eDib is an electronic business process that enables all disability components to process claims electronically. When processing a disability case in eDib, the EF stores most evidence and determinations related to the disability determination. There are other SSA systems, such as the Non-disability Repository for Evidentiary Documents (NDRED), that store non-disability related materials for a case.

The disability EF is an electronic disability case repository that stores a claimant’s disability file information. The Field Office (FO) establishes an EF on an individual’s Social Security number (SSN) when entering a disability report into the Electronic Disability Collect System (EDCS). Users take any of the following actions to store case information, documentation, and evidence:

• •

  Key data into entry fields;

• •

  Complete and add electronic forms (eForms);

• •

  Scan or fax documents;

• •

  Add documents through Electronic Records Express (ERE); or

• •

  Download documents submitted through the internet.

1. 1. 

   Certified electronic folder (CEF)

   The CEF is the official electronic folder. No Modular Disability Folder (MDF) exists for the current filing. In CEF cases:

   • •

     Users enter all claims associated with the case in EDCS;

   • •

     The CEF stores all case medical documentation. The CEF also stores non-medical documentation related to the case.

   • •

     Disability Determination Services (DDS) and Office of Hearings Operations (OHO) post final disability determinations and decisions, including decisional documents and notices issued by the DDS or OHO.

   NOTE: 

   The CEF may not contain all documents that comprise the official folder. Non-medical documentation may exist in other SSA systems such as Modernized Claim system (MCS), electronic Representative Payee system (eRPS), Online Retrieval System (ORS), etc. While the information stored on other SSA systems is part of an individual's record, it is not part of the disability EF unless it appears as a document in the eView Case Document section of the EF.

   Both ORS and Queries pages can be accessed and viewed from the links in eView Case Documents section of the EF; however, if DDS or OHO use documentation from these systems pages, the ORS documents must be added and queries must be saved or imported into the EF. Please see DI 81005.050B.

2. 2. 

   Electronic Folder

   An EF is a case that consists of at least one claim that is an EDCS exclusion. The user must create a paper MDF. Although the official folder is paper, we can partially process the case electronically. The FO may create the case in EDCS to collect information (Disability Report, Work Report, etc.) and other components (DDS, OHO, etc.) may use the EF to collect and store documents.

   At case closure, the adjudicating office converts the folder to paper and files the document in the appropriate sections of the MDF.

   A case may originate as a CEF, but may require conversion to paper for various reasons.

   For more information on EDCS exclusions and limitations, see DI 81010.030.

3. 3. 

   Paper Folder

   The MDF is the official folder for paper cases. We establish a paper case when:

   • •

     At least one claim in a case is a CEF Exclusion (see DI 81010.030 for more information on CEF exclusions); or

   • •

     A processing limitation occurs that removes a CEF from the electronic process, leaving an EF.

Access the CEF or EF through:

• •

  eView - for instructions on how to access eView, see DI 81005.005; and

• •

  Case processing systems (e.g., EDCS, Disability Case Processing System (DCPS), DDS legacy systems, Disability Case Adjudication and Review System [DICARS], Case Processing and Management System [CPMS] and Appeals Review Processing System [ARPS].

The Personal Identification Number (PIN) of an employee logged onto a workstation controls the amount of access and functionality an individual has in the EF or CEF. For more information about user access to the EF, see DI 81001.025.

The CEF and EF contain documents organized in the same sections and order as the MDF. Current instructions for filing documents in the paper MDF apply to the CEF following instructions in - DI 70005.005.

The CEF sections include:

• •

  Section A - Payment Documents/Decisions (Yellow Front)

• •

  Section B - Jurisdictional Documents and Notices (Red)

• •

  Section C - Current Development/Temporary (Green)

• •

  Section D - Non-Disability Related Development (Orange)

• •

  Section E - Disability Related Developments (Blue)

• •

  Section F - Medical Records (Yellow Back)

• •

  Queries (This section stores scanned queries.)

• •

  Multimedia Files (This section stores audio file.)

Each CEF section:

• •

  Expands to show a list of documents stored there; and

• •

  Displays details of each document.

DI 70005.005 Overview of the Paper Modular Disability Folder (MDF)

DI 81005.005 eView Overview

DI 81010.030 Certified Electronic Folder (CEF) Exclusions and Limitations

DI 81001.025 Authorized Access to the Certified Electronic Folder (CEF)