On Monday Social Security Administration Commissioner Michael Astrue admitted to The Boston Globe during an editorial board meeting that there are significant problems with the agency’s $10 billion children’s disability program.
Astrue said he is seeking congressional approval to conduct an independent $10 million scientific study of the program and that he’d like the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine to orchestrate the study.
The study’s findings, Asture hopes, would provide a platform for changing the children’s Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, which was created in 1972 and which he calls “problematic.”
Astrue’s comments come in response to The Boston Globe’s “The Other Welfare” article series, which showed how the program has evolved from one that benefits children with severe physical disabilities to now largely benefiting kids with behavioral, learning, and mental disorders.
Perhaps the most alarming finding in the Globe report is that some children have been given psychotropic medications specifically to increase their chances of qualifying for SSI, which can pay up to $700 a month per child.
The Globe pointed out that there are 1.2 million low-income children collecting SSI benefits. Fifty-three percent of these children qualify because of mental disabilities. This figure has climbed eight percent since 1990.
Do you think that the children’s SSI program is troubled?
If you need help with your Social Security benefits, contact the Social Security Disability lawyers at Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin.
Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin
N/aThe financial burden that often comes with a serious injury can be too much for many people to bear. Unexpected medical debt, damaged personal property, and the sudden loss of income can impact the budgets of most families. The good news is that a successful injury claim could help reduce that financial strain after a serious accident. Get in touch with a Terre Haute personal injury lawyer with Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin to learn more.
Copyright ©2024 Fleschner, Stark, Tanoos & Newlin,