About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

HRD-83-65 1 (1983-06-10)

handle is hein.gao/gaobabmzu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: UNITED STATES GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE WASHINGTON, D.C. 20548 HUMAN RICSOURC=SI OIVISION June 10, 1983 B-211533 121666 The Honorable Howard M. Metzenbaum United States Senate Dear Senator Metzenbaum: Subject: SSA Needs to Protect Against Possible Conflicts of Interest in Its Disability Programs (GAO/HRD-83-65) In a December 16, 1981, letter, you asked us to address several concerns you had about the Social Security Administra- tion's (SSA's) review of the disability rolls and the large num- ber of persons losing their benefits as a result of this ef- fort.. Included in your request were specific questions about the consultative examinations used in making the eligibility decisions. We addressed the broader issues affecting SSA's disability investigations in a briefing presented to your office in May 1982 and in testimony provided to two congressional subcommit- tees in May and August 1982.1 However, because of the impor- tance and complexity of the consultative examination issue, we agreed to study this matter separately. We began a survey of the consultative examination process in September 1982. We have concluded that SSA's policies need to be revised to protect against possible conflicts of interest on the part of physicians working for the various State Disability Determina- tion Services (DDSs) and under contract to SSA. We identified a loophole in SSA's policies whereby physicians are prohibited from performing consultative examinations (unless there is no other qualified medical resource available), but are permitted to have familial or financial interests in firms or organiza- tions performing them. 1We also testified on April 7 and May 20, 1983, before the Sen- ate Special Committee on Aging and the House Select Committee on Aging, respectively, regarding SSA's adjudication process for mentally impaired persons. (105302) alb Ii(

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most