In response to a Presidential order Social Security recently released their customer service plan.
For people applying for disability the main initiative is video hearings. I have mixed feelings about this. It use to be that the Administration would send its ALJ's out to remote parts of the country and they would hold hearings at a hotel meeting room or similar facility. Yes this increased cost to the administration, but it allowed for the face to face interaction that some clients need to present their case.
Earlier this year, the administration stopped doing this altogether. Some clients had to drive hundreds of miles to get to the hearing site. This was not good. Luckily some clients were close enough to a permanent hearing site attached to a local office. This allowed for the ALJ to come closer to claimant. But in places like Nacogdoches and Lubbock, Texas, clients still had to drive quite a ways to get to a permanent hearing site.
So this customer service plan is starting more video hearings. That's great. I am glad clients can now get hearings more quickly without having to drive as far. However part of me does not like video hearings. I just don't think there is any technological way to account for being in front of a living breathing person. I would love for every client of mine to be seen and heard in three dimensions by an ALJ. That way every bit of his or her demeanor can be examined by the one who will make a decision.
Is it a good trade off? We will see
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