Man wins SSI benefits after being denied
By MOLLY HOTTLE, Courier Correspondent, Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Iowa
Friday, September 7, 2007 12:25 PM CDT
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Scarrott said, "We were told that because an attorney is involved, it will take a little longer." Carolyn's comment, This is ridiculous..."because an attorney is involved"
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WATERLOO --- On Aug. 29, just nine days after the story of Andrew Scarrott was out, he and his wife received a call that would change the course of their lives.
Scarrott was diagnosed in February with supranuclear palsy (PSP) --- an accelerated and terminal form of Parkinson's disease. Scarrott applied for federal Supplemental Security Income when he was told by doctors that he wouldn't be able to work anymore. He was denied due to the fact that the Social Security Administration believed he could still fully function at his position at Holdiman Motors in Cedar Falls.
Scarrott and his wife, Roberta, began the appeal process soon after they were denied, but they were warned that it could take up to three years to get an appeal approved. Scarrott's life expectancy was now a maximum of six years.
The call that the Scarrotts received on Aug. 29 was from their SSA caseworker in Waterloo. She told him that while there was still paperwork to take care of, Andrew had been approved for the SSI he had been desperately fighting for.
The Scarrotts place most of the credit on the readers of the Aug. 20 Courier article on his situation. After his story ran, many people contacted the offices of Sens. Tom Harkin and Charles Grassley and U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, expressing their concern for Scarrott and his family.
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