consider Past Work (September 29, 2023)
Summary: We propose to revise the time period that we consider when determining whether an individual’s past work is relevant for purposes of making disability determinations and decisions. Specifically, we would revise the definition of past relevant work (PRW) by reducing the relevant work period from 15 to 5 years. This change would allow individuals to focus on the most current and relevant information about their past work, better reflect the current evidence base on changes over time in worker skill decay and job responsibilities, reduce processing time and improve customer service, and reduce burden on individuals.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Expand the Definition of a Public Assistance Household (September 29, 2023)
Summary: We propose to expand the definition of a public assistance (PA) household for purposes of our programs, particularly the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, to include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as an additional means-tested public income maintenance (PIM) program. In addition, we seek public comment on expanding the definition to include households in which any other (as opposed to every other) member receives public assistance. We expect that the proposed rule would decrease the number of SSI applicants and recipients charged with in-kind support and maintenance (ISM). In addition, we expect that this proposal would decrease the amount of income we would deem to SSI applicants or recipients because we would no longer deem income from ineligible spouses and parents who receive SNAP benefits and live in the same household. These policy changes would reduce administrative burden for low-income households and SSA.
Temporary final rule with request for comments, Extension of the Flexibility in Evaluating “Close Proximity of Time” To Evaluate Changes in Healthcare Following the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (September 29, 2023)
Summary: On July 23, 2021, we issued a temporary final rule (TFR) with request for comments to lengthen the “close proximity of time” standard in the Listing of Impairments (the listings) for musculoskeletal disorders because the COVID–19 national public health emergency (PHE) caused many individuals to experience barriers that prevented them from timely accessing in-person healthcare. That prior TFR is effective until six months after the effective date of a determination by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) that a PHE resulting from the COVID–19 pandemic no longer exists. The Secretary of HHS made that determination, and the COVID–19 national PHE ended on May 11, 2023. However, healthcare practices in a post-PHE world are still evolving. We are therefore issuing this new TFR to extend the flexibility provided by the prior TFR until May 11, 2025, so we can evaluate changes in healthcare practices and determine the proper “close proximity of time” standard for the musculoskeletal disorders listings.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Expansion of the Rental Subsidy Policy for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Applicants and Recipients (August 24, 2023).
Summary: We propose to revise our regulations by applying nationwide the In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM) rental subsidy exception that is currently in place for SSI applicants and recipients residing in seven States. The exception recognizes that a “business arrangement” exists when the amount of required monthly rent for a property equals or exceeds the presumed maximum value. This proposed rule would improve nationwide program uniformity, and, we expect, improve equality in the application of the rental subsidy policy.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Changes to the Administrative Rules for Claimant Representation and Provisions for Direct Payment to Entities (August 4, 2023).
Summary: We propose to revise our regulations to enable us to directly pay entities fees we may authorize to their employees, as required by the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (First Circuit) in Marasco & Nesselbush, LLP v. Collins. To make direct payments, issue the necessary tax documents, and properly administer these rules, we propose to require all entities that want to receive direct payment of assigned fees and all representatives who want to be appointed on a claim, matter, or issue to register with us. We also propose to standardize the registration, appointment, and payment processes. We expect that this proposed rule will help us implement the changes required by the Marasco decision, increase accessibility to our electronic services, reduce delays, and help us prepare for more automation, thereby improving our program efficiencies.
Final Rule, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Digestive Disorders and Skin Disorders (June 8, 2023).
Summary: We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving digestive disorders and skin disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge, and comments we received from the public in response to a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Availability of Information and Records to the Public (June 6, 2023).
Summary: The Social Security Administration (SSA) is proposing revisions to our existing Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) regulations to conform with the requirements of the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016. The FOIA Improvement Act of 2016 requires Federal agencies to issue regulations on procedures for disclosure of records consistent with the amendments to the FOIA by such Act. We are also proposing the reorganization of our FOIA regulation to make our FOIA procedures easier for the public to understand and use.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Setting the Manner of Appearance of Parties and Witnesses at Hearings (May 19, 2023).
Summary: We propose to update our hearing regulations by changing the terms “video teleconference” to “video”; changing “telephone” to “audio”; and permitting “video” and “audio” to be used as standard manners of appearance. These changes would clarify that claimants may appear for hearings remotely, using private electronic devices that we do not own, operate, or approve. The proposed changes would also make clear that a claimant may appear for a hearing using approved online video conferencing applications, rather than conferencing options using equipment that we own or approve. Additionally, while our current regulations permit us to schedule claimants to appear by telephone in limited circumstances only, we propose to schedule claimants to appear by audio without similar restrictions, if the claimant does not object to appearing in that manner. We expect that these changes would provide us and claimants with additional flexibility, which would allow us to manage our hearing process more efficiently.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Omitting Food From In-Kind Support and Maintenance Calculations (February 15, 2023).
Summary: We propose to update our regulations to remove food from the calculation of In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM). We also propose to add conforming language to our definition of income, excluding food from the ISM calculation. Accordingly, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applicants and recipients would no longer need to provide information about their food expenses for us to consider in our ISM calculations. We expect that these changes will simplify our rules, making them less cumbersome to administer and easier for the public to understand and follow. These simplifications would make it easier for SSI applicants and recipients to comply with our program requirements, which would save time for both them and us, and improve the equitable treatment of food assistance within the SSI program. The proposed rule also includes other, minor revisions to the regulations related to income, including clarifying our longstanding position that income may be received “constructively.”
Final Rule, Service of Process and Updated Addresses for Certain Communications with the Agency (January 10, 2023).
Summary: We are revising our rules regarding service of legal process in lawsuits involving judicial review of final decisions of the Commissioner of Social Security on individual claims for benefits under title II, VIII, or XVI of the Social Security Act (Act) or individual claims for a Medicare Part D subsidy under title XVIII of the Act. We are revising our rules to provide that when summonses and complaints in these lawsuits are mailed, they should be sent to a central address, regardless of where the lawsuit is filed. We will also accept electronic service in these suits in accordance with the new Supplemental Rules for Social Security Actions, added to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) effective December 1, 2022. Additionally, we are updating our headquarters address; removing obsolete references and past jurisdictional responsibilities of regional Office of the General Counsel (OGC) offices, which no longer exist; and making other minor editorial changes. We expect that these changes will make the service of process for affected cases more streamlined and consistent with the FRCP.
2022
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Three Body System Listings (July 18, 2022).
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive, Endocrine Disorders, and Cancer (Malignant Neoplastic Diseases). We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Cardiovascular Disorders (June 29, 2022).
Summary: We propose to revise some of the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving cardiovascular disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The proposed revisions reflect advances in medical knowledge, our adjudicative experience, and comments we received from experts and the public in response to an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM), and at an outreach policy conference.
Final Rule, Reducing Burden on Families Acting as Representative Payees of Social Security Payments (June 13, 2022)
Summary: Section 102 of the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018 (Strengthening Protections Act) reduced the burden on families by exempting certain representative payees from our annual accounting requirements. We are revising our regulations to incorporate the statutory exemption for certain representative payees from annual accounting.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Three Body System Listings (May 4, 2022)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Special Senses and Speech, Hematological Disorders, and Congenital Disorders That Affect Multiple Body Systems. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Anti-Fraud System. (April 28, 2022)
Summary: We previously published a notice of a modified system of records entitled Anti-Fraud (AF) System. Because this system contains some investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes, this rule exempts those records within this system of records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act.
2021
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Four Body System Listings. (December 13, 2021)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Cardiovascular System, Digestive System, Skin Disorders, and Immune System Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM), Addressing Certain Types of Fraud Affecting Medicare Income Related Monthly Adjusted Amounts (IRMAA) (November 23, 2021)
Summary: Certain Medicare beneficiaries may have their taxable income affected by fraudulent activity, which in turn could affect the amount of and their ability to afford their Medicare Part B (medical insurance) and Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) premiums. We are seeking information from the public on the type of information we should consider relating to evidence of life changing events (LCE) resulting from criminal fraud or theft. Information from the public will help us determine whether and how we should revise our rules to provide relief to beneficiaries affected by fraud.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Three Body System Listings. (November 17, 2021)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Respiratory Disorders, Genitourinary Disorders, and Mental Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Removing the Waiting Period for Entitlement to Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits for Individuals with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. (August 27, 2021)
Summary: In accordance with the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019, as amended, this final rule eliminates the 5-month waiting period for the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program for individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) who were approved for SSDI benefits on or after July 23, 2020.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Neurological Disorders Body System Listings (August 2, 2021)
Summary: We are extending the expiration date of the body system, Neurological Disorders, in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations. We are making no other revisions to this body system in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate neurological impairments at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Rules Regarding the Frequency and Notice of Continuing Disability Reviews; Withdrawal (July 28, 2021)
Summary: We are withdrawing the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), Rules Regarding the Frequency and Notice of Continuing Disability Reviews, published in the Federal Register on November 18, 2019.
Temporary Final Rule, Flexibility in Evaluating "Close Proximity of Time" Due to COVID-19 Related Barriers to Healthcare (July 23, 2021)
Summary: Since the outset of the COVID-19 national public health emergency, many individuals have experienced barriers that prevent them from timely accessing healthcare. In response to those barriers, we are issuing this rule to temporarily revise our requirement in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that, for purposes of applying several of our musculoskeletal disorder listings, all relevant medical criteria be present simultaneously or “within a close proximity of time,” which we define as being “within a consecutive 4-month period.” While this rule is in effect, we will find that the evidence of a musculoskeletal disorder is present “within a close proximity of time” if the available evidence establishes such a condition within a consecutive 12-month period. We expect that this temporary change to our rules will allow us to make findings of disability in appropriate cases in which individuals have experienced barriers to access to healthcare because of the COVID-19 national public health emergency.
Final Rule, Rescission of Rules on Improved Agency Guidance Documents (April 21, 2021)
Summary: We are rescinding our rules on improved agency guidance documents. We published the rules pursuant to an Executive order (E.O.) entitled, “Promoting the Rule of Law Through Improved Agency Guidance Documents,” signed October 9, 2019. The October 2019 E.O. has been revoked by an E.O. entitled, “Revocation of Certain Executive Orders Concerning Federal Regulation,” signed January 20, 2021. We are rescinding these rules because the January 2021 E.O. requires the heads of Federal agencies to take steps promptly to rescind any regulations that implement or enforce the October 2019 E.O.
2020
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Anti-Fraud System (December 11, 2020)
Summary: We separately published notice of a modified system of records entitled Anti-Fraud (AF) System. Because this system will contain some investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes, this proposed rule will exempt those records within this system of records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act.
Final Rule, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Musculoskeletal Disorders (December 3, 2020)
Summary: We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving musculoskeletal disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge, and comments we received from the public in response to a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
Final Rule, Hearings Held by Administrative Appeals Judges of the Appeals Council (November 16, 2020)
Summary: We are revising our rules to clarify when and how administrative appeals judges (AAJ) on our Appeals Council may hold hearings and issue decisions. The Appeals Council already has the authority to hold hearings and issue decisions under our existing regulations, but we have not exercised this authority or explained the circumstances under which it would be appropriate for the Appeals Council to assume responsibility for holding a hearing and issuing a decision. This final rule will ensure the Appeals Council is not limited in the type of claims for which it may hold hearings. We expect that this rule will increase our adjudicative capacity when needed, and allow us to adjust more quickly to fluctuating short-term workloads, such as when an influx of cases reaches the hearing level. Our ability to use our limited resources more effectively will help us quickly optimize our hearings capacity, which in turn will allow us to issue accurate, timely, high-quality decisions.
Interim Final Rule, Waiver of Recovery of Certain Overpayment Debts Accruing During the COVID-19 Pandemic Period (August 27, 2020)
Summary: We are issuing this interim final rule with request for comments to revise our regulations on how we waive the recovery of certain overpayment debts. We will apply this interim final rule when an affected beneficiary requests waiver of certain overpayment debts that accrued during a portion of the COVID-19 pandemic period. Under this rule, we may waive recovery of these overpayment debts using a streamlined internal process. Since the overpayment debts at issue occurred because of the circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 national public health emergency, we can assume that these debts are not the fault of the affected beneficiaries due directly to our strategic decision to reprioritize workloads to stop manually processing certain actions, and it would be against equity and good conscience to collect them. In particular, qualifying overpayment debts include those incurred between March 1 to September 30, 2020 that we did not manually process as a result of our cession of certain activities, and that we identified by December 31. We expect that this interim final rule will allow us to maintain effective stewardship of the Social Security programs, while simultaneously ensuring that affected beneficiaries are not disadvantaged by our actions during this unprecedented national public health emergency.
Final Rule, Improved Agency Guidance Documents (August 20, 2020)
Summary: This final rule explains our process for issuing guidance documents under Executive Order (E.O.) 13891, “Promoting the Rule of Law Through Improved Agency Guidance Documents.” We will follow this process when we issue future guidance documents that meet the criteria set forth in the E.O. and the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) guidance on the E.O.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Three Body System Listings (May 21, 2020)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Low Birth Weight and Failure to Thrive, Endocrine Disorders, and Cancer (Malignant Neoplastic Diseases). We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Social Security Ruling, SSR 20-01p: Titles II and XVI: How We Determine an Individual's Education Category (March 9, 2020)
Summary: This ruling explains how we determine an individual's education category in adult initial disability decisions, determinations, redeterminations, and continuing disability reviews under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act.
Final Rule, Removing Inability To Communicate in English as an Education Category (February 25, 2020)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed regulations to eliminate the education category “inability to communicate in English” when we evaluate disability claims for adults under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act. This education category is no longer a useful indicator of an individual's educational attainment or of the vocational impact of an individual's education because of changes in the national workforce since we adopted the current rule more than 40 years ago. We expect that these revisions will help us better assess the vocational impact of education in the disability determination process.
Rescission of Social Security Ruling 86-3(5), Notice of Rescission of Social Security Acquiescence Ruling 86-3(5)—Martinez v. Heckler, 735 F.2d 795 (5th Cir. 1984) —Disability Program—Individuals Who Are Illiterate and Unable To Communicate in English—Titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (February 25, 2020)
Summary: In accordance with 20 CFR 402.35(b)(2), 404.985(e)(4) and 416.1485(e)(4), the Commissioner of Social Security gives notice of the rescission of Social Security Acquiescence Ruling (AR) 86-3(5).
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration for Three Body System Listings (February 24, 2020)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Special Senses and Speech, Hematological Disorders, and Congenital Disorders That Affect Multiple Body Systems. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Advance Designation of Representative Payees for Social Security Beneficiaries (February 11, 2020)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed regulations specifying the information Social Security beneficiaries and applicants must provide to designate individuals as their possible representative payee in advance of our determination that the beneficiary needs a representative payee. These regulations additionally set forth how we will consider an individual's advance designation when we select a representative payee, and fulfill our obligation under 201 of the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018.
Acquiescence Ruling, 19-1(6) Hicks v. Commissioner of Social Security, 909 F.3d 786 (6th Cir. 2018), reh'g en banc den. (Mar. 29, 2019): Disregarding Evidence During Redeterminations under Sections 205(u) and 1631(e)(7) of the Social Security Act (February 4, 2020)
Summary: This Acquiescence Ruling explains how we will apply a holding in a decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. We have determined that the court's holding conflicts with our interpretation of the provisions of the Social Security Act that require us to disregard evidence when we conduct a redetermination or make an initial determination of entitlement or eligibility, in cases in which there is a reason to believe that fraud or similar fault was involved in the providing of evidence.
2019
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Hearings Held by Administrative Appeals Judges of the Appeals Council (December 20, 2019)
Summary: We propose to revise our rules to clarify when and how administrative appeals judges (AAJ) on our Appeals Council may hold hearings and issue decisions. The Appeals Council already has the authority to hold hearings and issue decisions under our existing statute and regulations, but we have not exercised this authority or explained the circumstances under which it would be appropriate for the Appeals Council to assume responsibility for holding a hearing and issuing a decision. The proposed clarifications will ensure the Appeals Council is not limited in the type of claims for which it may hold hearings. We expect that these proposed rules will increase our adjudicative capacity when needed, allowing us to adjust more quickly to fluctuating short-term workloads, such as when an influx of cases reaches the hearings level. Our ability to utilize our limited resources more effectively will help us quickly optimize our hearings capacity, which in turn will allow us to continue to issue accurate, timely, high-quality decisions.
Final Rule, Setting the Manner for the Appearance of Parties and Witnesses at a Hearing (December 18, 2019)
Summary: We are publishing a final rule we proposed in November 2018 regarding setting the time, place, and manner of appearance for hearings at the administrative law judge (ALJ) level of our administrative review process, with modifications. Our final rule states that we (the agency) will determine how parties and witnesses will appear at a hearing before an ALJ, and that we will set the time and place for the hearing accordingly. We will schedule the parties to a hearing to appear by video teleconference (VTC), in person, or, in limited circumstances, by telephone. Under this final rule, we will decide how parties and witnesses will appear at a hearing based on several factors, but the parties to a hearing will continue to have the ability to opt out of appearing by VTC at the ALJ hearings level. Finally, we are revising our rule to state that, at the ALJ hearing level, if we need to send an amended notice of hearing, or if we need to schedule a supplemental hearing, we will send the amended notice or notice of supplemental hearing at least 20 days before the date of the hearing. The date of hearing indicated in the amended notice or notice of supplemental hearing will be at least 75 days from the date we first sent the claimant a notice of hearing, unless the claimant has waived his or her right to advance notice.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Advance Designation of Representative Payees for Social Security Beneficiaries (November 26, 2019)
Summary: The Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018 (Strengthening Protections Act) requires us to promulgate regulations specifying the information Social Security beneficiaries and applicants must provide to designate a representative payee in advance of our determination that the beneficiary needs a representative payee. We propose to revise our rules to satisfy this requirement, and to specify that we will allow individuals to designate in advance one or more potential representative payees. We also explain how we propose to consider an individual's advance designation when we select a representative payee.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Five Body System Listings (November 26, 2019)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Musculoskeletal System, Cardiovascular System, Digestive System, Skin Disorders, and Immune System Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Prohibiting Persons with Certain Criminal Convictions from Serving as Representative Payees; Correction (October 25, 2019)
Summary: On February 15, 2019, we published final rules in the Federal Register to prohibit persons convicted of certain crimes from serving as representative payees under the Social Security Act (Act), as required by the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018. Those final rules inadvertently included two words in three places that should not have been there, and omitted one word in two sections of the rules. This document corrects the inadvertent inclusions and omissions in the final rules.
Final Rule, Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Appointed Representatives; Correction (September 30, 2019)
Summary: On July 2, 2018, we published final rules in the Federal Register revising our rules of conduct and standards of responsibility for representatives. Those final rules reduced the amount of time to request Appeals Council review of a hearing officer's decision from 30 days to 14 business days, but we inadvertently failed to make the same change in the parallel sections of the CFR, which details when the Appeals Council will dismiss a request for review. This document corrects the omitted sections and makes our regulations consistent.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Two Body System Listings (September 24, 2019)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Respiratory Disorders and Genitourinary Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Security and Suitability Files (September 3, 2019)
Summary: We are issuing a final rule to exempt a system of records entitled Security and Suitability Files. This final rule also removes two systems of records listed in our exemptions, but which do not exist, and will replace them with a new exemption for this specified system of records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act.
Social Security Ruling, SSR 19-4p: Titles II and XVI: Evaluating Cases Involving Primary Headache Disorders (August 26, 2019)
Summary: This ruling provides guidance on how we establish that a person has a medically determinable impairment of a primary headache disorder and how we evaluate primary headache disorders in disability claims under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act.
Social Security Ruling, SSR 19-3p: Titles II and XVI: Requesting Reconsideration or Hearing by an Administrative Law Judge (August 14, 2019)
Summary: The purpose of this ruling is to explain the two options available to claimants appealing our determinations that they are not disabled based on medical factors. This SSR explains both the paper and electronic options for requesting reconsideration or a hearing by an ALJ, and the similarities and differences between these two options. In order to request reconsideration or a hearing using iAppeals, our electronic appeal option, claimants must submit all of the information we need to process their appeals at the time they file their electronic appeals. This requirement is part of our streamlined electronic appeal procedures. Claimants also can upload and simultaneously submit evidence with their electronic appeals. After claimants have filed their appeals, they can submit evidence by fax, by mail, or in-person at one of our field offices or hearing offices as appropriate. A claimant has an ongoing duty to inform us about or submit all known evidence that relates to whether or not he or she is blind or disabled. An appointed representative must act with reasonable promptness to help obtain the information and evidence the claimant must submit, and forward the information or evidence to us as soon as practicable. When a claim is at the hearing level, the claimant, or representative, generally must inform us about or submit all written evidence no later than five business days before the date of the scheduled hearing. Our paper appeal procedures remain unchanged—a claimant still must timely request his or her appeal in writing, but may separately submit the additional information we need to process the appeal. Through this SSR, we are providing information that enables claimants to make informed decisions when deciding whether to use iAppeals or the paper appeal option to request reconsideration or a hearing.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Digestive Disorders and Skin Disorders (July 25, 2019)
Summary: We propose to revise the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving digestive and skin disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The proposed revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge, and comments we received from experts and the public in response to two advance notices of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM).
Social Security Ruling, SSR 19-2p: Titles II and XVI: Evaluating Cases Involving Obesity (May 20, 2019)
Summary: This ruling provides guidance on how we establish that a person has a medically determinable impairment of obesity and how we evaluate obesity in disability claims under Titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act.
Social Security Ruling, SSR 19-1p: Titles II and XVI: Effect of the Decision in Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Cases Pending at the Appeals Council (March 15, 2019)
Summary: This ruling explains how we will adjudicate cases pending at the Appeals Council in which the claimant has raised a timely challenge to the appointment of an administrative law judge under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in Lucia v. SEC, 138 S. Ct. 2044 (2018).
Notice, Agreement on Social Security Between the United States and Iceland; Entry Into Force (February 26, 2019)
Summary: We are giving notice that an agreement coordinating the United States (U.S.) and Icelandic social security programs will go into force effective on March 1, 2019. The Agreement with Iceland, which was signed on September 27, 2016, is similar to U.S. social security agreements already in force with 29 other countries—Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay. Section 233 of the Social Security Act authorizes agreements of this type.
Final Rule, Prohibiting Persons With Certain Criminal Convictions From Serving as Representative Payees (February 15, 2019)
Summary: We are finalizing our proposed regulations on conducting background checks to prohibit persons convicted of certain crimes from serving as representative payees under the Social Security Act (Act), as required by the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Removing Inability To Communicate in English as an Education Category (February 2, 2019)
Summary: We propose to eliminate the education category “inability to communicate in English” when we evaluate disability claims for adults under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act. Changes in the national workforce since we added this category to our rules in 1978 demonstrate that this education category is no longer a reliable indicator of an individual's educational attainment or the vocational impact of an individual's education. The proposed revisions reflect research and data related to English language proficiency, work, and education; expansion of the international reach of our disability programs; and audit findings by our Office of the Inspector General. The proposed revisions would help us better assess the vocational impact of education in the disability determination process.
2018
Notice, United States and Slovenia Entry into Force (December 17, 2018)
Summary: We are giving notice that an agreement coordinating the United States (U.S.) and Slovenian social security programs will go into force effective on February 1, 2019. The Agreement with Slovenia, which was signed on January 17, 2017, is similar to U.S. social security agreements already in force with 28 other countries—Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and Uruguay. Section 233 of the Social Security Act authorizes agreements of this type.
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Consideration of Pain in the Disability Determination Process (December 17, 2018)
Summary: We are soliciting public input to ensure that the manner in which we consider pain in adult and child disability claims under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act) remains aligned with contemporary medicine and health care delivery practices. Specifically, we are requesting public comments and supporting data related to the consideration of pain and documentation of pain in the medical evidence we use in connection with claims for benefits. We will use the responses to the questions below and any relevant research and data we obtain or receive to determine whether and how we should propose revisions to our current policy regarding the evaluation of pain.
Notice, Review and Reassessment of the Social Security Administration's (SSA) Representative Payee Selection and Replacement Policies (December 14, 2018)
Summary: We are requesting information on the appropriateness of our order of preference lists for selecting representative payees (payees) and the effectiveness of our policy and operational procedures in determining when to change a payee. We are seeking this information to determine whether and how we should make any changes to our representative payee program to help ensure that we select suitable payees for our beneficiaries.
Notice, Modifications to the Disability Determination Procedures; End of the Single Decisionmaker Test and Extension of the Prototype Test (December 12, 2018)
Summary: We are announcing the end of the “single decisionmaker” test, consistent with our notice in the Federal Register in 2016, in which we said that we would end the test by December 28, 2018. This notice also extends the separate “prototype” test until its cessation in June 2020.
Final Rule, Social Security Administration Violence Evaluation and Reporting System, (December 10, 2018)
Summary: We are issuing a final rule to exempt a system of records entitled Social Security Administration Violence Evaluation and Reporting System (SSAvers) from certain provisions of the Privacy Act because this system will contain investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes.
Final Rule, Removal of Alternate Participant Program, (December 4, 2018)
Summary: We are removing from the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) our “Alternate Participant Program” rules because they are obsolete. We are removing these rules in accordance with the requirements of Executive Order (E.O.) 13777.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Security and Suitability Files (Nov. 15, 2018)
Summary: This rulemaking proposes to remove two systems of records listed in our exemptions, but which do not exist, and will replace them with a new exemption for this specified system of records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act, under 5 U.S.C. 552a(k)(5).
Notice, Privacy Act of 1974; System of Records, Security and Suitability Files (Nov. 15, 2018)
Summary: In accordance with the Privacy Act, we are issuing public notice of our intent to establish a new system of records entitled, Security and Suitability Files (60-0377). This notice publishes details of the new system as set forth under the caption, SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Setting the Manner for the Appearance of Parties and Witnesses at a Hearing (Nov. 15, 2018)
Summary: We propose to revise our rules to explain that the agency retains the right to determine how parties and witnesses will appear at a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ) at the hearing level of our administrative review process, and we will set the time and place for the hearing accordingly. We also propose to revise our rules to explain the State agency or the Associate Commissioner for Disability Determinations, or his or her delegate, will determine how parties and witnesses will appear, and will set the time and place for a hearing, before a disability hearing officer (DHO) at the reconsideration level in continuing disability review (CDR) cases. At both levels, we propose to schedule the parties to a hearing to appear by video teleconference (VTC), in person, or, in limited circumstances, by telephone. We propose that parties to a hearing will not have the option to opt out of appearing by the manner of hearing we choose. We also propose rules that explain how we will determine the manner of a party's or a witness's appearance. We expect these proposed changes would improve our service to the public by increasing the efficiency of our hearings processes and reducing the amount of time it takes us to schedule and hold hearings.
Final Rule, Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amounts for Medicare Part B and Prescription Drug Coverage Premiums (November 7, 2018)
Summary: The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) changed the modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) ranges associated with Medicare Part B and Medicare prescription drug coverage premiums for years beginning in 2018. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (BBA 2018) revised the MAGI ranges again for years beginning with 2019. We consider a beneficiary's MAGI and tax filing status to determine: The percentage of the unsubsidized Medicare Part B premium that the beneficiary must pay; and the percentage of the cost of basic Medicare prescription drug coverage the beneficiary must pay. This final rule makes our regulations consistent with the MAGI ranges specified by MACRA and BBA 2018.
Notice, Agreement on Social Security Between the United States and Uruguay; Entry Into Force (Oct. 25, 2018)
Summary: We are giving notice that an agreement coordinating the United States (U.S.) and Uruguayan social security programs effective on November 1, 2018. The Agreement with Uruguay, which was signed on January 10, 2017, is similar to U.S. social security agreements already in force with 27 other countries—Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Section 233 of the Social Security Act authorizes agreements of this type.
Notice, Cost-of-Living Increase and Other Determinations for 2019 (Oct. 24, 2018)
Summary: Under title II of the Social Security Act (Act), there will be a 2.8 percent cost-of-living increase in Social Security benefits effective December 2018. In addition, the national average wage index for 2017 is $50,321.89. The cost-of-living increase and national average wage index affect other program parameters as described below.
Notice, Agreement on Social Security Between the United States and the Federative Republic of Brazil; Entry Into Force (Oct. 16, 2018)
Summary: We are giving notice of an agreement coordinating the United States (U.S.) and Brazilian social security programs effective on October 1, 2018. The Agreement with Brazil, which was signed on June 30, 2015, is similar to U.S. social security agreements already in force with 26 other countries—Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Section 233 of the Social Security Act authorizes agreements of this type.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Prohibiting Persons with Certain Criminal Convictions from Serving as Representative Payees (Oct. 11, 2018)
Summary: We propose to amend our regulations to prohibit persons convicted of certain crimes from serving as representative payees under the Social Security Act (Act). We are proposing these revisions because of changes to the Act made by the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act of 2018.
Final Rule, Making Permanent the Attorney Advisor Program (August 15, 2018)
Summary: We are making permanent the attorney advisor program, which has proved to be an integral tool in providing timely decisions to the public while maximizing the use of our administrative law judges (ALJs). The attorney advisor initiative permits some attorney advisors to develop claims, including holding prehearing conferences, and, in cases in which the documentary record clearly establishes that a fully favorable decision is warranted, issue fully favorable decisions before a hearing is conducted. We expect that by making the attorney advisor program permanent, we will be able to continue to reduce the number of pending claims at the hearing level of our administrative review process and provide more timely service to claimants.
Notice, Notice of Senior Executive Service Performance Review Board Membership (August 8, 2018)
Summary: Title 5, U.S. Code, 4314 (c)(4), requires that the appointment of Performance Review Board members be published in the Federal Register before service on said Board begins.
Final Rule, Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Appointed Representatives (July 2, 2018)
Summary: We are revising our rules of conduct and standards of responsibility for representatives. We are also updating and clarifying the procedures we use when we bring charges against a representative for violating these rules and standards. These changes are necessary to better protect the integrity of our administrative process and to further clarify representatives’ existing responsibilities in their conduct with us. The revisions should not be interpreted to suggest that any specific conduct was permissible under our rules prior to these changes; instead, we seek to ensure that our rules of conduct and standards of responsibility are clearer as a whole and directly address a broader range of inappropriate conduct
Final Rule, Final Rule Extension of Sunset Date for Attorney Advisor Program (June 22, 2018)
Summary: We are extending for one year our rule authorizing attorney advisors to conduct certain prehearing proceedings and to issue fully favorable decisions. The current rule is scheduled to expire on August 3, 2018. In this final rule, we are extending the sunset date to August 2, 2019. We are making no other substantive changes.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Social Security Administration Violence Evaluation and Reporting System (June 14, 2018)
Summary: The Social Security Administration separately published a notice of a new system of records, Social Security Administration Violence Evaluation and Reporting System (SSAvers). Because this system will contain investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes, this proposed rule will exempt those records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Date for Endocrine Disorders Body System Listings (May 22, 2018)
Summary: We are extending the expiration date of Endocrine Disorders body system in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations. We are making no other revisions to the body system in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body system at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Removal of Special Payments at Age 72 (May 10, 2018)
Summary: We are removing from the Code of Federal Regulations our “Special Payments at Age 72” rules because they are obsolete. We are removing these rules in accordance with the requirements of Executive Order (E.O.) 13777.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Musculoskeletal Disorders (May 7, 2018)
Summary: We propose to revise the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving musculoskeletal disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). These proposed revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge and treatment of musculoskeletal disorders, and recommendations from medical experts.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Two Body System Listings (April 2, 2018)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Special Senses and Speech and Congenital Disorders That Affect Multiple Body Systems. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Notice, Penalty Inflation Adjustments for Civil Monetary Penalties (Jan. 12, 2018)
Summary: The Social Security Administration is giving notice of its updated maximum civil monetary penalties. These amounts are effective from January 15, 2018 through January 14, 2019. These figures represent an annual adjustment for inflation. The updated figures and notification are required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015.
Final Rule, Extension of Sunset Date for Attorney Advisor Program (Jan. 8, 2018)
Summary: We are extending for six months our rule authorizing attorney advisors to conduct certain prehearing proceedings and to issue fully favorable decisions. The current rule is scheduled to expire on February 5, 2018. In this final rule, we are extending the sunset date to August 3, 2018. We are making no other substantive changes.
2017
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Four Body System Listings (Dec. 15, 2017)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Musculoskeletal System, Cardiovascular System, Digestive System, and Skin Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Final Rule, Extension of Sunset Date for Attorney Advisor Program (July 25, 2017)
Summary: We are extending for six months our rule authorizing attorney advisors to conduct certain prehearing proceedings and to issue fully favorable decisions. The current rule is scheduled to expire on August 4, 2017. In this final rule, we are extending the sunset date to February 5, 2018. We are making no other substantive changes.
Final Rule, Anti-Harassment and Hostile Work Environment Case Tracking and Records System (Apr. 5, 2017)
Summary: The Social Security Administration (SSA) issued a final rule to amend its Privacy Act regulation exempting portions of a system of records from certain provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, entitled Anti-Harassment & Hostile Work Environment Case Tracking and Records System. Because this system will contain some investigatory material compiled for law enforcement purposes, this rule will exempt those records within this new system of records from specific provisions of the Privacy Act.
Final Rule, Revisions to Rules Regarding the Evaluation of Medical Evidence (Jan. 18, 2017)
Summary: We are revising our medical evidence rules. The revisions include redefining several key terms related to evidence, revising our rules about acceptable medical sources (AMS), revising how we consider and articulate our consideration of medical opinions and prior administrative medical findings, revising our rules about medical consultants (MC) and psychological consultants (PC), revising our rules about treating sources, and reorganizing our evidence regulations for ease of use. These revisions conform our rules to the requirements of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA), reflect changes in the national healthcare workforce and in the manner that individuals receive medical care, and emphasize the need for objective medical evidence in disability and blindness claims. We expect that these changes will simplify our rules to make them easier to understand and apply, and allow us to continue to make accurate and consistent disability determinations and decisions.
2016
Final Rule, Ensuring Program Uniformity at the Hearing and Appeals Council Levels of the Administrative Review Process (Dec 16, 2016)
Summary: We are revising our rules so that more of our procedures at the hearing and Appeals Council levels of our administrative review process are consistent nationwide. We anticipate that these nationally consistent procedures will enable us to administer our disability programs more efficiently and better serve the public.
We are revising and making final the rules for creating nationally uniform hearing and Appeals Council procedures, which we proposed in a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published in the Federal Register on July 12, 2016 (81 FR 45079). In the preamble to the NPRM, we discussed the changes we proposed from our current rules and our reasons for proposing those changes. In the NPRM, we proposed revisions to:
(1) The time frame for notifying claimants of a hearing date.
(2) The information in our hearing notices.
(3) The period when we require claimants to inform us about or submit written evidence, written statements, objections to the issues, and subpoena requests.
(4) What constitutes the official record.
(5) The manner in which the Appeals Council would consider additional evidence.
Final Rule, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infection and for Evaluating Functional Limitations in Immune System Disorders (Dec. 2, 2016)
Summary: We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). We also are revising the introductory text of the listings that we use to evaluate functional limitations resulting from immune system disorders. The revisions reflect our program experience, advances in medical knowledge, our adjudicative experience, recommendations from a commissioned report, and comments from medical experts and the public.
Final Rule, State Disability Examiners: Extension of the Expiration Date for State Disability Examiner Authority To Make Fully Favorable Quick Disability Determinations and Compassionate Allowance Determinations (Oct. 24, 2016)
Summary: We are extending, until December 28, 2018, the expiration date of our disability examiner authority (DEA) rule, which authorizes State agency disability examiners to make fully favorable determinations without the approval of a State agency medical or psychological consultant in claims that we consider under our quick disability determination (QDD) and compassionate allowance (CAL) processes. This is our last extension of this rule because we will phase out the use of DEA during the extension period under section 832 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA). This extension provides us the time necessary to take all of the administrative actions we need to take in order to reinstate uniform use of medical and psychological consultants. The current rule will expire on November 11, 2016. In this final rule, we are changing the November 11, 2016 expiration or “sunset” date to December 28, 2018, extending the authority for 2 years and 1 month. This is the final extension of our DEA rule. On December 28, 2018, at the conclusion of this extension, the authority for this test will terminate. We are making no other changes.
Final Rule, Unsuccessful Work Attempts and Expedited Reinstatement Eligibility (Oct 17, 2016)
These rules finalize the rules we proposed in our notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), published on May 11, 2016. In these rules, we remove some of the requirements for evaluation of an unsuccessful work attempt (UWA) that lasts between 3 and 6 months, allow previously entitled beneficiaries to apply for expedited reinstatement (EXR) in the same month they stop performing substantial gainful activity (SGA), and provide that provisional benefits will begin the month after the request for EXR if the beneficiary stops performing SGA in the month of the EXR request. These changes will simplify our policies and make them easier for the public to understand.
Final Rule, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Mental Disorders (Sept 26, 2016)
We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving mental disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The revisions reflect our program experience, advances in medical knowledge, recommendations from a commissioned report, and public comments we received in response to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).
Final Rule, Evidence from Excluded Medical Sources of Evidence (Sept 23, 2016)
Summary: In accordance with section 812 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA section 812), these rules explain how we will address evidence furnished by medical sources that meet one of BBA section 812’s exclusionary categories (excluded medical sources of evidence) as described below. Under these new rules, we will not consider evidence furnished by an excluded medical source of evidence unless we find good cause to do so. We identify five circumstances in which we may find good cause. In these rules, we also require excluded medical sources of evidence to notify us of their excluded status under section 223(d)(5)(C)(i) of the Social Security Act (Act), as amended, in writing each time they furnish evidence to us that relates to a claim for initial or continuing benefits under titles II or XVI of the Act. These rules will allow us to fulfill obligations that we have under BBA section 812.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Revisions to Rules Regarding the Evaluation of Medical Evidence (Sept 9, 2016)
Summary: We are proposing several revisions to our medical evidence rules. The proposals include redefining several key terms related to evidence, revising our list of acceptable medical sources (AMS), revising how we consider and articulate our consideration of medical opinions and prior administrative medical findings, revising who can be a medical consultant (MC) and psychological consultant (PC), revising our rules about treating sources, and reorganizing our evidence regulations for ease of use. These proposed revisions would conform our rules with the requirements of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA), reflect changes in the national healthcare workforce and in the manner that individuals receive primary medical care, simplify and reorganize our rules to make them easier to understand and apply, allow us to continue to make accurate and consistent decisions, and emphasize the need for objective medical evidence in disability and blindness claims.
Notice, Modifications to the Disability Determination Procedures; Extension of Testing of Some Disability Redesign Features (SDM) (Aug. 25, 2016)
Summary: We are announcing the extension of tests involving modifications to disability determination procedures authorized by 20 CFR 404.906 and 416.1406. These rules authorize us to test several modifications to the disability determination procedures for adjudicating claims for disability insurance benefits under title II of the Social Security Act (Act), and for supplemental security income payments based on disability under title XVI of the Act. This notice is our last extension of these tests, as we will be phasing out the program until its elimination in 2018 to comply with provisions of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA), §832
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Revisions to Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Appointed Representatives (Aug. 16, 2016)
Summary: We propose to revise our rules of conduct and standards of responsibility for representatives. We also propose to update and clarify procedures we use when we bring charges against a representative for violating our rules of conduct and standards of responsibilities for representatives. These changes are necessary to better protect the integrity of our administrative process and further clarify representatives’ currently existing responsibilities in their conduct with us. The changes to our rules are not meant to suggest that any specific conduct is permissible under our existing rules; instead, we seek to ensure that our rules of conduct and standards of responsibility are clearer as a whole and directly address a broader range of inappropriate conduct.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Four Body System Listings (Aug. 3, 2016)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Musculoskeletal System, Cardiovascular System, Digestive System, and Skin Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Ensuring Program Uniformity at the Hearing and Appeals Council Levels of the Administrative Review Process (Jul. 12, 2016)
Summary: We propose to revise our rules so that more of our procedures at the administrative law judge (ALJ) and Appeals Council levels of our administrative review process are consistent nationwide. We propose revisions to:1) the time-frame for notifying claimants of a hearing date;
2) the information in our hearing notices;
3) the period when we require claimants to inform us about or submit written evidence, written statements, objections to the issues, and subpoena requests;
4) what constitutes the official record; and
5) the manner in which the Appeals Council considers additional evidence.
We anticipate that these nationally consistent procedures will enable us to administer our disability programs more efficiently and better serve the public.
Final Rule, Revised, Medical Criteria for Evaluating Neurological Disorders (Jul. 1, 2016)
Summary: We are making final the rule for evaluating neurological disorders that we proposed in an NPRM published in the Federal Register on February 25, 2014 (79 FR 10636). In the preamble to the NPRM, we discussed the revisions to our current rule for the neurological body system and our reasons for proposing those revisions. To the extent that we are adopting the proposed rule as published, we are not repeating that information here; interested readers may refer to the NPRM preamble. We incorporated into the final rule the portions of Social Security Ruling (SSR) 87-6, “Titles II and XVI: The Role of Prescribed Treatment in the Evaluation of Epilepsy” that continue to be relevant to the treatment of epilepsy. As part of the publication of this final rule, we are rescinding SSR 87-6. We also respond to public comments on the NPRM and explain what changes we are making based on those comments in the “Public Comments on the NPRM” section of the preamble.
Interim Final Rule, Penalty Inflation Adjustments for Civil Money Penalties (Jun. 27, 2016)
Summary: In accordance with the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, as amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996, and further amended by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, section 701: Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015, this interim final rule incorporates the penalty inflation adjustments for the civil money penalties contained in the Social Security Act.
Final Rule, Extension of Effective Date for Temporary Pilot Program Setting the Time and Place for a Hearing Before an Administrative Law Judge (Jun. 24, 2016)
Summary: We are extending for one year our pilot program that authorizes the agency to set the time and place for a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Extending the pilot program continues our commitment to improve the efficiency of our hearing process and to maintain a hearing process that results in accurate, high-quality decisions for claimants. The current pilot program will expire on August 12, 2016. In this final rule, we are extending the effective date to August 11, 2017. We are making no other changes.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Evidence from Statutorily Excluded Medical Sources (Jun. 10, 2016)
Summary: In accordance with section 812 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA section 812), we propose to revise our rules to explain how we would address evidence furnished by medical sources that meet one of BBA section 812’s exclusionary categories (statutorily excluded medical sources). Under this proposed rule, we would not consider evidence furnished by a statutorily excluded medical source unless we find good cause to do so. We propose several circumstances in which we would find good cause, and we also propose to require statutorily excluded medical sources to notify us of their excluded status when they furnish evidence to us. These rules would allow us to fulfill obligations that we have under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA).
Final Rule, Revised, Medical Criteria for Evaluating Respiratory System Disorders (Jun. 9, 2016)
Summary: We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments that we use to evaluate claims involving respiratory disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). The revisions reflect our program experience and advances in medical knowledge since we last comprehensively revised this body system in 1993, as well as comments we received from medical experts and the public.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Two Body System Listings (May 24, 2016)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Endocrine Disorders and Immune System Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension ensures that we will continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Unsuccessful Work Attempts and Expedited Reinstatement Eligibility (May 11, 2016)
Summary: We propose to remove some of the requirements for evaluation of an unsuccessful work attempt (UWA) that lasts between 3 and 6 months. We also propose to allow previously entitled beneficiaries to apply for expedited reinstatement (EXR) in the same month they stop performing substantial gainful activity (SGA). Provisional benefits will begin the month after the request for EXR if the beneficiary stops performing SGA in the month of the EXR request. These changes would simplify our policies and make them easier for the public to understand.
Final Rule, Extension of the Workers' Compensation Offset from Age 65 to Full Retirement Age—Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act (Apr. 4, 2016)
Summary: This final rule adopts, with one additional change, the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that we published in the Federal Register on January 4, 2016. This final rule revises our rules by incorporating changes made by the ABLE Act to section 224(a) of the Social Security Act (Act). Under this final rule, the age at which disability insurance benefits (DIB) are no longer subject to reduction (offset) based on receipt of workers' compensation or public disability benefits (WC/PDB) changes from age 65 to the day the individual attains full retirement age.
Our current program rules include the law; regulations; Commissioner rulings; and, employee operating instructions.
Advance notice of proposed rulemaking, Revising the Ticket to Work Program Rules (Feb. 10, 2016)
Summary: We are soliciting public input on whether and how we might revise the current Ticket to Work program rules. The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 established the Ticket to Work program to allow individuals with disabilities to seek services to obtain and retain employment in order to reduce dependency on cash benefit programs. In creating the program, Congress found that eliminating barriers to work and providing individuals with real choice in obtaining services and technology to find, enter, and maintain employment can greatly improve the short and long-term financial independence and personal well-being of our beneficiaries.
We want to explore improving our Ticket to Work program as part of our ongoing effort to help our beneficiaries find and maintain employment that leads to increased independence and enhanced productivity. If we propose specific revisions to our regulations, we will publish a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register. (Comment period closed on Apr. 11, 2016)
Final Rule, Returning Evidence at the Appeals Council Level (Feb. 5, 2016)
Summary: This final rule adopts the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that we published in the Federal Register on October 21, 2015. This final rule revises our rules regarding returning evidence at the Appeals Council (AC) level. Under this final rule, the AC will no longer return additional evidence it receives when the AC determines the additional evidence does not relate to the period on or before the date of the administrative law judge (ALJ) decision.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking,Extension of the Workers' Compensation Offset From Age 65 to Full Retirement Age—Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act (Jan. 4, 2016)
Summary: We propose to amend our regulations to incorporate changes made by the ABLE Act to section 224(a) of the Social Security Act. The ABLE Act amends section 224(a) by changing the age at which disability insurance benefits (DIB) are no longer subject to reduction (offset) based on receipt of workers' compensation or public disability benefits (WC/PDB), from age 65 to the day the individual attains full retirement age. This change will make our rules consistent with the provisions of the Act, as amended by the ABLE Act.
2015
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (Nov. 25, 2015)
Summary: The departments and agencies listed in this document propose revisions to modernize, strengthen, and make more effective the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects that was promulgated as a Common Rule in 1991. This NPRM seeks comment on proposals to better protect human subjects involved in research, while facilitating valuable research and reducing burden, delay, and ambiguity for investigators. This proposed rule is an effort to modernize, simplify, and enhance the current system of oversight. The participating departments and agencies propose these revisions to the human subjects regulations because they believe these changes would strengthen protections for research subjects while facilitating important research. (Comment period closed on Jan. 6, 2016)
Final Rule, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Nov. 10, 2015)
Summary: This final rule adopts the joint interim final rule that was published in the Federal Register on December 19, 2014. This final rule implements the final guidance Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) published by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on December 26, 2013. This rule brings into effect the Uniform Guidance as required by OMB. Implementation of this guidance by all Federal award-making agencies will reduce administrative burden and risk of waste, fraud, and abuse for the approximately $600 billion per year awarded in Federal financial assistance government wide. The result will be more Federal dollars reprogrammed to support the mission, an increase in the number of new entities able to compete and win awards, and ultimately a stronger framework to provide key services to American citizens and support the basic research that underpins the United States economy.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Returning Evidence at the Appeals Council Level (Oct. 21, 2015)
Summary: We propose to amend our regulations by revising our rules regarding the return of evidence at the Appeals Council (AC) level. Our current rules state that the AC will return to the claimant additional evidence it receives when the AC finds the evidence does not relate to the period on or before the date of the administrative law judge's (ALJ) hearing decision. We are proposing these revisions to give the AC discretion in returning additional evidence that it receives when the AC determines the additional evidence does not relate to the period on or before the date of the ALJ decision.
Final Rule, State Disability Examiners: Authority to Make Fully Favorable Quick Disability Determinations and Compassionate Allowance Determinations; Expiration Date Extension (Oct. 19, 2015)
Summary: We are extending the expiration date of our rule that authorizes State agency disability examiners to make fully favorable determinations without the approval of a State agency medical or psychological consultant in claims that we consider under our quick disability determination (QDD) and compassionate allowance (CAL) processes. The current rule will expire on November 13, 2015. In this f inal rule, we are changing the November 13, 2015 expiration or “sunset” date to November 11, 2016, extending the authority for 1 year. We are making no other substantive changes.
Final Rule, Collection of Administrative Debts (Oct. 14, 2015)
Summary: This final rule adopts the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that we published in the Federal Registe ron March 24, 2014. This final rule creates our own administrative debt collection regulations, and it improves our authorities to pursue collection of administrative debts from current and separated employees and non-employee debtors as authorized by the Debt Collection Act (DCA) of 1982, amended by the Debt Collection Improvement Act (DCIA) of 1996 and other existing debt collection statutes. We expect that this final rule will have no impact on the public
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Vocational Factors of Age, Education, and Work Experience in the Adult Disability Determination Process (Sept. 14, 2015)
Summary: We are soliciting public input about how we should consider the vocational factors of age, education, and work experience in adult disability claims under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). There have been significant changes in technologyuse and workforce demographics since we first adopted our vocational factor regulations in 1978. We are requesting public comments, along with any supporting data, to assist in our efforts to streamline, simplify, and ensure the ongoing relevance of our disability determination programs. (Comment period closed, Dec. 14, 2015)
Final Rule; Correction amendments, Revised Listings for Growth Disorders and Weight Loss in Children; Corrections (Aug. 12, 2015)
Summary: We published a document in the Federal Register revising our rules on April 13, 2015. That document inadvertently included incorrect values in table II of listing 105.08(B)(1)(c) of appendix 1 to subpart P of 20 CFR part 404. This document corrects the final regulation by revising this table.
Final Rule, Social Security Card Number Applications (Aug. 10, 2015)
Summary: This final rule adopts the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) we published in the Federal Register on February 26, 2015. This rule revises our regulations to allow applicants for a Social Security number (SSN) card to apply by completing a prescribed application and submitting the required evidence. We are also removing the word “documentary” from our description of certain evidence requirements and replacing “Immigration and Naturalization Service” with “Department of Homeland Security” to reflect that agency's creation. These changes will provide more flexibility in the ways in which the public may request SSN cards and allow us to implement an online SSN replacement card application system.
Final Rule, Extension of Effective Date for Temporary Pilot Program Setting the Time and Place for a Hearing Before an Administrative Law Judge (Jul. 2, 2015)
Summary: We are extending for one year our pilot program that authorizes the agency to set the time and place for a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Extending of the pilot program continues our commitment to improve the efficiency of our hearing process and to maintain a hearing process that results in accurate, high-quality decisions for claimants. The current pilot program will expire on August 10, 2015. In this final rule, we are extending the effective date to August 12, 2016. We are making no other substantive changes.
Final Rule, Sixty-Month Period of Employment Requirement for Government Pension Offset Exemption (Jun. 15, 2015)
Summary: This final rule adopts, with clarifying changes, the proposed rule we previously published in the Federal Register on August 3, 2007. This final rule revises our Government Pension Offset (GPO) regulations to reflect changes to the Social Security Act (“Act”) made by section 9007 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (OBRA 1987) and section 418 of the Social Security Protection Act of 2004 (SSPA). These regulations explain how and when we will reduce the Social Security spouse's benefit for some people who receive Federal, State, or local government pensions if Social Security did not cover their government work.
Final Rule, Extension of Sunset Date for Attorney Advisor Program (Jun. 5, 2015)
Summary: We are extending for 2 years our rule authorizing attorney advisors to conduct certain prehearing procedures and to issue fully favorable decisions. The current rule will expire on August 7, 2015. In this final rule, we are extending the sunset date to August 4, 2017. We are making no other substantive changes.
Final Rule, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Cancer (Malignant Neoplastic Diseases) (May 20, 2015)
Summary: We are revising the criteria in parts A and B of the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate claims involving cancer (malignant neoplastic diseases) under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). These revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge, recommendations from medical experts we consulted, and public comments we received in response to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).
Final Rules, Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Hematological Disorders (Apr. 17, 2015)
Summary: We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate cases involving hematological disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). These revisions reflect our adjudicative experience, advances in medical knowledge, diagnosis, and treatment, and public comments we received in response to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM).
Final Rule, Revised Listings for Growth Disorders and Weight Loss in Children (Apr. 13, 2015)
Summary: This rule adopts, with one change, the rule for evaluating growth disorders in children we proposed in a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) published in the Federal Register on May 22, 2013. Several body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) contain listings for children based on impairment of linear growth or weight loss. We are replacing those listings with new listings for low birth weight (LBW) and failure to thrive; a new listing for genitourinary impairments; and revised listings for growth failure in combination with a respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, or immune system disorder. These revisions reflect our program experience, advances in medical knowledge, and comments we received from medical experts and the public.
Final Rule, Submission of Evidence in Disability Claims (Mar. 20, 2015)
Summary: We are clarifying our regulations to require you to inform us about or submit all evidence known to you that relates to your disability claim, subject to two exceptions for certain privileged communications. This requirement includes the duty to submit all evidence that relates to your disability claim received from any source in its entirety, unless you previously submitted the same evidence to us or we instruct you otherwise. We are also requiring your representative to help you obtain the information or evidence that we require you to submit under our regulations. These modifications to our regulations will better describe your duty to submit all evidence that relates to your disability claim and enable us to have more complete case records on which to make more accurate disability determinations and decisions.
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Social Security Number Card Applications (Feb. 26, 2015)
Summary: We propose to revise our regulations to allow applicants for a Social Security number (SSN) card to apply by completing a prescribed application and submitting the required evidence, rather than completing a paper Form SS-5, Application for a Social Security Card. We also propose to remove the word “documentary” from our description of certain evidence requirements. These changes would provide flexibility in the ways in which the public may request SSN cards and allow us, in the future, to implement an online SSN replacement card application system, which we are currently developing. In addition, we propose to replace “Immigration and Naturalization Service” with “Department of Homeland Security” to reflect that agency's reorganization. (Comment period closed on Apr. 27, 2015)
Final Rules, Revisions to Direct Fee Payment Rules (Jan. 6, 2015)
Summary: We are adopting, with two revisions, our interim final rules that implemented amendments to the Social Security Act (Act) made by the Social Security Disability Applicants' Access to Professional Representation Act of 2010 (PRA). The interim final rules made permanent the direct fee payment rules for eligible non-attorney representatives under titles II and XVI of the Act and for attorney representatives under title XVI of the Act. They also revised some of our eligibility policies for non-attorney representatives under titles II and XVI of the Act. Based on public comment and subsequent inquiries, we are revising our rules to clarify that an eligible non-attorney representative's liability insurance policy must include malpractice coverage. We are also reaffirming that a business entity legally permitted to provide the required insurance in the States in which the non-attorney representative conducts business must underwrite the policies.
Final Rule, Extension of Expiration Dates for Several Body System Listings (Jan. 2, 2015)
Summary: We are extending the expiration dates of the following body systems in the Listing of Impairments (listings) in our regulations: Growth Impairment, Musculoskeletal System, Respiratory System, Cardiovascular System, Digestive System, Hematological Disorders, Skin Disorders, Neurological, and Mental Disorders. We are making no other revisions to these body systems in this final rule. This extension will ensure that we continue to have the criteria we need to evaluate impairments in the affected body systems at step three of the sequential evaluation processes for initial claims and continuing disability reviews.
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