The Social Security Administration is planning to pay doctors $15 for each applicant's records filed electronically in a major step to cut down the backlog for disability payments, nextgov.com reports this week.

The plan was disclosed in a Jan. 11 Federal Register notice; it aims to cut down the number of pending disability claims that have overwhelmed SSA and led to a long delay--sometimes as long as two years--between the time a person applies for disability benefits and begins to receive them.

"By using health IT, we will be able to request and receive medical information within minutes, rather than the days or months it may take to receive medical evidence by traditional methods," the notice said.

The real question is, why has it taken so long for SSA to take this route? Hopefully it will clear the logjam that has prevented many applicants from receiving their monthly payments in a timely manner.

For more on cutting down on the SSA backlog:
- see this nextgov.com article
- read the notice

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