SAMHSA SOAR

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Displaying 11 - 15 of 15 results found
Question:
I'm working with a client who has indicated that both her treating psychiatrist and her primary care doctor are willing to sign the MSR. Is there any advantage to having 2 signatures? Could this cause any issues?

It's great that she has two doctors willing to sign!  Yes, we recommend including both signatures -- it sends a stronger message that they are both on board with the content. And it won't cause any issues.

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Question:
Is there a sample MSR for adults with a physical disability?

Many of our sample MSRs include information about physical disabilities in addition to mental impairments. Here is an example of one.

We also encourage you to review the Listings for the specific criteria SSA will be looking for, for each condition. You'll want to include information in your MSR about how the person's conditions meet the listing criteria. 

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Question:
I have a client that has already applied for SSI, SSDI, and supplied his medical records to the SSA. Am I still able to help him with a MSR?

We recommend contacting the DDS examiner assigned to the case to find out where they are in the decision making process. If they have just been assigned the case and are starting to process it, then you have time to write and submit a Medical Summary Report. You could let the DDS examiner know that you have additional evidence to submit. If you do not have an SSA-1696 on file, the claimant will need to be with you when you call. 

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Question:
Should I actually include information from the Listings and Grids in the MSR, or should I wait until the applicant is denied?

The SAMHSA SOAR TA Center recommends that you don’t cite the Listing and Grid numbers, e.g.) Ms. Jones meets Listing 12.04, and the alternative Grid rule 203.03. Rather, at the DDS level (initial and reconsideration) we suggest providing a description of how the applicant meets a particular Listing(s) or Grid rule through specific examples from the medical records, applicant quotes, and other collateral sources.

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Question:
What suggestions do you have for completing an MSR when a client refuses to provide personal historical information (such as about family, friends, experiences, etc) and it appears related to their disorder?

If a person is guarded when you are interviewing them for the MSR, you can explain to them the importance of you gathering this information and providing it to Social Security as part of the SSI/SSDI application process. If they still don't want to provide you information then you can document in the MSR the person's guarded nature, their behavior and symptoms you observe, and document that you believe it to be due to the symptoms of their mental illness (paranoia, delusions, suspiciousness, etc.). You can try to obtain the information you need for the MSR from the person's medical records and if they are willing to sign ROIs, you can attempt to interview collateral sources such as family, friends, case managers, etc. to obtain information to include in the MSR. 

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