Social Security Disability Reviews--Legit work?

[NJWxMan]

I recently found a position as a board certified psychiatry reviewer position for Social Security Disability denied claims. It is a federal government position. Following reviews, I would be scheduled to discuss concerns with the judge. They claim that no malpractice is needed as it is a government position. Does this sound legit? Anyone have any experience with such employment?

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[whopper]

Psychiatric disability is often times considered a subset of forensic psychiatry and is covered in the curriculum for forensic fellowships.

Does one need malpractice? Phil Resnick recommends you need malpractice insurance for forensic psychiatry. A judge cannot be sued but an expert witness can. I mention that because several are under the misimpression that forensic psychiatry doesn't require malpractice. It does.

Government positions often times have agreements with the employees that they will provide malpractice coverage. The problem there is I've had friends in government positions get sued, and when the person told the state to honor their end of the contract with the malpractice coverage the state wouldn't honor it. (No I'm not kidding). I have colleagues that worked in state positions and for this reason got malpractice coverage anyway. Might've been overkill but like I've said, I've seen people with government "garaunteed" coverage that didn't save them when push came to shove.

 

[NJWxMan]

Thanks so much for your reply. Apparently, they have "many" cases to be completed and it sounded like I would be accepted for employment in a heart beat. I always am skeptical of situations in which income comes "easily" or a job is landed with little effort. I think this position seems too good to be true, especially given the question of liability. If you get an individual on the other end that has a great attorney, I could easily see the attorney coming after the psychiatrist making recommendations to the judge.

Psychiatric disability is often times considered a subset of forensic psychiatry and is covered in the curriculum for forensic fellowships.

Does one need malpractice? Phil Resnick recommends you need malpractice insurance for forensic psychiatry. A judge cannot be sued but an expert witness can. I mention that because several are under the misimpression that forensic psychiatry doesn't require malpractice. It does.

Government positions often times have agreements with the employees that they will provide malpractice coverage. The problem there is I've had friends in government positions get sued, and when the person told the state to honor their end of the contract with the malpractice coverage the state wouldn't honor it. (No I'm not kidding). I have colleagues that worked in state positions and for this reason got malpractice coverage anyway. Might've been overkill but like I've said, I've seen people with government "garaunteed" coverage that didn't save them when push came to shove.

 

[notdeadyet]

Thanks so much for your reply. Apparently, they have "many" cases to be completed and it sounded like I would be accepted for employment in a heart beat. I always am skeptical of situations in which income comes "easily" or a job is landed with little effort. I think this position seems too good to be true, especially given the question of liability. If you get an individual on the other end that has a great attorney, I could easily see the attorney coming after the psychiatrist making recommendations to the judge.

I'm with whopper. Malpractice is extremely cheap (compared to our colleagues in other specialties) or pretty cheap (when viewed as a business expense). I would take it just for peace of mind.

As for full-time disability claim work, I think there have been threads on this in the past. Most people only do it as part-time or locum work. It would be challenging for many to do as a career path, but might be right up the alley for others.

 

[whopper]

Just to add, a friend and colleague of mine was the #2 doctor at a state institution and was hopeful he'd take over as the chief clinical officer within a few years. He was sued, and the hospital didn't do anything to protect him despite that they gave us contractual promises that they'd cover our malpractice.

He left that job in disgust, and while he never told me the specific reason why, everyone we mutually know told me it was due to the lawsuit, where he had to shelve out quite a bit of money to pay for a lawyer that malpractice coverage was supposed to have paid, and while he did not lose the case, he could have, and because he had no coverage, he could've lost everything in his bank account.

If you already have malpractice insurance and tell the insurance company you're doing some extra work here and there, they will likely not add much to your annual fee. At least that's what happened to me. I worked at one place, had my malpractice insurance. I did some extra side work and the insurance company told me they would cover me for that too and not charge me anymore.

 

[vistaril]

I recently found a position as a board certified psychiatry reviewer position for Social Security Disability denied claims. It is a federal government position. Following reviews, I would be scheduled to discuss concerns with the judge. They claim that no malpractice is needed as it is a government position. Does this sound legit? Anyone have any experience with such employment?

sure it's 'legit'. It is what the job says it is.

Now whether it involves doing something that is useful/productive/meaningful/honest/needed is another discussion completely.