Unfit For Work

[ABM]

The startling rise of disability in America.......

http://apps.npr.org/unfit-for-work/

In the past three decades, the number of Americans who are on disability has skyrocketed. The rise has come even as medical advances have allowed many more people to remain on the job, and new laws have banned workplace discrimination against the disabled........

The federal government spends more money each year on cash payments for disabled former workers than it spends on food stamps and welfare combined......

 

[jlprk]

What portion are government retirees? It seems that half of military retirees get a disability allowance.

 

[ABM]

What portion are government retirees? It seems that half of military retirees get a disability allowance.

Good question. I wonder if that's rated separately?

 

[MARIS61]

People are forced to work into their 70's or until they die due to the 1% ers robbing the middle class. The human body is not designed for that kind of mileage so disabilities occur.

 

[Eastoff]

I remember listening to this story, or a similar one just recently. and they implied there was a flaw in the system for disability aid. If someone on disability starts working too much, they lose all of their disability. This incentivizes not working at all for fear of losing steady income.

 

[ABM]

I remember listening to this story, or a similar one just recently. and they implied there was a flaw in the system for disability aid. If someone on disability starts working too much, they lose all of their disability. This incentivizes not working at all for fear of losing steady income.

Three guys were fishing on a lake one day, when Jesus walked across the water and joined them in the boat. When the three astonished men had settled down enough to speak, the first guy asked humbly, "Jesus, I've suffered from back pain ever since I took shrapnel in the Vietnam War. Could you help me?"

"Of course, my son," Jesus said. And, when he touched the man's back he felt relief for the first time in years.

The second guy who wore very thick glasses and had a hard time reading and driving , asked if Jesus could do anything about his poor eyesight. Jesus smiled, removed the man's glasses and tossed them into the lake. When they hit the water, the man's eyes cleared and he could see everything distinctly.

When Jesus turned to the third guy, the guy put his hands out defensively. "Don't touch me!" he cried. "I'm on a disability pension."

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

worker's comp is such a fuck.

but...

[video=youtube;HX0fIi3H-es]

 

[Denny Crane]

When 99 weeks of unemployment run out, people try to get disability. Obamanomics. Fail.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

its the new american dream.

 

[ABM]

its the new american (d)ream.

FIFY

 

[The_Lillard_King]

I have a feeling if you polled everyone on SSD, most would be unhappy with their life situation.

 

[jlprk]

Conservatives once again are criticizing their own without realizing it. The military hands out disability allowances to half its active members and most (3 million) of its retirees.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/12/...sability-database.html#storylink=omni_popular

My father got a large military pension for 39 years, including disability for back pain from his bureaucrat's desk job. He went to a chiropractor now and then.

If you're a military retiree not on disability, you must have not asked for it.

 

[jlprk]

The amount is like, a thousand a month, tax-free for the rest of your life. It's more if it's something real, like combat memories.

Next time you read that the Bush wars cost a trillion dollars--that's just up to now. Including the future, you can add another half-trillion or trillion.

But hey, keep complaining about this government welfare, conservatives. That you caused.

 

[jlprk]

Last year, Portland taxpayers paid 300 of their 985 police over $100,000, each.

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2013/03/more_than_300_portland_police.html

 

[MARIS61]

When 99 weeks of unemployment run out, people try to get disability. Obamanomics. Fail.

Link?

 

[Denny Crane]

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/pain_brings_gain_taZkGOAUhXALmhEEyMpmqJ

Jobless disability claims soar to record $200B as of January

Standing too many months on the unemployment line is driving Americans crazy — literally — and it’s costing taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars.

With their unemployment-insurance checks running out, some of the country’s long-term jobless are scrambling to fill the gap by filing claims for mental illness and other disabilities with Social Security — a surge that hobbles taxpayers and making the employment rate look healthier than it should as these people drop out of the job statistics.

“It could be because their health really is getting worse from the stress of being out of work,” says Matthew Rutledge, a research economist at Boston College. “Or it could just be desperation — people trying to make ends meet when other safety nets just aren’t there.”

As of January, the federal government was mailing out disability checks to more than 10.5 million individuals, including 2 million to spouses and children of disabled workers, at a cost of record $200 billion a year, recent research from JPMorgan Chase shows.

The sputtering economy has fueled those ranks. Around 5.3 percent of the population between the ages of 25 and 64 is currently collecting federal disability payments, a jump from 4.5 percent since the economy slid into a recession.

 

[Denny Crane]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204296804577121392750460030.html

The prolonged economic slump has fueled a surge in applications for Social Security disability benefits, with many desperate Americans seeking refuge in the program as a last resort after their unemployment insurance and savings run out.

Two new studies, one of them co-authored by the White House's top economist, show a correlation between when people seek Social Security disability payments and when their unemployment benefits are exhausted. Some economists say that connection shows many people now view the system as an extended unemployment program.

 

[mook]

Really fascinating article on the topic. (Incidentally, also a cool layout.) http://apps.npr.org/unfit-for-work/

This is the graph that stuck with me:

 

[mook]

I'd add that being on disability does not necessarily mean you are unemployed in the real world. I can think of at least one person who is actually a pretty productive person who works under the table, but also receives disability because of Parkinsons. He couldn't hold down a real job in an office anymore, but he still does work from home on freelance stuff. He gets paid pretty poorly, given his executive experience and expertise.

In this particular instance, the disability basically subsidizes his work so small businesses can afford him. The economy actually benefits from this subsidy. I know he's not typical, but it's an interesting case to think about.

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

When 99 weeks of unemployment run out, people try to get disability. Obamanomics. Fail.

I hate to say it, but this is it.

 

[donkiez]

Really fascinating article on the topic. (Incidentally, also a cool layout.) http://apps.npr.org/unfit-for-work/

This is the graph that stuck with me:

Im kind of curious about how the log income people on disability is calculated. Like say I make $1m, then get disabled and start collecting SSD, after a year or two on SSD with no income wouldn't I be considered a low income disabled person? Ill have to read the article more carefully when I have some time.

 

[donkiez]

I have a feeling if you polled everyone on SSD, most would be unhappy with their life situation.

I got to think the same. $1000 a month tax free, as a persons only income, doesn't really sound like the american dream to me.

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

its the NEW american dream. Work as little as possible or not at all for free money that you are "entitled" to.

 

[Denny Crane]

I got to think the same. $1000 a month tax free, as a persons only income, doesn't really sound like the american dream to me.

If the alternative is a job at $1500, it's a matter of weighing the cost and benefit of actually working. If you're spending $300/mo on ObamaGasPrices, the $200 more isn't enticing enough.

The $1000 probably isn't all one can get from the government teet. Food stamps, for example.

Does SSI or Disability Help Pay Rent, Utilities, or Heating Costs?

Social Security doesn't offer rental assistance, but here are resources you can use to get help paying rent and utilities without lowering your SSI benefits.

www.disabilitysecrets.com

 

[EL PRESIDENTE]

Yeah, for some people, its easier to be unemployed with having to go into work early, pay for gas, car insurance, clothes, lunches and dealing with actually earning money rather than having passive income with little expenses. Its a sweet little scam nowadays, especially if entitlements increase as the rich have to "pay their fair share" to support this underclass.