Background

This transmittal amends chapter I-3-1 of the Hearings, Appeals and Litigation Law (HALLEX) manual to provide instructions for the Appeals Council on processing continuing disability review cases in compliance with Social Security Ruling (SSR) 13-3p: Title II: Appeal of an Initial Medical Disability Cessation Determination or Decision.

Explanation of Content and Changes

We added section I-3-1-75, titled “Continuing Disability Reviews and Social Security Ruling 13-3p,” organized as follows:

HALLEX I-3-1-75 A – We titled the subsection “General.” The subsection briefly summarizes the policy in SSR 13-3p.

HALLEX I-3-1-75 B – We titled the subsection “Application of SSR 13-3p.” We indicate how the Appeals Council applies SSR 13-3p when reviewing an administrative law judge decision. We explain that SSR 13-3p does not apply to the Appeals Council unless it exercises its authority to issue a decision in a continuing disability review case. We also provide specific instructions regarding when it is appropriate for the Appeals Council to issue a decision in light of SSR 13-3p.

Date: October 31, 2013