At the beneficiary's (or recipient's) request, the disability hearing officer (DHO) may allow up to 15 days after the hearing for receipt of evidence which was not available at the hearing if:

• •

  The DHO determines the evidence has a direct bearing on the outcome of the hearing; and

• •

  The evidence could not have been obtained before the hearing.

1. 1. 

   Annotate the hearing report to reflect the beneficiary's (or recipient's) request and the DHO's disposition. Be specific as to the evidence the claimant wishes to submit.

2. 2. 

   Deny the request for time to submit the evidence if there is sufficient evidence upon which to base a determination and the allegations of what is contained in the new evidence does not appear to change the result.

3. 3. 

   Allow the beneficiary (or recipient) a sufficient amount of time to submit the evidence if it appears that the evidence is valuable and may be the dispositive piece of evidence. This is true even if it appears the evidence may have been available earlier.

4. 4. 

   Allow only the amount of time needed to submit the evidence if the beneficiary (or recipient) can reasonably secure it in less than 15 days. The DHO uses discretionary judgement to determine if additional time is necessary.

5. 5. 

   Document the claims folder to reflect the date the DHO granted the request to hold the record and diary the case for the date the evidence is due.

NOTE: See DI 33010.020 Return for Additional Development (RAD) when the DHO initiates additional development, not the beneficiary (or recipient).