Found a trick to get SSA to process my medical records faster after 8 months of waiting

I was stuck waiting for disability approval for 8 months because my doctor's office kept sending incomplete files to SSA in Sacramento. I finally tried having my doctor mail the records directly to my local field office with a cover letter flagging specific functional limitations. Has anyone else had success by skipping the main processing center and going local?

2 comments

2 Comments

piperr5812d agoMost Upvoted

Oh wow that's actually really smart! I heard from my neighbor who works in a doctor's office that SSA's main processing centers are super backed up and understaffed, so sending stuff to the local field office can cut weeks off the wait. They said local offices have more control over what gets looked at first. Your tip about the cover letter flagging specific functional limitations is key too, because that helps the reviewer know exactly what to focus on instead of digging through random pages. I bet a lot of people don't realize you can bypass the main center like that, they just assume all mail has to go to Sacramento. Makes me wonder if the SSA even tells people this is an option, seems like something they'd keep quiet.

uma_webb2812d ago

Honestly, I used to think sending everything to Sacramento was the only way to go. Tbh, I just assumed local offices forwarded it all there anyway, so what difference would it make. But after reading this, I'm totally rethinking my strategy for my cousin's application.