Articles from prior issues of The Advocate

March/April 2000

January 19, 2000

Ms. Terri Spurgeon
National Association of Disability Examiners
15692 Blackwater Rd
Zachary, LA 70791

Dear Ms. Spurgeon:

Thank you for your inquiry to Commissioner Apfel regarding the poster and flyer being used for the Disability Redesign Prototype. He has asked me to reply to you.

We regret that your interpretation of the language used on the poster and flyer is causing concern. It has certainly never been our intention to imply that decisions made by the Disability Determination Services (DDS) are not correct.

The language used on the poster and flyer resulted from a joint effort by the Prototype Executive Steering Committee. Representatives from SSA components and from several DDSs worked on and approved the final language. It was the consensus of the representatives that the wording needed to be presented at the most understandable and basic level. There was never an intention to imply that DDSs have not always tried to make right decisions the first time.

However, we agree that the language can be improved, and we will revise it. In the meantime, I think you will notice that SSA officials do refer to “paying people who should be paid as early in the process as possible” as one of the key objectives whenever we speak of the redesign changes.

We appreciate your sharing your suggestions as we work to implement the disability prototypes.

Sincerely,

Kenneth Nibali Associate Commissioner for Disability