HECKLER, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES v. BLANKENSHIP Et Al.

Background

The Secretary of Health and Human Services asked a Justice to pause a lower court order that would force the agency to adopt nationwide time limits for Social Security disability decisions. The lower courts required a 180-day limit for regular disability claims and a 90-day limit for certain termination decisions. The Secretary says the Supreme Court is already set to review a related case, and she will seek review here as well.

Reasoning

The Justice considered whether at least four Justices would want to review the case, how to balance the harms to both sides, and what the likely outcome might be. Because the Court had already taken the related case, and because this order would impose nationwide rules rather than rules only for one State, the Justice concluded that review was likely. The Justice also found that forcing immediate nationwide deadlines would require major changes to the agency’s claims and appeals process. Respondents are Kentucky residents, so they cannot require deadlines for people in other States. The lower court’s order had already been delayed for nearly 20 months, and a further short stay was unlikely to cause significant extra harm to Kentucky claimants.

Real world impact

The stay pauses immediate nationwide deadlines for disability decisions and delays agency-wide restructuring. The Secretary remains legally required to provide hearings and appeals within a reasonable time, and the case’s final result could change after the Supreme Court decides the related matter.