Who decides cases at this office
The panel in Providence is consistent, with allowance rates for active judges clustering between 49% and 66%. Because the judges here operate within a narrow band, you are unlikely to see wide swings in outcomes based on random assignment. While this consistency is helpful, remember that each judge weighs evidence differently; your goal is to build a file that is robust enough to satisfy any member of the panel.
| Rank | Judge | Approval Rate | Total Decisions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | V. Paul McGinn | 74% | 23,117 | |
| 2 | Ryan Vanda | 65% | 6,548 | |
| 3 | Laura Bernasconi | 62% | 21,286 | |
| 4 | Kate Dana | 60% | 5,990 | |
| 5 | Gerald Resnick | 53% | 8,725 | |
| 6 | Stephen M. Szymczak | 48% | 6,415 | |
| 7 | Paul W. Goodale | 47% | 27,206 | |
| 8 | Barry H. Best | 44% | 17,240 | |
| 9 | Jason Mastrangelo | 43% | 30,039 | |
| 10 | Martha Bower | 32% | 16,394 |
Heading to an ALJ hearing? Get a free case review to prepare for your hearing.
Free Benefits ReviewHow long you'll wait
At Providence, the average wait from hearing request to written decision is 8 months— versus a national average of 8 months. Here's how it's tracked month by month over the past 16 months.
Your odds change dramatically with a lawyer
SSDI hearing approval rates — represented vs. on your own
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.
Going to your hearing
With a 7.5-month wait, you have a valuable runway to build a case that stands up to scrutiny. During your hearing, an ALJ will review your file and a vocational expert will testify about your ability to perform work. You should bring updated medical records, a detailed log of your daily activities, and a list of medications with their side effects. Evidence submission deadlines are strict, so ensure all documentation is filed well before your date. Because the panel here is consistent, your focus should be on filling any gaps in your treatment history that the SSA may have missed during your initial decision, which has a 42% allowance rate in RI.
When a hearing office maintains a steady 57% allowance rate, the difference between an approval and a denial often comes down to how effectively your evidence addresses the vocational expert's testimony. Many claimants lose because they fail to connect their specific physical or mental limitations to the requirements of available jobs. You can bridge this gap by pressure-testing your file and ensuring your testimony aligns with the medical record.
Field offices that route cases here
If your hearing is at Providence, your case originated at one of the SSA field offices below — the local intake counter where you (or a representative) filed the initial application. Field offices don't decide hearings, but they hold your file, issue benefit-payment notices, and field the day-to-day questions during your wait.