Background

This transmittal adds section I-3-2-15 to the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law manual to provide information regarding how the Office of Appellate Operations (OAO) develops evidence due to a recent change in regulations on the submission of evidence.

Explanation of Content and Changes

I-3-2-15 – We created a new section, titled “Claimants Inform the Appeals Council About Additional Evidence.” This section contains four subsections titled “General,” “Requesting Evidence From a Claimant or Appointed Representative (if Any),” “Requesting Evidence Directly From a Medical Source,” and “Requesting Evidence From a Medical Source Through the State Agency.” We added new information based on recent regulatory changes on the submission of evidence. We also included new business processes for OAO staff to follow when the claimant informs the agency about additional evidence but does not submit it.

Date: April 15, 2015