There has been a lot of news lately about the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs, which are both facing a major budget shortfall. It is estimated that if Congress does not agree to reallocate funds from the Social Security retirement system by the end of 2016, the program will be out of money and unable to operate at full capacity.
In other words, by late 2016, over 9 million Americans will have their Social Security disability benefits cut by nearly 20 percent. Many of these disabled Americans will not be able to make ends meet or take care of themselves and their families with only 80 percent of their benefits. It should be also be noted, the system was designed so people could not make as much sitting at home and collecting benefits, so even at 100 percent of their benefits, a disabled individual is only making around two thirds of what they made before becoming disabled.
According to a recent report from Bloomberg, the program itself has various issues that should be corrected, aside from seeking money from Congress. First, the author looks at the history of the Social Security disability program. The United States Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Social Security Retirement program was already up and running, as it had been created by Roosevelt as part of the New Deal plan to get out of the Great Depression when Eisenhower added a disability benefits program in 1956. Continue reading