SSA Brings Medical Continuing Disability Reviews (CDR's) In-House
Author: Social Security Administration
Published: 2026/03/12 - Updated: 2026/04/07
Publication Type: Announcement
Category Topic: U.S. Social Security - Related Publications
Contents: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This article covers the Social Security Administration's decision to centralize medical Continuing Disability Reviews under its federal Disability Case Review site, ending the longstanding practice of routing that workload through State Disability Determination Services. It is especially relevant for disability beneficiaries, seniors, and their families who depend on timely and accurate review outcomes, as the shift is designed to strengthen federal accountability while allowing state agencies to concentrate on clearing initial claims backlogs that directly affect how quickly eligible individuals begin receiving benefits - Disabled World (DW).
- Topic Definition: Continuing Disability Review (CDR)
A Continuing Disability Review (CDR) is a periodic evaluation conducted by the Social Security Administration to determine whether a person currently receiving Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income benefits still meets the medical criteria for disability. These reviews are part of the agency's program integrity efforts and can be triggered by expected medical improvement, scheduled timeframes, or other factors, and their outcome determines whether benefits continue, are adjusted - or are terminated.
Introduction
US Social Security Administration Brings Medical Continuing Disability Reviews In-House
Strategic decision offers greater federal accountability and relief for states to focus on faster disability claim adjudication.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has announced the agency will transition the processing of medical Continuing Disability Reviews (CDRs) from State Disability Determination Services (DDS) to its federal processing site called Disability Case Review (DCR). Bringing in-house CDRs will improve service to our most vulnerable Americans. CDRs are conducted as part of SSA's ongoing program integrity workload, supported by Congress, to determine whether a person receiving disability benefits is still eligible to receive them.
Main Content
Aligning medical CDRs under SSA's direct oversight means all CDRs, including non-medical CDRs, are solely the agency's responsibility.
"By centralizing medical continuing disability reviews under Social Security, we are taking another important step towards operational excellence, reducing improper payments, and providing best-in-class service to Americans in critical need of support," said Commissioner Frank J. Bisignano.
"With complete ownership and accountability of CDRs and the proven track record of our DCR, our state disability determination service partners will be able to focus on the adjudication of initial disability claims and reconsideration cases, provide eligible individuals with expedited access to benefits, and further reduce initial disability claims backlogs, which are already reaching historic lows."
DDS can now focus their attention on expediting disability claims for residents of their state, which will enable efficient decisions for claimants, resulting in eligible individuals receiving the critical benefits they need in a timely manner.
In June of 2024, the DDS initial claims backlog was at an all-time high with over 1.26 million pending claims. With a focus on process improvement and operational excellence, the backlogs have been reduced by more than 33 percent to 831,000 as of February 2026. The shift in responsibilities and continued partnership between SSA and state DDSs will continue to significantly improve the processing times and reduce the initial claims backlog.
The agency's Disability Case Review, with its experience processing initial disability claims, reconsideration cases, and medical CDRs, will now handle medical CDRs for the entire country-allowing DDS sites to focus on reducing wait time on initial and reconsideration claims for citizens in their state citizens. Non-medical CDRs, which do not require the same expertise as medical CDRs to process, will continue to be handled by the agency's field offices and processing centers.
NOTE: SSA has stated that this operational change does not change the eligibility rules for disability benefits.
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: Moving medical Continuing Disability Reviews (CDR's) under one federal roof is a practical acknowledgment that program integrity work and frontline claims processing compete for the same limited state resources, and that separating the two should benefit both - the agency gains direct control over the reviews that determine whether beneficiaries keep their coverage, while state offices can redirect staff and attention toward the initial claims backlog that peaked above 1.26 million cases in mid-2024 and still sits at roughly 831,000 as of early 2026, a number that represents real people waiting for a decision that may determine whether they can pay rent or afford medication - Disabled World (DW).Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by Social Security Administration and published on 2026/03/12, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.