Library & Tools

National Recovery Month is observed every September to educate the public about mental health and substance use disorders and to celebrate the gains accomplished by individuals in recovery. In celebration, the SAMHSA SOAR TA Center extends thanks and appreciation to the 250+ SOAR-trained case workers who identify as “peers.”

This guide provides suggestions for navigating conversations about integrating peer support into SOAR programs.

Here is some guidance from the SAMHSA SOAR TA Center and the Social Security Administration for gathering information about and documenting Long COVID for SSI/SSDI applications.

Read our Q&A with a SOAR case worker from New York who has an appeals success story!

This guidance document is a supplement to the Medical Summary Report Interview Guide and Template. It provides important considerations when working with individuals who are Deaf and hard of hearing. It includes helpful information about hearing loss, Deaf culture, and important accommodations. Finally, it includes sample questions that may be helpful in your interview.

State and Local Leads spearhead and coordinate the implementation of SOAR initiatives. These leaders identify and engage stakeholders to participate in steering committees whose goal is to create and implement a SOAR action plan and process for adult SSI/SSDI and/or child SSI application submission. These committees meet regularly to collaborate, report on progress, and troubleshoot challenges.

Highlighted below are some of the ways peers from around the country have incorporated their lived expertise into their SOAR work.

The Social Security Administration now offers a video option for Administrative Law Judge appeal hearings.

This article explains how you can promote SOAR with your Social Security Administration (SSA) Office of Hearings Operations (OHO) office to help ease their backlog and workload issues, while at the same time, improving access to expedited decisions for SOAR applicants.

If Social Security denied your application for disability benefits, you may request an appeal. Social Security has four appeal levels. This article discusses the Reconsideration and Hearing by Administrative Law Judge levels.