All day, every day, I get requests to review medical records so I can testify in hearings. They come from all over the country, and they're all connected to the Social Security Administration (SSA) and in the context of people who considered themselves disabled from work, applied for benefits, were denied (at multiple levels) and are appealing to Social Security's highest level, which is in a hearing with a judge. Those judges have the discretion of requesting the input of what SSA calls a "Medical Expert," and that's what I am.
This morning, very early, I got an e-mail (they often come by e-mail) from some scheduler in Missouri about a hearing in San Diego. She wrote: "Good Morning, Dr Jonas. Happy New Year!!! We have a hearing scheduled..." blah, blah, blah. And the question is whether or not I'm available then (April 7 at 12:15 PM ET), and whether or not I feel like taking the hearing.
So I wrote back to say "You can tell me what's happy about it some other time," and that yes, I would agree to take that hearing.
The scheduler then wrote back to me "I'm trying to speak it into existence, Dr Jonas. So far, no dice. LOL."
So I wrote back "I agree with you. Your very best efforts don't seem to be paying off. But I'm rooting hard for you." And I added "Not only are you more than welcome to call me Fred, but I wish you would. You and I are co-workers. For now." [Although we've never met, and I have no idea who this person is, apart from her name. I do know that she's connected to the St Louis "National Customer Service Center," so I assume she lives in Missouri.] And then, I added "Every time I think I've been pushed as far as SSA can push me, they push me a little harder. If I live long enough, I'm going to quit at some point."
And then, she wrote back: "Well, Fred, I must ask you to take me with you when you go 'cause I'm so nearing that point as well. It's getting harder to make a difference when the outcome remains the same." (Emphasis mine.)
That's the problem, and she's being optimistic. Often enough, the outcome doesn't remain the same. It gets worse. Either it's "improvements" that complicate things, and make them less reliable, and more expensive, or just someone who's trying to figure out how to get your money for themselves. (Do you remember "planned obsolescence?")
And it's in no way just something like SSA, either. Everything is like this. The government, on its bad days, is like this. The private sector is always like this, because that's the job of the private sector: take as much as they can get, and give as little as is necessary. And of course, there's the "pure culture," which is the thieves/criminals.
It hasn't been a good time, at least for me. Although I'm fully vaccinated, and "boosted," I got COVID. So I couldn't spend a very important week with my family in Massachusetts. My daughter said that if I tested negative by today (10 days from the first positive test), she could really use me up there this coming weekend. I tested myself. I'm more glaringly positive today than I was 10 days ago. I have to see everyone "virtually" now, since I can't let people in my house. ("Virtual" psychiatry sessions are not what anyone would prefer. And as bad as they are with individuals, they're much worse with couples.) I can't socialize. I'm still waiting for propane, so I can at least make tea, and reheat the pizza I had delivered a couple of days ago. (I'm told they'll come today to refill my tank. And no doubt overcharge me for it. This is why I have to switch back to electric appliances.) And I still have SSA making mischief. Where are they going with this? They pay next to nothing, and they work us very hard. What'll I do when I quit? Take up solitaire? Or go meet my co-worker in Missouri, and whisk her away, since she's had enough, too.
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