Several readers recently sent me copies of a news story that appeared in papers around the country. The author of that piece criticized the Social Security Administration for not updating a listing of jobs that benefit applicants might be able to do instead of going on the government dole collecting disability benefits. (The law says that a person must be unable to do any kind of work to be eligible for such payments.)
I’m sure those job listings will eventually be updated, but here is a point I need to make. I worked for the Social Security Administration for 32 years, and in almost every one of those years, Congress passed laws designed to “fix” the disability program. Also, in each and every one of those years, there were internal SSA studies and commissions that resulted in proposals also intended to make the disability process more fair, more streamlined and at the same time, less prone to fraud and abuse….