The higher the federal debt goes, the harder it is to be a Social Security disability attorney. Over and over, people have been taking shots at SSDI, demanding cuts and changes and talking about how the budget for the program is “out of control” due to people abusing it. I’d love for some of those same people to have to sit in front of my disabled clients and make the same arguments but that’s beside the point.
Thankfully, someone has finally spoken out from the other side. Kathy Ruffing’s August report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities not only points out the necessity of SSDI—how else would people who can’t work because of a serious disability survive?—she does a great job of tearing down the arguments of the people fighting against SSDI.
What’s “Out of Control” is the Social Security Disability Rhetoric
As a Social Security Disability attorney, I’ve seen and argued many of the points Ms. Ruffing notes in her report for years but it’s a lot easier to ignore those points when they are coming from me. Here are the accusations opponents have made about SSDI and how Ms. Ruffing discounts them.
Spending is “out of control.” People have been saying this for years but Ruffing clearly shows that the amount of money being spent and the number of cases are basically in line with what people estimated decades ago. In short, we knew how much we’d need and just didn’t plan well.
Increases are due to abuse. The increases aren’t due to abuse but because we have a lot more older people now than in the past. Many of them need help and they’re not getting if from Medicare because the retirement age keeps increasing. Also, more women in the workforce means that more people are eligible for SSDI.
Too many people get SSDI. Only 41 percent of people who apply receive benefits. In fact, I’d argue that too few people get SSDI because I’ve met lots of people I believe should receive it who don’t.
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“Free” benefits keep people from earning more by working.
This is one I hate, and thankfully Ruffing destroys the argument by using data that proves that most recipients would make very little money—if any at all—from what work they could find.
Don’t let talking heads guilt you out of trying to get the Social Security disability benefits that you deserve.
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