In addition to the ridiculous claims that many people who are collecting Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) are not really as disabled as they are claiming to be, there are some allegations that people are committing outright fraud to obtaining disability benefits under false pretenses. While we see these claims surface on the news from time to time, they really represent a very minor problem in light of the nearly 10 million Americans who are truly disabled and very much in need of their monthly benefits.
According to a recent news article from Star Telegram, a woman who is now 53 claimed she was suffering from severe hallucinations from the age of 15. She also claimed she had other family members with severe mental illness. According to court records, she also told screeners at the United States Social Security Administration (SSA) that her entire family was stricken with mental illness. Prosecutors are claiming this was part of an elaborate ruse to fraudulently obtain more than $500,000 in public benefits to which she and her family was not entitled. Continue reading