After years of ignoring increasingly dire warnings, America is now facing a debilitating disability crisis – one draining tax dollars (and workers) from our economy.
Yet rather than reforming our broken entitlement programs, policymakers continue turning a blind eye to the root problems associated with these unsustainable behemoths: liberally defined benefits, lax bureaucrats, rubberstamping judges and rampant overpayments.
According to Cornell University’s latest “Disability Status Report,” 37.3 million Americans (or 12.1% of our population) claimed a disability in 2011. Many of these were legitimate ailments afflicting older retirees — but America’s disability epidemic cannot be chalked up exclusively to an aging population.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, 10.9 million working age Americans (and family members) received disability insurance payments in February — while another 8.2 million received supplemental security income payments.
Over the course of the year the total tab for these benefits could exceed $180 billion, an ongoing explosion of disability-related dependency that has pushed this program to the brink of insolvency.
That’s not hyperbole, either. A year ago the Social Security Board of Trustees announced the disability trust fund would be exhausted in 2016 — two years earlier than the previous estimate.
How did we arrive at this point? Well, after remaining relatively flat during the late 1970s and 1980s, the number of disability dependents spiked by 84 percent from 1990-2003 while the costs associated with the program climbed from $38 billion to $77 billion annually.
The last five years have seen even more unsustainable growth as the number of workers receiving disability payments jumped from 7.1 million in December 2007 to 8.8 million in February 2013 — a 22.5 percent increase. Meanwhile, annual applications for disability benefits nearly doubled over the last decade — from 1.5 million in 2001 to 2.8 million a year ago.
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Howard Rich is chairman of Americans for Limited Government.
18 comments
“After years of ignoring increasingly dire warnings, America is now facing a debilitating disability crisis – one draining tax dollars (and workers) from our economy.”
You might want to look into the bloated defense budget too…
“After years of ignoring increasingly dire warnings, America is now facing a debilitating disability crisis – one draining tax dollars (and workers) from our economy.”
You might want to look into the bloated defense budget too…
Too bad whenever we try to cut welfare, it isn’t trying to cut people who don’t need it, it is instead broad sweeping cuts to spending as a whole that just lowers the amount everyone, including those who desperately need it, receives.
Of course, there are types who don’t believe in making government efficient, rather they want government entirely out of the system, and those who have no other recourse be damned. They try to sound “concerned” that the programs won’t last up to a certain date, but then they support stopping attempts at correcting those problems, or worse, support sabotage of government programs that do work fairly effectively, like the post office. After all, a broken system is easy to attack, even if you have to break it yourself.
Too bad whenever we try to cut welfare, it isn’t trying to cut people who don’t need it, it is instead broad sweeping cuts to spending as a whole that just lowers the amount everyone, including those who desperately need it, receives.
Of course, there are types who don’t believe in making government efficient, rather they want government entirely out of the system, and those who have no other recourse be damned. They try to sound “concerned” that the programs won’t last up to a certain date, but then they support stopping attempts at correcting those problems, or worse, support sabotage of government programs that do work fairly effectively, like the post office. After all, a broken system is easy to attack, even if you have to break it yourself.
Like most government agencies there is no enforcement. People worried about terrorist. Who is enforcing Washington.
Like most government agencies there is no enforcement. People worried about terrorist. Who is enforcing Washington.
Howie’s kicking cripples now too, not just poor black kids?
Alert, Alert!! Race baiting troll.
Howie’s kicking cripples now too, not just poor black kids?
Alert, Alert!! Race baiting troll.
The last few years increase has been, in part, due to the clearing of the huge backlog from the mid 2000’s. When I began as a Social Security paralegal, the average wait time between filing for disability and having a disability hearing in front of a judge was almost 40 months. The Administration itself has seen a huge attrition of workers who are not being replaced. Front line workers are working unpaid overtime on the weekends to accomplish their workloads.
The last few years increase has been, in part, due to the clearing of the huge backlog from the mid 2000’s. When I began as a Social Security paralegal, the average wait time between filing for disability and having a disability hearing in front of a judge was almost 40 months. The Administration itself has seen a huge attrition of workers who are not being replaced. Front line workers are working unpaid overtime on the weekends to accomplish their workloads.
“Many of these were legitimate ailments afflicting older retirees…”
Shows you how little I know about this topic. I thought disability meant you couldn’t work. But we are making disability payments to retirees?
Yep Yep
“Many of these were legitimate ailments afflicting older retirees…”
Shows you how little I know about this topic. I thought disability meant you couldn’t work. But we are making disability payments to retirees?
Yep Yep
There are numerous folks on SS Disability in my town that are more able to work than a lot of folks I know!
There are numerous folks on SS Disability in my town that are more able to work than a lot of folks I know!