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By Aliss Higham
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A couple from Georgia have been forced to fundraise income due to the long wait for Social Security disability benefits.
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James and Schantalyn Dickens had been married for just a couple of months when James suffered a stroke in January, rendering him unable to work while he recovers from his ordeal in a rehab facility. Schantalyn told Georgia news outlet 11 Alive that he is yet to be approved for disability benefits, forcing them to turn to GoFundMe to raise money.
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"You plan on getting married, and after getting married, you plan on a happily ever after," Schantalyn shared. "It was so unexpected. We didn't know that the morning of January 5 at three in the morning, James would have a massive stroke."
"I had no idea," she said regarding the wait for benefits to be approved. "It's just heartbreaking."
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As of late May, James "still doesn't receive any income," with Schantalyn saying "it's a long wait and process for him to receive his Social Security disability benefits." It is not clear how long ago the couple applied for benefits.
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According to the Social Security Administration (SSA) website, it can take six to eight months for a decision to be made regarding disability benefits. This is dependent on the nature of a person's disability, how quickly medical evidence can be acquired from a healthcare provider, and whether medical examination is needed.
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The SSA has said the long wait is down to staffing issues. "Disability Determination Services nationwide, including Georgia, have been facing staffing challenges which have impacted the processing times of disability claims," a spokesperson for the SSA told 11 Alive.
"SSA is continuing to reallocate resources from various components within the agency to aid states by providing direct assistance with disability workloads and integrating technological advancements to better streamline case processing without compromising the quality of determinations. We are adding 400 more disability examiners in DDSs nationwide and providing disability examiners with improved technology to gather and review medical evidence."
"Due to over a decade of congressional underfunding we are now an agency in crisis," Jessica LaPointe, president of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Council 220, which represents SSA field office employees across the U.S., said in 2023. "The fabric of America's social safety net is deteriorated, and you and your loved ones and our nation's most vulnerable are at risk of falling through."
In March, SSA commissioner Martin O'Malley noted that as part of President Joe Biden's budget, the government agency was requesting more than $15 billion in "discretionary budget authority—a $1.3 billion or 9 percent increase over the 2023 enacted level—to improve customer service at SSA's field offices."
In the meantime, James and Schantalyn face enormous costs for the treatment that saved his life.
"The medical bill for just being in ICU is over 1 million and he was recently moved to a long term care hospital to continue medical care and start intensive rehab, that medical bill is already over 800,000 and will continue to increase as he recovers," Schantalyn explained in the fundraiser. "Due to James recent unforeseen medical emergency, James isn't receiving income, it is uncertain when he will be able to return to work."
Are you waiting a long time to have disability benefits approved? Email a.higham@newsweek.com
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