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Post by lurker/dibs on Jun 25, 2013 10:20:27 GMT -5
Yeah, we get something new and interesting. I am working at home today. At 4:00 my support staff person sent me an e-mail telling me that the Representative for my 2:00 PM hearing tomorrow just dropped 465 pages of medical evidence into the record. That will be nice to see tomorrow morning. Oh, I must remember to speak to the Rep about doing a brief for me on this case since he/she hasn't so far. Yeah, it's always something. It is a great job and I love it, but, oooohhhhhhhhhh, sometimes. Thank God, I have my kitties to relax me!!! Sorry to hear of this dilemma Bartleby. It a good thing you have the kitties to pet and calm you. There is no excuse to take until the day before a hearing (or day of the hearing) to produce such large amounts of medical records. It is just sloppy or negligent lawyering. As someone who has been involved in social security law for close to 30 years, I have never turned in more than a couple of pages in the last week prior to the hearing, just to update the file. Give the kitties a pat for me. I've just got to take up for the rep here. As a rule and as a rep, I do not produce large quantities of records immediately preceding a hearing. However, there have been times when medical providers have not cooperated and refused to supply records within the HIPPA rules. Sometimes it requires me calling and begging day after day to get records, which will occasionally result in receiving records mere days before a hearing. However, I will note that I usually submit them and then call and leave word for the ALJ that I understand if he/she would like to continue the hearing or take time in post to review all of the records. I have never worked for ODAR but have handled thousands of social security cases. Things happen. And so long as it is not a routine practice, my experience is that most judges understand. It is not fun for the rep to have to review those records and I'm positive that it totally sucks for the ALJ when that happens.
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Post by moopigsdad on Jun 25, 2013 10:34:41 GMT -5
Sorry to hear of this dilemma Bartleby. It a good thing you have the kitties to pet and calm you. There is no excuse to take until the day before a hearing (or day of the hearing) to produce such large amounts of medical records. It is just sloppy or negligent lawyering. As someone who has been involved in social security law for close to 30 years, I have never turned in more than a couple of pages in the last week prior to the hearing, just to update the file. Give the kitties a pat for me. I've just got to take up for the rep here. As a rule and as a rep, I do not produce large quantities of records immediately preceding a hearing. However, there have been times when medical providers have not cooperated and refused to supply records within the HIPPA rules. Sometimes it requires me calling and begging day after day to get records, which will occasionally result in receiving records mere days before a hearing. However, I will note that I usually submit them and then call and leave word for the ALJ that I understand if he/she would like to continue the hearing or take time in post to review all of the records. I have never worked for ODAR but have handled thousands of social security cases. Things happen. And so long as it is not a routine practice, my experience is that most judges understand. It is not fun for the rep to have to review those records and I'm positive that it totally sucks for the ALJ when that happens. Lurker2active I do not disagree with you that an occasional instance may occur, but some attorneys are notorious with submitting medical records at the last minute. Yes, one should contact the ALJ when there is an issue with acquiring medical records and let him/her know of the issue and the possibility of having to turn in records late. At least give the ALJ an option on how he/she would like to proceed. I have done thousands of SSA representations in the past and yes I have had one or two occasions where I had issues, but if one is diligent usually medical records can be retrieved in proper time. You cannot wait until 30 days or less prior to the hearing to retrieve those records. Do it much earlier. I do not think anything you said was incorrect at all. Great point!
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Post by lurker/dibs on Jun 25, 2013 11:24:44 GMT -5
Thanks moopigsdad. I was worried that existing ALJ's might find my defense objectionable. Many of my regular ALJs have told me stories of those reps who refuse to request medical records until after the hearing, waiting to see if the judge would pay based on the records that SS had paid for. If the ALJ doesn't pay, then they request records. That is totally unacceptable. Also, waiting for a hearing to be scheduled to request records is unacceptable. We have electronic access to the status list. Most cases go to RTS, so there is a clear indicator that records need to be requested. Also, one should roughly know when the hearing will be scheduled based on the wait time of each ODAR. Last minute records should never, ever be routine practice. It is impossible to properly prepare for the hearing as a rep, much less impossible for the ALJ.
I hope to become an ALJ and I'm not exactly sure how I would handle this issue as a judge. However, coming from this side of things, I have the experience to know that medical providers do not always cooperate, claimants don't always tell us each and every medical provider they have visited (inevitably they will remember that an MRI was performed last year and it slipped their mind until the day of the hearing), claimants exaggerate the number of medical providers they have seen ("I swear I have been to the ER 8 times in the last 12 months, obviously the hospital didn't send you everything"), and the reps must pay a "retrieval fee" for each provider from which they request records. Those are thoughts that seem to be lost of some ALJs.
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Post by hod on Jun 25, 2013 13:28:04 GMT -5
And let us not forget that many cases are continued to allow a claimant time to obtain a rep-so that when the case is rescheduled that poor rep may have only come on board within the last week or so.
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Post by mcb on Jun 25, 2013 17:20:33 GMT -5
Yeah, we get something new and interesting. I am working at home today. At 4:00 my support staff person sent me an e-mail telling me that the Representative for my 2:00 PM hearing tomorrow just dropped 465 pages of medical evidence into the record. That will be nice to see tomorrow morning. Oh, I must remember to speak to the Rep about doing a brief for me on this case since he/she hasn't so far. Yeah, it's always something. It is a great job and I love it, but, oooohhhhhhhhhh, sometimes. Thank God, I have my kitties to relax me!!!
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Post by cafeta on Jun 25, 2013 17:22:43 GMT -5
Yeah, we get something new and interesting. I am working at home today. At 4:00 my support staff person sent me an e-mail telling me that the Representative for my 2:00 PM hearing tomorrow just dropped 465 pages of medical evidence into the record. That will be nice to see tomorrow morning. Oh, I must remember to speak to the Rep about doing a brief for me on this case since he/she hasn't so far. Yeah, it's always something. It is a great job and I love it, but, oooohhhhhhhhhh, sometimes. Thank God, I have my kitties to relax me!!! Thanks mcb,, classic!!!
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Post by JudgeRatty on Jun 25, 2013 20:04:17 GMT -5
LOL! That's awesome!
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Post by bartleby on Jun 25, 2013 20:16:00 GMT -5
What in the wide, wide world of sports is my picture doing on here?? Now everyone knows what I wear under the robe. Try doing that with a handful of puppies..
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Post by JudgeRatty on Jun 25, 2013 20:35:07 GMT -5
LOL! Bartleby....too funny. Thanks for that vision ....puppies & kittens under the robe. LOL!
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Post by moopigsdad on Jun 26, 2013 8:04:25 GMT -5
What in the wide, wide world of sports is my picture doing on here?? Now everyone knows what I wear under the robe. Try doing that with a handful of puppies.. Quite frankly Bartleby, I wouldn't want to do it with puppies or kitties. LOL! I do think it was very exciting that mcb was able to capture such a candid photo of you.
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Post by bartleby on Jun 26, 2013 8:46:07 GMT -5
Once upon a million years ago, mcb and I worked together for a short period.. He is a good man irregardless of what you may hear..
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Post by moopigsdad on Jun 26, 2013 9:00:10 GMT -5
Once upon a million years ago, mcb and I worked together for a short period.. He is a good man irregardless of what you may hear.. The rumors run rampant about mcb, but I don't believer any of them that you started Bartleby. I know mcb is a good person.
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Post by mcb on Jul 11, 2013 17:16:41 GMT -5
Missed all this chitchat. "Good" to hear.
FYI, that's not Bartleby in the .jpg, but those are his kitties.
He rents them out by the hour, or will lend them out to special friends.
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Post by bartleby on Jul 11, 2013 20:49:41 GMT -5
However, they must be cleaned and fed before returning.. And, I still haven't forgiven you for the time you gave them all margaritas and told them it was lemonade. They were doing the Mexican hat dance for three days and doing skits out of Puss and Boots, especially the litter box dance..
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