FAQ

Great question! Check out our most up-to-date National Outcomes to see how SOAR-assisted applications compare to those without SOAR assistance.

The SOAR online course is available free of charge. Anyone interested in SOAR training is welcome to enroll at any time. The course is self-paced and you can receive support and assistance by contacting your SOAR TA Center Liaison or SOAR state/local lead.

Individual providers can choose whatever title works best for themselves and their agency.  Some examples that we have seen include SOAR practitioner, SOAR benefits specialist, SOAR case manager, and SOAR specialist. Others will use their traditional title (e.g. social worker, case manager, outreach worker) and say that they are SOAR trained or certified in the SOAR process. 

If you go back to the Practice Case in Class 2 you should be able to delete the documents you uploaded and re-upload the correct versions.  If you have already submitted your entire application packet in Class 7 you will not be able to make any of the changes online.  However, you can email the correct forms to soaronline@prainc.com. 

We estimate that it will take 16-20 hours to complete the Online Course.  This includes the completion of the Practice Case in which you will submit an SSI/SSDI application packet for a fictitious client to the SOAR TA Center.

The CEUs offered by the SOAR Online Course are approved by the National Association of Social Workers (NASW).

Most states have laws that regulate what health care providers can charge individuals for copies of their medical records. However, these rules do not necessarily apply to providers requesting records. In addition, some states provide an exception for records needed to apply for a disability benefits program and stipulate that they be provided at no-cost. For more information on state statutes and regulations regarding the collection of fees for medical records, click here.

If your state does not require a fee-waiver, we recommend contacting the director of the medical records department and advocating for or negotiating one. Explain that the individual is homeless and that you, as a mutual provider, are unable to pay for the records. Let the director know that the records will be used for a disability application and that, upon approval, the individual will likely be eligible for Medicaid and/or Medicare benefits that will pay for uncompensated care that the provider has given as well as future care that is provided. Therefore, it is in the provider’s best interest for the individual’s application to be well supported and documented as an approval may lead to retroactive and future reimbursements.

In addition, offer to the director of the medical records department that you would be happy to write a letter to the administrator of his/her agency regarding how helpful the director has been as well as the potential financial recoupment that such collaboration will mean to the provider.

If they are unwilling to waive the fees, try contacting United Way or other community action agencies that may be able to pay all or part of the bill.

You can help the applicant file for a hearing before an administrative law judge. It is in the applicant's best interest to keep the appeals process going because if they are approved at the hearing level they will be eligible for back payments going back to the protective filing date of the initial application.

See our Appeals resources in the SOAR Library. Here you will find our Prior or Pending Applications document which outlines some of what you need to do at the hearing level. You'll want the applicant to sign the SSA-1696: Appointment of Representative form, if you haven’t already. Then, request their file from Social Security. Together, you'll need to complete the HA-501: Request for a Hearing and the SSA-3441: Disability Report- Appeal (available on SSA’s website). You'll also need to turn in a new SSA-827:Authorization to Release Information. Be sure to submit the Request for a Hearing within 65 days from the date of the denial letter. If you haven't already, request medical records, do the general and functional assessments, and write a Medical Summary Report (MSR) just as you would for an initial SOAR application.

The other thing we would recommend is to file for a review on record. This might help you to avoid a hearing and eliminate a long wait. People who are eligible for a review on record are those individuals who may have additional diagnoses/medical records that were not considered previously. This does not take them out of the line for a hearing. So, if they are denied at review on record, they are still eligible for a hearing.

The SOAR TA Center does not have funds available to pay for SOAR in local organizations and there is no dedicated source of funding for SOAR programs. And yet, all 50 states participate in SOAR at some level by reallocating existing resources; by securing funding through federal and state grants or foundation funding; or by establishing collaborations with hospitals and criminal justice systems.

To support local organizations, the SOAR TA Center developed resources and tools for funding and sustainability, based on best practices from SOAR programs around the country. The SOAR TA Center also maintains a webpage dedicated to upcoming funding opportunities, which is updated frequently with new resources.