Important Information for Non-Disability SSI Appeals!

On April 3, 2023, the Eastern District of New York approved a settlement agreement in Amin v. Kijakazi, a case filed against the Social Security Administration (SSA) for the harm caused to extremely low-income older adults and people with disabilities across the country who lost vital benefits because of the agency’s failure to timely process appeals and follow its own rules for processing appeals. The settlement provides wide-reaching relief by extending the period from 10 to 60 days during which Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients can file a request for reconsideration and continue receiving benefits while their non-disability appeal is pending.

In October 2021, SSA issued a new policy (Emergency Message re: Goldberg Kelly Benefit Continuation Period) providing for an automatic presumption of good cause for late filing where a reconsideration request is made up to 60 days after receipt of the Notice of Planned Action to suspend or reduce their benefits, allowing for an SSI recipient to continue receiving their benefits while their request for reconsideration is pending. If an SSI recipient has filed a timely request for reconsideration but does not continue to receive their benefits while their appeal is pending, then their representative should first contact the manager of their local office and reference the Emergency Message (EM-21064 REV) and the Amin settlement. For more information, please see the Justice in Aging Fact Sheet.