watch your back if you live in SEattle or Salem

May 10, 2007
DSHS partners with State Patrol, Social Security to save millions with
disability fraud investigations

A special state-federal investigative unit in Seattle aimed at exposing
fraudulent disability claims ranked No. 1 among 19 similar units nationwide in
March, saving state and federal taxpayers more than $3.3 million in March and
more than $16.9 million so far this fiscal year.

Another unit based in Salem, Ore., was ranked No. 2 in the nation during March,
and both units "consistently rank in the top three," sponsors noted.

The Cooperative Disability Investigation (CDI) unit in Washington State is
operated by the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), the Was
ington State Patrol, the Social Security Administration (SSA) and its Office of
the Inspector General, which acts as an independent audit and investigative
unit.

DSHS employees - working for the Division of Disability Determination Services
(DDDS) - review and adjudicate disability claims that are filed with the state
and the SSA. When they encounter suspicious circumstances, they can refer the
claims to the CDI field staff for further review and undercover work.

A classic fraud involves individuals who claim to be too disabled to work or
stand for extended periods, but who then are observed by undercover CDI
investigators, often filming the suspects as they perform physical labor or take
part in other demanding physical activity and sports.

The Seattle CDI unit had the highest year to date SSA-only savings, followed by
Salem at $9,451,760.00, and then Los Angeles at $9,331,208.00. Seattle also had
the highest year to date combined SSA and non-SSA savings of $16,889,919,
followed by Salem at $16,701,955 and Los Angeles at $16,528,649. Salem had the
highest combined state and federal savings for the month of March at $3,305,330,
followed by Seattle at $3,286,170 and Los Angeles at $2,825,923.

The savings are calculated on the basis of money taxpayers would have had to
spend without the special disability unit's intervention.

Jerry Johnson, Regional CDI Coordinator for the SSA, credited the "highly
motivated and skilled members of the CDI Units from SSA Office of the Inspector
General, the Washington State Patrol and Oregon Department of Justice,
Washington and Oregon DDDS and SSA Field Office employees assigned to the
Units."

DDDS Director Dr. Martin A.H. "Tony" Jones praised the work of state
adjudicators, medical consultants and supervisors who spotted questionable cases
and referred them to the investigators.

"It is the referrals by DDDS employees who spot these possible fraud cases that
keeps the system working well and accounts for much of the ongoing success of
these teams," Jones said. He said the public also can play a role by contacting
the unit whenever anyone has information regarding a possible disability fraud.

The CDI program nationally was set up to combine the skills and specialized
knowledge of the Social Security Administration and the Office of the Inspector
General with the state-level experience of state disability determination
services and law enforcement. Since the program began in 1998, CDI efforts have
resulted in savings of more than $776 million in federal disability programs
like Social Security and $468 million in state disability programs.

Washington's program was established in 2002 and handles up to 40 cases a month.



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But its not all about fraud it is also about dumping "impaired" people too.