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Updated July 2026 · SSA Public
State Profile
Pennsylvania
PA · Region PHL
DDS approval rate
38.0%
-1.8 pts vs national
DDS approval rate
38.0%
National: 39.8%
3-year change
-0.5 pts
Annual receipts
83,847
FY2024
Hearing offices
8
53 ALJs
Latest monthly DDS data · 2026-07
Initial receipts
8,936
Initial determinations
9,045
Initial allowance rate
35.1%
Initial pending
18,004
Recon determinations
2,065
Recon allowance rate
15.0%
Hearing offices in Pennsylvania
| Office | Rank | Processing days | Pending | Approval | Judges |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEVEN FIELDS | 49 | 247 | 2,320 | 70.4% | 6 |
| JOHNSTOWN | 81 | 258 | 926 | 56.7% | 4 |
| PHILADELPHIA | 99 | 265 | 1,545 | 56.2% | 4 |
| ELKINS PARK | 110 | 272 | 3,949 | 61.1% | 11 |
| WILKES BARRE | 116 | 275 | 4,257 | 44.7% | 11 |
| HARRISBURG | 123 | 281 | 2,228 | 44.2% | 6 |
| PITTSBURGH | 123 | 281 | 2,745 | 49.5% | 7 |
| PHILADELPHIA EAST | 139 | 293 | 942 | 55.5% | 6 |
ALJs in Pennsylvania (53)
Sorted by approval rate.
| Judge | Office | Approval | Decisions | Awards | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grovich, Christopher P. | SEVEN FIELDS | 78.4% | 375 | 294 | |
| Kooser, John | SEVEN FIELDS | 77.4% | 403 | 312 | |
| Schwarz, Eric | ELKINS PARK | 76.0% | 308 | 234 | |
| Tenenbaum, Melissa | SEVEN FIELDS | 74.7% | 217 | 162 | |
| Gauffreau, Stuart | ELKINS PARK | 74.5% | 372 | 277 | |
| Preston, Susan | MORGANTOWN | 72.3% | 256 | 185 | |
| Wishnoff, Howard | PHILADELPHIA EAST | 71.9% | 228 | 164 | |
| Cohen, Douglas | SEVEN FIELDS | 69.9% | 362 | 253 | |
| Carter, Brady | ELKINS PARK | 68.9% | 334 | 230 | |
| Borda, Eric | PHILADELPHIA | 67.8% | 177 | 120 | |
| Grunberg, Hope | PHILADELPHIA EAST | 66.7% | 3 | 2 | |
| Morales Price, Sandra | ELKINS PARK | 65.7% | 280 | 184 | |
| Wood, Brian | SEVEN FIELDS | 65.5% | 397 | 260 | |
| Hostovich, Julianne | PITTSBURGH | 63.1% | 195 | 123 | |
| Papazekos, Joanna | PITTSBURGH | 62.2% | 241 | 150 | |
| Goods, Raina | PHILADELPHIA | 61.9% | 352 | 218 | |
| Baker, Robert | JOHNSTOWN | 61.5% | 13 | 8 | |
| Powers, Erin | JOHNSTOWN | 60.3% | 443 | 267 | |
| Hardiman, Therese A. | WILKES BARRE | 60.2% | 196 | 118 | |
| Kleeb, Kelli J. | SEVEN FIELDS | 59.3% | 410 | 243 | |
| Silverman, Marc | ELKINS PARK | 58.2% | 304 | 177 | |
| Gabell, Margaret M | ELKINS PARK | 57.2% | 327 | 187 | |
| Ehasz, Sarah | PITTSBURGH | 57.1% | 296 | 169 | |
| Brady, Edward L. | WILKES BARRE | 54.7% | 384 | 210 | |
| Lash, Jennifer M. | ELKINS PARK | 54.5% | 189 | 103 | |
| Hollo, Elana | ELKINS PARK | 54.2% | 343 | 186 | |
| Cutter, Patrick | HARRISBURG | 53.8% | 314 | 169 | |
| Bozarth, Shawn | HARRISBURG | 53.6% | 224 | 120 | |
| Begley, David | WASHINGTON | 53.5% | 155 | 83 | |
| Johnson, Jessica Marie | PHILADELPHIA | 53.1% | 192 | 102 | |
| Dominick, Charles A. | WILKES BARRE | 52.3% | 369 | 193 | |
| Kaczmarek, Michael | PITTSBURGH | 52.0% | 246 | 128 | |
| Benton, Amy | NHC ST LOUIS | 51.5% | 33 | 17 | |
| Oleyar, Mike | WILKES BARRE | 51.1% | 233 | 119 | |
| Wing, Timothy | WILKES BARRE | 50.9% | 350 | 178 | |
| Woltering, Luke | ELKINS PARK | 50.3% | 324 | 163 | |
| Staller, Scott M | HARRISBURG | 50.3% | 390 | 196 | |
| Langan, Gerard W. | WILKES BARRE | 49.6% | 343 | 170 | |
| Spector, Jennifer | ELKINS PARK | 49.4% | 344 | 170 | |
| Reaves, Tiesh | JOHNSTOWN | 48.9% | 376 | 184 | |
| Watson, Nycole | PHILADELPHIA EAST | 48.2% | 222 | 107 | |
| Ryan, Robert J. | PHILADELPHIA | 47.2% | 386 | 182 | |
| Barletta, Frank | WILKES BARRE | 45.7% | 392 | 179 | |
| Stolls, Michele | WILKES BARRE | 44.1% | 370 | 163 | |
| Kovac, Paul | PITTSBURGH | 43.6% | 307 | 134 | |
| Kauffman, Howard | HARRISBURG | 43.1% | 401 | 173 | |
| Lazzaro, Michele | PHILADELPHIA EAST | 39.9% | 386 | 154 | |
| Bareford, Christian | PITTSBURGH | 39.2% | 306 | 120 | |
| Tranguch, Jarrod | WILKES BARRE | 37.7% | 363 | 137 | |
| Balutis, Daniel | WILKES BARRE | 28.8% | 257 | 74 |
Showing the top 50 of 53 judges.
Next step
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See SSA historical approval base rates for a Pennsylvania claim by condition, age, and stage.