After wearing an Air Force uniform for more than 22 years, I know all about standing in lines. There were lines to get into the mess hall, the firing range—even for doctors’ appointments.
Want to join the Air Force? Get in line. Want to get out of the Air Force? Join the crowd. You get the idea. Believe me; I thought I knew everything I needed to know about standing in lines.
But then I learned about the staggering lines at the Social Security office for people applying for disability benefits. At the end of 2016, nearly 2 million people were waiting to learn if they would receive the insurance benefits they paid for when they were working.
More than 1 million are waiting for a hearing before an administrative law judge and the average wait for a hearing nationwide is a staggering 578 days. Some of these applicants will die before they reach the end of the line.
The airmen I stood in line with in while in the Air Force were healthy GIs who knew what they were getting into when they raised their right hand to take the oath of service. Former workers with severe disabilities waiting for their Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits have no idea what’s in store for them.
We at Allsup are doing our best to help them avoid those lines, and cut the wait time if they are denied at the application level and decide to appeal. Since 1984, we’ve helped more than 375,000 applicants receive the SSDI benefits they deserve.
One of the ways we do that is through empower by Allsup®. This unique software is a dual purpose online tool that offers people with disabilities a no-cost online option to determine if they are eligible for SSDI benefits. It also offers return-to-work assistance for people whose health has recovered to the point they’re able to return to the workforce.
Best of all, there’s no waiting in line. You can start your SSDI application from the comfort of your home, and the easy-to-understand information is readily available on your desktop, laptop, tablet or mobile device.
More than half of the people Allsup helps are approved for SSDI benefits at the initial application level—they never have to endure the SSDI hearing backlog. Overall, 97 percent of the people who complete the SSDI application process with Allsup obtain their benefits. See how empower by Allsup® can speed up the process when applying for Social Security disability benefits.
