Joseph Silver of Silver & Silver. Joseph Silver of Silver & Silver.

In March 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, the Social Security Administration (SSA) shifted away from most in-person services and toward remote operations. The local field offices have mostly been accessible by phone only and the disability hearing offices have shifted to phone and video hearings.

In recent months, plans for re-introducing in-person services have been in the works. On Jan. 14, SSA published a memorandum of understanding between SSA's Office of Hearings Operations, the Association of Administrative Law Judges (ALJs), the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers and the AFL-CIO regarding the return to in-person disability adjudication. The document summarizes terms of a settlement as well as procedures to ensure ALJ safety when re-entering hearing offices to conduct administrative disability hearings.