Representative Payee

[donnieben03]

have been awarded ssdi retro to feb 04 however the ss dept wants to assign a representative payee for me. Anyone else have one and how do they work. In my alj award the judge recommended one because of alcohol and drug episodes. thanks

[Pete53]

It can be a nightmare unless you have a relative or friend that you can trust.If you pay your bills on time or even have honored repayment terms you can probably appeal the plan and maintain control on your own.

[Berta]

Pete is right- you can challenge that but for now it is the best thing- since SSA wants this-

The payee will not only have to be trustworthy but also must maintain a separate account and a list of whatever expenses they paid for you.

My other deceased vet hisband was hospitalized for 2 years and I was his payee-I kept good records and a separate checking account for his needs.I think they sent me annual report forms to show how I spent his money and how I accounted for what I didnt spend.

A payee should establish a savings account as well as a regular checking account for your bills.

The money is not theirs.

[donnieben03]

thanks for the replies. My spouse filled out an application to be my payee, but unfortunately since alcohol was cited by the judge, according to the ss rules on who can be my payee, my spouse is real low on the list. That means I will have some non-profit or state supported agency and after all the hassels of social security hoop jumping I am pretty fed up with agencies. Funny thing is that I have not had a drink for at least 3 years and do not have an alcohol problem. The judge picked out instances from my VA medical records where someone asked me if I had ever drank alcohol and I said things like 'not for 5 years' or not for 3 years. or what ever I said and half of the time the doctor or nurse treating me wrote down the wrong thing anyways. If I had known how important it was at that time I would have gotten my records corrected but it didn't seem like a big deal until now. Anyways I am just afraid that I will have to make an appointment with my payee every time I need to have a bill paid, or go begging to them for money to take my wife to dinner. My bills are way more than they will pay me each month, plus we have been taking money out of our joint savings for extra expenses and my wife has over $2000 in medical bills and we each have credit card debt. How can I get money from my backpay if the payee puts it in a savings account. When is that money available for me to use, after I turn 65??. It's my money. I am really getting pissed off about this. Any suggestions?? I definately will appeal unless it is my wife that is appointed payee

[Berta]

APPEAL the SSA Determination right away veteran:

"Funny thing is that I have not had a drink for at least 3 years and do not have an alcohol problem. The judge picked out instances from my VA medical records where someone asked me if I had ever drank alcohol and I said things like 'not for 5 years' or not for 3 years. or what ever I said and half of the time the doctor or nurse treating me wrote down the wrong thing anyways."

If you attend AA- get the sponsor to write a statement of your clean time and attendance-

If you never needed AA get some of your friends (not the wife) to write and tell SSA of your sobriety-

Based on what you just said- I sure would not want the check in anyone's name but mine-if I were you-

what does a judge have to do with this- do youmean a Adjudicative SSA law judge or a criminal civil judge?

I would fight this- thanks for telling us more---

[donnieben03]

The judge I referred to was ALJ. I had a lawyer at my hearing representing me. I have never attended AA. I have PTSD with suicidal and homicidal ideations, depression and at one time I did drink beer to self-medicate myself. I have not had any alcohol since I was put on medication over 3 years ago. I will wait until SS appoints a payee for me, (have been waiting 7 weeks for them to decide this) then I will appeal that decision if it is not my wife. I have waited for 3 years and another years wait won't hurt me if I need to wait that long. I was wondering if any other vets were ever in the same situation as me and what is it like having a payee that is not a spouse. Has anyone ever appealed the payee?? Did you win the appeal?? Any ideas or suggestions will help. thanks

[spike]

I have to question this. I understand the self medication issue at hand. However, the person evaluating me for PTSD was a recovering alcoholic and he is self proclaimed that he could go back at anytime. He had sensitivity issues to someone who took a few drinks more than on special occasions. I have to review my docs because when I suffered initial trauma i did self medicate for a long time, not overdoing it maybe a few jack and cokes a night or two as the nightmares didnt stop. I know that is in my record and I am also looking at SSD or SSI. Think this is a issue. I know the PTSD rater did put in my review though that I am self sufficent to handle my benefits on my own. But still.