The CAL process is a way to quickly identify diseases and other medical conditions that by definition, meet our standards for disability benefits. These conditions primarily include certain cancers, adult brain disorders, and a number of rare disorders that affect children. The CAL initiative helps us reduce waiting time to reach a disability determination for individuals with the most serious disabilities. The CAL process identifies claims where the applicant’s disease or condition clearly meets the statutory standard for disability. By incorporating cutting-edge technology, we can easily identify potential Compassionate Allowances to quickly make decisions. We use the same rules to evaluate CAL conditions when evaluating both Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income programs. For more information about the CAL process, see the Compassionate Allowances homepage.
Fast-tracked cases consist of those cases identified as Quick Disability Determination (QDD), Compassionate Allowance (CAL), or both. A case can include one or more claims filed by an individual.
The datasets provide, by state, the total number and percentage of initial disability fast-track and electronic cases that were received and accepted by the Disability Determination Services (DDS), Extended Service Team (EST), or a federal site beginning with fiscal year (FY) 2010.
The datasets are updated and reported annually based on the fiscal year. The fiscal year ends on the last Friday of September. For example, FY 2010 represents the reporting periods of September 26, 2009 through September 24, 2010. A reporting month runs from the last Saturday of the month through the last Friday of the following month.
The datasets represent the agency's programmatic disability data used to administer the disability process and are published in official agency reports.
We provide the datasets for FY 2010 through 2017 in an excel spreadsheet (.xls) and a comma-separated values (.csv) file. The data are summarized at the state level, sorted in ascending order by state, and include the following categories:
The regional location for the DDS, EST1, or federal office that received and accepted the initial disability case after case transfer from the field office.
The total number of initial disability cases identified as fast-track that were received and accepted by the DDS, EST1, or federal site after case transfer from the field office within the fiscal year. Fast-tracked cases consist of those cases identified as Quick Disability Determination (QDD), Compassionate Allowance (CAL), or both.
The total number of DDS electronic receipts that were received and accepted by the DDS, EST1, or federal site after case transfer from the field office within the fiscal year.
The total number of fast-track receipts divided by the total DDS electronic receipts, expressed as a percent. The percentage includes one decimal position. (Note: The value was calculated to the hundred-thousandths place, multiplied by 100 to express a percent, and rounded to the tenths place.)
The total number of fast-track receipts, DDS electronic receipts, and percentage of fast-track receipts for the nation within the FY.
1Extended Service Teams (ESTs) provide national case processing assistance to states most adversely affected by an increase in initial disability cases.
To protect the anonymity of NBS respondents while providing accurate and detailed data, we present the NBS data in two formats: a Restricted Use File available only to users approved by SSA and for use on specific research projects, and a Public Use File released by SSA for the general public to use in various statistical analyses. These two files offer differing degrees of accessibility to confidential information. For both data files, we have removed any information that could directly or indirectly identify a respondent; this information includes respondents’ names, Social Security numbers, and addresses. Because of its more widespread availability, the Public Use File has undergone extensive masking and has fewer available variables than the Restricted Use File. Even with the variables masked, however, the NBS Public Use File offers a wide variety of pertinent variables and topics for the general public to use.
In order to minimize the likelihood of indirect identification of a sample member, we deleted variables that could identify residents of smaller geographic areas or sample members possessing rare attributes (outliers). We also simplified the file by dropping variables with little analytic value. These included survey administration variables, source variables that had corresponding imputed versions, imputation flags, source variables summarized in a constructed variable, and constructed variables that we had not utilized in the round’s analyses. We also dropped data elements with quality problems that would reduce their analytic value, as well as agency administrative data appended to the Restricted Access File. In their place, we masked select key administrative variables and added them to the file as new constructs.
Using the Office of Research, Demonstration, and Employment Security (ORDES) Disclosure Checklist for the Public Release of Data, we developed encryption/masking algorithms that would maximize the analytic value of the data while maintaining acceptable confidentiality for the program participants. The ORDES Disclosure Review Board has approved the Public Use Files for release.
The Public Use Files are only available for the Representative Beneficiary Samples for each round. The Ticket Participant Samples are not available for public use. A relatively small proportion of our beneficiaries participated in the Ticket to Work program, and, as a result, the sampling rate for the Ticket Participant Samples was quite high. For this reason, our Disclosure Review Board believes releasing the participant sample would pose an unacceptable risk of disclosure for this portion of the NBS survey participants.
Please visit the links below for technical details on each round, the documentation, and the public use files.
The Disability Analysis File (DAF) is an analytical file consisting of agency administrative data in an easy-to-use format. We create a new version of the file and documentation each year. The file contains historical, longitudinal, and one-time data on all beneficiaries with disabilities who were between age 18 and retirement age and who participated in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) programs at any time between 1996 and the year of the file. This file also includes data on SSI child beneficiaries age 10 and up who participated in the SSI program at any point from January 2005 through the year of the file. Each DAF is an updated version of all prior DAF files, so users should use the most recent file available.
The DAF PUF contains a random 10 percent sample of beneficiaries included in the full DAF. The 10 percent file is large enough to avoid disclosure risk and small enough to keep the file size manageable. The PUF contains a more limited set of variables than the full DAF, and we masked some variables in a variety of ways to avoid disclosure. Please consult the documentation for additional details on the DAF variables.
Note: The current version of the DAF PUF is the DAF15 PUF, with data through the end of 2015. The current version of the full DAF is the DAF16 with data through the end of 2016. Beginning with the DAF17, these files will include data through the same date.
This program deals with the issues involved in inspecting buildings and commercial structures to ensure municipal building code requirements are met. We are proud to offer the only building code enforcement program in the South Suburban region.
Building codes vary with each town or city depending on the construction of a commercial or residential structure. Enforcing codes and building within codes requires a knowledge of building construction. South Suburban College offers the only building code enforcement program in the south suburban region.
Preparation for technical occupations in building code enforcement. The program includes study of principles, emphasizing construction materials and methods, principles of construction codes, legal authority and enforcement techniques. This program has been articulated with some area high schools. Recent high school graduates may have earned credit in this program through high school coursework.
Classes cover blueprint reading, basic code enforcement, decision-making in code enforcement, fire extinguishing and detection systems, construction materials and methods in wood, electrical and masonry. Specialized inspection training is provided in concrete, framing, electrical, HVAC, and plumbing.
In South Suburban College’s building code enforcement program, you’ll gain a good overall knowledge of the field and preparation to take the certification examinations administered by the International Code Council. ICC codes, the most universally accepted in the United States, are emphasized in our program.
South Suburban College’s building code enforcement program prepares you for a career as a building inspector. Job opportunities are available in the public sector of the industry through work in local, State and government agencies.
Employment opportunities for building code enforcement graduates are excellent, with median annual earnings of $46,570 according to the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
Preparation for technical occupations in building code enforcement. The program covers the principles of construction codes enforcement with an emphasis on single family concrete and framing inspections.
Preparation for technical occupations in building code enforcement. The program covers the principles of construction codes enforcement with an emphasis on single family plumbing inspections.
Preparation for technical occupations in building code enforcement. The program covers the principles of construction codes enforcement with an emphasis on commercial and residential inspections.
The opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has declared the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) to be a super ministry staffed by “political hacks” being paid from the public purse to fulfil a political agenda.
Speaking at a press conference held yesterday, PPP/C Member of Parliament Juan Edghill declared that based on the compensation being offered, even he would be willing to work at SARA.
Referencing a document laid in the House on Friday, Edghill showed that those employed at the agency are being paid sums which equal and in some cases exceed the salaries on the higher end of the General Service Scale.
Director of SARA Professor Clive Thomas is afforded a monthly compensation of $1,380,000. This includes his base salary of $1.3 million and $50,000 and $30,000, respectively, in risk and travel allowance.
It was noted too that two lawyers employed by SARA, each receiving a monthly salary of $1,400,000, are earning more than the Director. With SARA employing the two lawyers, PPP/C MP Anil Nandlall questioned the agency’s need for a legal advisor, who is employed for a monthly salary of $630,000 plus a total of $80,000 in allowances.
Thomas’ Special Assistant, identified as Dr Eric Phillips, is being paid $980,000 per month, while employees such as receptionists, drivers and security officer are being compensated at a rate of $120,000 per month.
“I want a job at SARA. I would like young people to have a job at SARA because a receptionist is making $120,000, the driver $120,000, the cleaner makes $75,000,” Edghill shared.
He also identified the rental cost for the building which will house the agency as being US$8,000 per month.
“We don’t know where it is yet but we know it is US$8,000 per month to rent it,” he said referencing the supplementary allocation approved last Thursday.
During the sitting, the Committee of Supply approved a total of $116.3 million in supplementary funds for SARA.
The number of staff employed by the agency did not go unnoticed by Edghill, who argued that based on the number alone, SARA has become a super ministry.
“Forty-six staff makes it a ministry. Several of our ministries didn’t have 46 staff,” he said, while identifying the former ministries of Housing, Industry and Commerce.
Edghill concluded that based on the salaries and staff allocations, SARA is a space where “political hacks [are] being employed to do political works so that they could get political compensation. This is public money, taxpayer money being spent.”
He called on the public to cry out with a loud voice “shame, shame, shame on the APNU+AFC” for using the public purse to carry out its political agenda.
In June, Stabroek News reported that weeks after the long-awaited State Assets Recovery Bill was passed, the newly-established agency was operating without a budget. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Major (rtd) Aubrey Heath-Retemyer had, however, noted that the entity’s financial plan would have been submitted within another few weeks which would pave the way for key administrative matters to be addressed.
He had explained that among the top priorities are the completion of the budget, the hiring of required staff, including lawyers and the rental of a building, which will see the agency being removed from the Ministry of the Presidency compound.
U.S. President Donald Trump displays a presidential memorandum after announcing his intent to withdraw from the JCPOA Iran nuclear agreement (Reuters photo)
WASHINGTON, (Reuters) – President Donald Trump yesterday pulled the United States out of an international nuclear deal with Iran, raising the risk of conflict in the Middle East, upsetting European allies and casting uncertainty over global oil supplies.
Some 60 children from various orphanages across the country were introduced to the gentleman’s game of cricket thanks to the efforts of full sponsors Ramps Logistics who offered them a chance to engage with professionals of the sport during the current 10-day programme.
With four certified coaches including former West Indies test player and Head Coach, Reon King and 24-year-old coach, Darien Best, the young boys and girls aged between 8-13, hailing from Bosco’s Home, Joshua House and the Georgetown Cricket Club, where it was hosted were exposed to the basics of the game.
Along with the experienced team, everyday a group from Ramps Logistics descended to the venue to spend time with the children and share in the fun with the volunteers from the Guyana Red Cross Association. According to Marisca Jordan, Business Development Manager at Ramps Logistics, “Ramps Logistics is honoured to partner with the Georgetown Cricket Club in hosting our first Summer Cricket Camp with the aim of providing the 60 children with an exciting, educational and stimulating cricket training experience.
“This idea has been in the works for a while and with the help of the competent coaches of the Georgetown Cricket Club and the diligent staff of Ramps Logistics, led by the legendary West Indian Cricketer Reon King, we have been able to host this camp. “Ramps looks forward to future collaborations and further facilitation of youth development in Guyana,” Jordan added.
“I must say it was difficult but it was good, the kids really showed an interest in the game and I saw some potential in them as we went through the basics of batting, fielding and bowling,” he said. King shared the same view, expressing his heartfelt warmth at seeing the programme come to reality.
When Stabroek Sport visited the Bourda venue, the children were all smiling with some even learning the basics of umpiring and scoring. Nine-year-old Zodac Mustapha said it was fun and that she looked forward to the coming days but was sad that it will end on Friday. The kids also got to benefit from playing with the likes of some of the country’s brightest youth players including national player, Zachary Jodah and talented off spinner, Darius Andrews.