Disabled Children May Be Due Retroactive Benefits

The Social Security Administration’s Los Angeles office is urging the parents of an estimated 26,000 California children who were denied disability benefits in the 1980s to call a toll-free number to determine whether their children are eligible for retroactive benefits.

Under a Supreme Court decision handed down last year, 452,000 handicapped children nationwide who were denied benefits between Jan. 1, 1980, and Feb. 20, 1990, may have their cases reviewed. Children improperly deprived of benefits could receive back payments and become eligible for monthly disability payments of $630 in California, a Social Security spokesman said.

The spokesman said the agency sent 452,000 letters to the last known addresses of those children, but was having difficulty locating many who had moved. “Anyone who doesn’t get one of these notices should be calling 800-234-5772 number to find out if they may be eligible,” he said.