Medical Unemployment Claims Should Not Require Submission of Employment Applications, etc.

Medical unemployment claims should not require submission of employment applications during weekly certifications. If the claim for unemployment is based on the applicant's inability to work due to a demonstrable health crisis, it should be understood that they are incapable of working or accepting any offer of employment. 

Filing a claim for unemployment should neither adversely affect an application for Social Security disability, specifically because of the often extensive period of time that it takes to acquire approval for Social Security. It should rather be a bridge to Social Security. 

It should be considered that the applicant has to live until they are approved for Social Security benefits and that some people have no support system. It is absolutely deplorable that people have been homeless, literally living on the streets, for extensive periods of time while waiting on approval of Social Security benefits. 

It is understandable that it would take a bit of an extended period of time to process the applications because of the volumes of them that are submitted. 

Applications should be processed in order of receipt, and ready approval should be given to applicants forthwith demonstrating qualifying illness and homelessness. DOL and the Social Security Administration, with applicant approval, should be capable of connecting to applicants' health records via the online portals of their healthcare providers...

...Unemployment applications should be revised to exclude a weekly certification requirement for applicants who are unable to work due to a qualifying health crisis or the certification should exclude requirement to submit employment applications. The Department of Labor, like the Social Security Administration, should reserve the right to verify any continuing illness of a recipient of benefits... 

Unmerited delays in approval of legitimate unemployment and Social Security should be actionable. This should be the case particularly when the applicant has readily demonstrated a legitimate illness or illnesses by provision of their consent to verify the stated illness(es) and if hardship due to the delay can be shown, especially where the hardship is life threatening to the applicant and to any dependents they may have...