SSDI advocates ready to fight to prevent any benefits cuts
What do B’nai B’rith, the AFL-CIO, the NAACP, Easter Seals, the National Organization for Women and Vietnam Veterans of America have in common? Among other things, these diverse groups are all part of a coalition that has vowed to fight any attempts to cut Social Security disability benefits.
As regular readers of our Denver SSDI blog know, we have written several times in the past about looming budget problems. According to analysts, a shortfall in funding anticipated by the end of next year will — if not resolved — mean a cut in disability benefits.
Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio and other SSDI advocates issued a letter stating that they “are deeply concerned by any prospect of worsening the economic security of workers with disabilities and their families.”
In addition, the co-director of Social Security Works, a nonprofit advocacy group, said in a statement to the Huffington Post that it’s time to enact legislation that will protect SSDI and make it viable well beyond next year. She wrote by acting now, lawmakers can “avoid frightening those beneficiaries about whether their full benefits will be paid on time.”
Far too often, grandstanding politicians ignore realities about Americans receiving disability benefits, including the fact that the assistance is modest; recipients paid for the benefits from every paycheck they earned; and they have proven that their physical or mental conditions prevent them from working.
For those people trying to navigate the complex process of applying for and being approved for SSDI benefits, it can be especially difficult to supply that proof of disability. That’s where experienced attorneys can provide invaluable assistance. SSDI lawyers know what kind of documentation the Social Security Administration demands for approval, how to gather it from medical care providers and experts and how to then present it to the administrative judge for the critical appeals evaluation.
