Maryland Injury and Disability Law : Washington DC Metro Injury & Disability Lawyer & Attorney : Greenberg & Bederman : Accidents, Falls, Medical Malpractice : Maryland, DC, Virginia

 SOCIAL SECURITY RETIREMENT
Pardon me for veering off the topic of disability, but I want to say a few words about social security retirement benefits. You may have noticed that the Social Security retirement age is increasing. For many years, full retirement age was 65. But, for persons born in 1938 or later, the full retirement age gradually increases until it reaches 67 for individuals born after 1959.
As primary reasons for raising the retirement age, Congress cited two factors: improvements in the health of elderly persons and increases in average life expectancy.

So, when will you reach full retirement age? Find the year of your of birth below and check out your full retirement age. Quirky fact: If you were born on January 1 of any year, you should refer to the previous year in determining your retirement age.

YEAR OF BIRTH FULL RETIREMENT AGE

1937 or earlier 65
1938 65 and 2 months
1939 65 and 4 months
1940 65 and 6 months
1941 65 and 8 months
1942 65 and 10 months
1943-1954 66
1955 66 and 2 months
1956 66 and 4 months
1957 66 and 6 months
1958 66 and 8 months
1959 66 and 10 months
1960 and later 67

The earliest a person can start receiving Social Security retirement benefits is 62. If you elect to take benefits at 62 (or at any time between age 62 and full retirement age), your benefit amount will be reduced.

To find out more about your retirement benefits, you can go to social security 
 

To learn more about social security issues, please read our social security faq.  To learn more about our social security lawyers, please click on our firm bios and read about Dory Sutker, or Suja Varghese, or watch our social security video testimonials.

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 Is The Economy Impacting Personal Injury Recoveries?

The economy is in the midst of an historical financial meltdown, bottoming out one day only to break a new low the next. We are left pondering what impact this cataclysm could have in the world of personal injury litigation. None of us have control over how and when one gets injured, as people suffer injuries whether they are able to pay for their medical treatment or not. We do not stop driving or discontinue getting sick, regardless of whether the money is tight. Sadly, personal injury field is far from being recession proof. 

The injured rely on the insurance company to cover their personal injury claim. So what happens if, despite the regulatory measures, an insurance company becomes insolvent? No need to hypothesize, as you just need to think back to the recent meltdown of the mega insurer AIG.  We never thought it would be possible for a company the size of AIG to wither away on the vine as it did.  Today, AIG is propping up its dinged façade.  They assure us there is no reason to worry; that we should keep a positive outlook. They say in a brand new disclaimer on their website, AIG, “The insurance companies behind AIG remain strong and well-capitalized to cover every policy they issue” and urge us to “continue to count on AIG to provide you with the very best.”   AIG claims that  not only are they solvent, but they are prompt in paying most collision claims within two weeks, some even as soon as forty eight hours. It is hard to detect the traces of its “past” troubles from just a couple months ago, when AIG executives came to Capitol Hill, hat in hand, asking for over $120 billion in loans from the federal government.  At least for now we have avoided another disaster. While the AIG was able to get a life line from the government, other insurers may have similar problems precipitated by the market woes. 

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Barack Obama on Tort Reform
   The new government is poised to take over in a little more than a month. Hence, I thought it would be a good time to take stock of where our President-Elect stands on the tort reform debate, and what we can expect to see in the next four years on the personal injury front. As discussed in the previous article on tort reform, the term tort reform stands for legislative measures designed to limit plaintiffs’ recovery and to make it harder for individuals to bring claims against businesses in general. So, does Barack Obama support limiting recovery for personal injury claimants or does he advocate increase in the discretionary decision making power for juries and state courts?

   So far Obama has manifested mixed signs pointing in both directions. As a Senator, Obama was one of the few Democrats who voted for the Class Action Reform Act (CAFA). The Act was criticized by the Plaintiffs’ bar as hurting personal injury claimants. Perhaps this was a chance for Obama to show that he can transcend party lines. Critics claim that his votes on legal issues have been carefully designed to create an image of evenhandedness that may disappear when he is in office. They claim he voted for CAFA only after it was clear it would pass, and did so after voting for several Democratic amendments that would have gutted the bill. The Act made the requirement of “complete diversity” of citizenship inapplicable to class actions, and provided federal jurisdiction when some class members and some defendants are from different states. It also eliminated the principle that the claims of class members cannot be aggregated to meet the amount-in-controversy requirement, and provided for federal jurisdiction when the total amount in controversy in a class action exceeds $5 million. The effect was to allow most class actions with classes or defendants including citizens of more than one state to be filed in or removed to federal courts known for their tougher stance on granting injury awards.
 

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  Once in a while I am asked whether the Social Security Administration recognizes common law marriages. The answer is that Social Security follows the laws of the state where the worker was residing at the time of death or the place where the worker is residing when the spouse applies for benefits. In order for a common law marriage to be valid, it must have been contracted in a state such marriages are recognized as valid. Many states, including Maryland and Virginia, do not honor common-law marriages, so you should check local laws. However, most states (even Maryland and Virginia) will generally recognize a common-law marriage validly entered into in another state. It is important to check the laws of the appropriate state.

To learn about social security disability law issues, please read social security FAQ.

To learn about our social security disability lawyers, please read our law firm bio on Dory Sutker, or Suja Varghese.

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Maryland Nursing Home Abuse

Choosing to put a loved one in a nursing home, or an assisted living facility is never an easy decision. However, this transition can be less painful if you are confident that the nursing home you and your loved one choose will provide an excellent standard of care. In a previous article I discussed how video technology is beginning to gain popularity as a method to monitor occurrences in nursing homes to prevent and stop abuse. However, preventative measures such as thorough research, may be the best way to prevent you or your loved one from receiving substandard care, or becoming the victim of abuse.

There are many quality nursing homes in Maryland; however, there are also many nursing homes who provide substandard care. Earlier this year Governor O’Malley announced that the Rosewood Center will be closing due to chronic incidents of abuse. The conditions at the Rosewood Center have become so poor that it became at risk of loosing federal funding. Over a period of only eight weeks, the Office of Health Care Quality reported 130 cases of injuries from abuse and neglect. The shortage of funding, and the screening and monitoring of nursing home staff members are often some of the root causes of abuse at such facilities.

It is recommended that you thoroughly research the nursing home you are considering before you make a decision. There are numerous resources on the internet that you can utilize in your research. The Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Attorney General attorney general has a great website listing important consideration for you to keep in mind when choosing a nursing home, and what to look for, and specific questions to ask when visiting the nursing homes you are considering. The Maryland Health Care Commission md healthcare comm also has a helpful guide to assist you in the process of choosing a nursing home. Although many of the links on this website are outdated, the Assisted Living Facility Survey Reports feature allows you to look up a nursing home of your choice and view its performance on the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s, Office of Health Care and Quality’s survey. quality survey These surveys assess compliance with health and safety regulations and are generally conducted on an annual basis. Another valuable resource for research on nursing homes or other medical care is the Maryland Judiciary Case Search case search judiciary case search. This online tool allows you to look up all of the cases which a company or an individual has been involved.

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