I agree with FReeper “kaila”.
Why do I have to pay you for your hardships? I am sorry for your woes, but to be blunt...we all have them.
I have sympathy “cards” I could play. I’m a vet, I have anxiety, I do have grand mal seizures, hell my knee hurts most days.
So what. I go to the doctor, I try to take care of myself, and my husband loves and supports me. That is what most everyone does. They don’t expect others to carry the load.
I got into debt taking on the care of my elderly mother and disabled brother. I didn’t ask the govt. for help. I just took it on.
The more symptoms and woes you tack on to your posts aren’t going to get you any more sympathy.
There are disabled people who need help. That is obvious. But for you to deny that many people are gaming the system for money is ridiculous.
This thread started with the stat of “1 of 19 Americans are on some kind of disability”. That statistic was shocking to me and made me mad. You accepted it and expect conservative FReepers to be OK with it as well.
I will never be OK with it. I pay a crap load of my money to fund this sham. I want it to stop.
At V.A. the audiologist is more skilled at nerve damage and sensory processing issues. The first hearing test I had early last year was accurate though. The audiologist tested me and saw me seizing at certain tones. These hearing aids should have better filtering.
Outside of my SSDI check and farly low yearly medical cost covered by Medicare I pay the rest. Most of the things I have to have Medicare doesn't cover. Hearing Aids, Corrective shoes, etc. It was just this past year I finally went through V.A. for some of it.
I do not believe 1 in 19 are on SSDI. SSI? Maybe but not SSDI. The reason is the standard of qualification and burden of proof for SSDI is much greater. I can remember I was placed on SSI after I retired and when my SSDI was approved the SSI I had recieved up till then was taken from my first check which was about six months or so SSDI back pay.
Now let me ask you something. If you and your husband had a car wreck in the morning and it inflicted catrostrophic damage what would you do? What would the ones you help do? You'd be at the SS office or you would starve and loose your home unless you made enough to purchase catriostrophic illness insurance. BTW most of those type policies have lifetime caps.
I have to laugh at the rants in here. Strain at a gnat swallow a camel. The cost of SSDI is nothing compared to the cost of taxpayer supported nursing homes which no one bats an eye at. I worked in them. Many of the patients were there simply because family could not be bothered. Some needed to be due to advanced diseases or nearing death most did not. You haven't heard the outrage till you try and cut off the nursing home industry. They have a very powerful DC lobby.
Those places get established as NPO's with a board of directors. The B.O.D. members get outragous salaries for simply attending meetings once a month. Medicare is their cash cow followed by private insurance co-pays. Do the math. If a disabled person is home especially a blue color disabled they will draw SSDI far below the cost of a nursing home. Lets see if any members of the house or senate call for cutting that.