STDP’s Backlog Goal Will Not Be Reached

SSA acknowledges that it will not reach STDP’s goal of reducing the backlog of appealed cases to 375,000 by December 1996. In fact, OHA’s backlog of about 515,000 appealed cases as of August 1996—about 22 months into STDP—was 3 percent higher than the backlog of about 500,000 that existed at the plan’s inception. OHA is relying on increased productivity from its ALJs and attorneys to increase its ability to dispose of cases and facilitate reaching this revised target. During fiscal year 1995, OHA received approximately 37,500 more appealed cases than it had initially projected for the year. OHA’s Allowance Rate Has Decreased Under STDP

Some SSA and OHA officials had expressed concern to us that STDP’s aggressive processing goals could result in inappropriate benefit awards for some disability claimants and that STDP’s initiatives could cause OHA’s allowance rate to increase. However, the percent of appealed cases allowed by OHA since STDP’s inception has notably decreased. The allowance rate has decreased from about 75 percent in fiscal year 1994— the fiscal year preceding STDP’s implementation—to about 69 percent through the third quarter of fiscal year 1996. SSA has not completed any analyses of factors contributing to this decrease, however. Recommendation to the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration

SSA is evaluating the accuracy of the decisions made under STDP to help determine the advisability of continuing with the plan.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the Social Security Administration's (SSA) Short-Term Disability Plan (STDP), focusing on: (1) progress made by SSA's Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) in meeting STDP backlog reduction and case processing goals; (2) the current OHA allowance rate for appealed cases compared with pre-STDP levels; and (3) the accuracy of OHA decisions made under STDP.

What GAO Found

GAO found that: (1) OHA has made progress in reducing its inventory of appealed cases, but SSA will not reach its goal of reducing this backlog to 375,000 by December 1996; (2) activities under the plan's key initiatives allowed OHA to dispose of about 66,500 more cases than it would have had STDP not been implemented, but despite OHA's increased productivity, as of August 1996 its backlog of appealed cases was about 3 percent higher than in November 1994; (3) since STDP was initiated, the allowance rate has decreased from about 75 percent in fiscal year (FY) 1994 to about 69 percent through the third quarter of (FY) 1996; and (4) SSA has not completed any analysis of the accuracy of STDP decisions or clearly established to what extent, if any, STDP has affected OHA's allowance rate.