March 2011

Hello-If you are not on the NSCLC email list for Martinez-type cases, here's a NSCLC email asking if you are seeing SSA cases which are not being handled properly under the Martinez settlement.  Respond to email below.  You may also add yourself to the Martinsez email list.  

Carol Ahlum, Midwestern LAB.

From: martinez-settlement-@googlegroups.com [mailto:martinez-settlement-@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Anna Rich
Sent: Friday, March 04, 2011 7:54 PM
To: martinez-settlement-@googlegroups.com
Subject: Does SSA Give Inaccurate, Incomplete, Misleading or Unhelpful Information About the Martinez Settlement?

Do you have a client who received incomplete or inaccurate information about the Martinez settlement from SSA?   Have you yourself had an interaction with an SSA representative who demonstrated his or her confusion and/or lack of information about the Martinez settlement?  Or have you or your clients been told by an SSA representative that questions about the settlement “can’t be answered right now”?

If so, we would love to hear from you.  We would like to communicate your or your client’s experiences to SSA as part of our ongoing monitoring of implementation of the Martinez settlement.   If you are, and/or if your client is, willing to have his or her name shared with us and with SSA, that would be very helpful.  Otherwise, please give us a brief description of any incorrect, incomplete or misleading information about the Martinez settlement received from an SSA employee and, where possible, the employee’s name, office and location. 

SSA claims that it has done all it should to ensure that its employees are notified about the Martinez settlement provisions.  We have heard reports, however, suggest that class members have received the run-around when contacting SSA about the Martinez settlement, especially those whose benefits were denied or suspended prior to January 1, 2007. 

We are also interested in hearing from anyone who has a client who lost Medicare Part B as the result of a Martinez-related loss of benefits.  SSA agrees, in theory, that these class members should be held harmless , but has so far failed to provide those individuals with the necessary notice and retroactive reinstatement to Part B. 

Please let us know about incidents like this even if the matter was ultimately resolved—your advocacy may have fixed the problem, but we know that many class members lack access to experienced advocates such as yourselves. 

We really appreciate your time—this will help improve delivery of relief to all Martinez class members! 

Anna Rich

Staff Attorney

National Senior Citizens Law Center

1330 Broadway, Suite 525

Oakland, CA  94612

(510) 663-1055 ext. 305

(510) 663-1051 FAX