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| Articles from prior issues of The
Advocate November/December 2001 Welcome - 2001 Nade Odyssey by Janette Hutchison, Oklahoma DDS THE WELCOME CARPET WAS ROLLED out in typical Texas style during the opening ceremonies of the NADE 2001 Annual Conference that took place in Austin, October 29 to November 01. It began with a time appropriate presentation of the Nation’s colors by the James Bowie High School R.O.T.C. that was concluded with a touching rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. Members were then introduced to Dave Ward, Texas DDS Deputy Commissioner, where they received a warm and witty welcome as well as a quick orientation to Texas and the Austin area. He then introduced Earl Melenbeck, the Associate Regional Commissioner for the Dallas Region. Have you ever wondered how we as Disability Examiners really make a difference in the overall Social Security picture? Well, Mr. Melebeck gave us a brief glimpse by sharing some of these statistics. Disability is 20 percent of the Social Security workload but requires 50 percent of the administration. It is the subject of 95 percent of the litigation. How is that meaningful? Without their benefit checks 40 percent of the recipients would be living in abject poverty. 70 percent of those receiving SSI benefits have no income other that their checks. The future? Well, he told us expectations are: 25 percent of today’s 25 year olds will be disabled before retirement age. In addition, with the fast changing occupational climate, medical/ vocational issues are expected to become more complex (which is not good news to those of us who thought they were currently complex enough.). But what Mr. Melenbeck was really saying is that what we do as Professionals and how we do it is certainly a very crucial part of this program. TADE President, Robert Edwards, then took the stage again welcoming members and expressed appreciation for those who were able to make it to the conference in spite of the overwhelming events of September 11. Those of us who were fortunate enough to attend would like to thank TADE and the committee. They gave us a chance to examine our professional future in an informative, enjoyable and gracious atmosphere. |
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