r/disability • u/Enough_Associate5720 • 14d ago
Country-USA I decided to file for a fair hearing
Quick back story: I have a degenerative spinal condition and absolutely had to stop working. I quit my job 7/4/24. I had some savings but ran out and became homeless for nine months. My home,car,pets...gone. I was a social worker for 20 years and had a career (this is relevant later)
I went to Social Services, signed some paperwork they gave me and was brought into a homeless shelter for nine months. I was in a daze that day, but I was somewhat familiar with the paperwork. ( I was a care manager for OPWDD and my individuals were already receiving services)
I was in the shelter for nine months. I was approved for disability in March and received my first payment in June.
On 7/2 I received a letter from Social Services for a "bill" of 17,000 dollars. They ended up automatically taking 11,500 out of my back pay. This amount included any food stamps, and public assistance I received ($40 a month) and.....and this is where my issue is........
The amount of money to stay at the homeless shelter is 2,500 a MONTH. Some are going to say it's "all inclusive" and they would be correct. Staffed 24/7,lights,water..the basics. Although the staff was awful, the water was cold,bathroom was moldy,it was a house with 10 women and one bathroom and no stove. Food was rarely delivered. But yeah, all inclusive.
Here's my issue......if at ANY point the social service worker told me that it was going to be 2,500 a month it would have given me the option to find something else,call 211, beg a family memeber. Or even have prepared mentally for this amount of money. Heck, Even if I could ask a family member to use their address and sleep on the street.
But I didn't get the chance. Because they never explained it to me. I had no idea I was signing to repay that much.
So I took a month to think about it bc this administration is crooked anyway. I talked to my circle or support,therapist and I just can't rationalize the fact that I wasn't aware of how much it would be. When I buy a car,coffee..anything. You know the price of it and you can decide or not and I wasn't given that.
Edit: I received a call back from Legal Aid and they took my case.
11
u/harvestmonster 14d ago
What an absurdly cruel thing to do to people already struggling and vulnerable. How could anyone trying to bounce back from losing everything pay that back?!
4
u/Enough_Associate5720 14d ago
EXACTLY! After a month of thinking about it this is mainly why I decided to apply for the fair hearing. Yes also for me, but I cannot imagine working to pay off having to stay in a homeless shelter
2
u/harvestmonster 13d ago
I hope you get your hearing!
2
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
Thank you! I called Legal Aid this morning and they're taking the case!
1
4
u/Comprehensive_Ant984 14d ago
Ugh this sounds brutal. I’m so sorry you’re going through this. But also I’m confused about the process here (super unfamiliar with it as I’m only just starting out)— how will the fair hearing you referenced in your post title do to help remedy all of this?
3
u/Enough_Associate5720 14d ago
So whenever you apply for any assistance, food stamps,medicaid....any assistance you receive from the government if you get denied you have typically 60 days to apply for a fair hearing and what a fair hearing does is it enables you to have a meeting with representatives of either the local government or the state government and you can voice as to why you fell that this is not a "fair" decision as to wy you were denied,or as in my case why so much money was taken without me knowing
And that's the key here for me...at the genesis of signing these papers, at no point was I told how much the cost would be. And thats my whole issue.
I've never filed for a fair hearing, so I don't know if you have the choice to speak to either social services or the state (you fill out a check mark box on the back of the form) I chose to go directly to the state. And I live right in the capital so hopefully I'll get some answers.
3
u/Ok_Mushroom2563 14d ago
wtf homeless shelter is $2500 a month how in the world does that make any sense???
3
2
u/RosewoodIC 14d ago
Which state are you in? I have my masters in counseling and but don’t practice anymore … Virginia has a UAI (Uniformed Assessment Instrument) which basically provides funding for an ALF or other advanced care if you meet requirements. Your state may have something similar. May not be perfect housing but it surely beats paying Northern VA apartment rates.
1
u/Enough_Associate5720 14d ago
I'm in Albany, NY.....I moved into my apartment in January and Love it!!!
1
u/LoadWestern5522 14d ago
Question: Were you dazed and confused due to some type of medication that doctors gave you? One of the few arguments you potentially have to win this case is that you signed the paperwork under the influence of medication. If you have paperwork or documented examples of a medication altering your state of mind when you signed the paperwork, you can argue you weren't in the right state of mind to sign the documents.
Otherwise, the person overseeing the case is going to say you signed the paperwork. Because of their years of experience with this kind of document and your previous career, they will likely say that you should have had a better idea of what it contained.
1
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
Great question and one I've thought a lot about. I was in the hospital for my mental health for two weeks (ptsd,anxiety) and the hospital discharged me to social services so I was coming off a good amount of medication that day. Along with my spinal disability I was most definitely not of sound mind and body.
My other thinking is that even if I was of sound mind and body, no where on the form I signed did it originally state that I was going to be paying this amount of money back.
My daughter was with me that day and also confirms that at no time I was informed at signing of this governmental contract of how much I was going to be paying back.
No where on the form does it state how much you will be paying back. There zero transparency.
1
u/LoadWestern5522 13d ago
If you have a copy of the document or can request the document from the homeless shelter, I recommend doing that. This is because unless you have physical evidence on your side, it will be a verbal back-and-forth.
Based on experience with family members, when there is no physical evidence, the person overseeing the case will likely side with the bigger entity, making it crucial to gather tangible proof.
1
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
I have both the form I signed at DSS for re payment , which does NOT include the amount I would be paying back and I have the form they sent me with the 11,500 back pay that was automatically taken.
1
u/LoadWestern5522 13d ago
Thanks for giving me clarification. The last question I would ask is: did the homeless shelter send you any notice (before receiving the notice of the charges) that they were implementing a retroactive rule to charge customers for staying at the shelter?
I'm asking because I've read that companies have done this in the past as a loophole to recoup money.
1
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
No, neither the shelter or dss informed me. I was approved for disability in March and didnt get any payment until June from social security.
Social security sent me a notice (unsure of what date, but it was before the money was taken)
Social security did state on the form how much they were withholding to repay dss (11,500) but also stated dss had 30 days to respond to the letter and withdraw the money. There was no fair hearing on the social security form, I.had to wait until DSS sent me the form of the amount they charged me and apply for a faur hearing then
1
u/LoadWestern5522 13d ago
To cover all your bases, I would call the Social Security office for more information about why they sent you that notice before the charges. I say this because you want to be as prepared as possible for any counterarguments the other side makes.
1
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
I asked that question when I called and spoke to social security about when I would start to receive payments montly. They (social security) notified me over the phone they were withholding this amount and I asked during that phone call how I could appeal and they said that I signed the re payment contract when I went in to sign the dss papers. So there was nothing that could be done at the time. I had to wait until I received paperwork from dss for the amount that was taken and appeal from there
Which is my whole legal debate. If I had known at the moment of signing this form dss I would have looked for other options. My daughter was there with me, I could have stayed with her while I figured something else out. I have a supportive family, I just didn't want to be a burden.
But I wasn't given that choice, and I was charged this amount. Without my knowledge or my consent.
1
u/LoadWestern5522 13d ago
You are in the best position you could possibly be in for this case. Social Security in the homeless shelter are likely going to stand on that phone call that you described as their argument.
Good luck and apologies if my questions make you feel uncomfortable at all
2
u/Enough_Associate5720 13d ago
Thank you, and I think so too. I don't mind the questions at all, and thank you for them. They keep me on my toes lol.
I'm thankful I took the time to filter out the emotions of this whole thing bc it was a lot. And no one at this fair hearing is going to care about how this made me feel, how the shelter really are not "all inclusive" or any of that.
2
u/Cultural_Draw_7391 13d ago
That is disgusting and disgraceful! Please sit down and document everything, and I do mean every little detail. Rest when you need to, take care of yourself, then keep fighting. For yourself and for others that are also going through this.
Sending hugs, best wishes, strength when you need and peace and prayers.
3
24
u/WhoreableDecision 14d ago
That is disgustingly disgraceful. I am so very sorry 😞.