ALERT: Congressional Budget Office (COB) 2010 Issue Brief on Disability Insurances (SSDI & SSI)

While listening to TV pundits interview incoming Congressional members, I heard some say that the Social Security Disability Insurance programs - SSDI and SSI - need to be reviewed, 'cause with the # of folks on those programs there must be lots of fraud and/or it must be too easy to get approval! OMG(oodness) - WHAT???

Well, of course this just brought my ire up, so I did some research to come up with some facts.

I found this particular CBO - Congressional Budget Office - Report on Social Security Disability Insurance - SSDI & SSI - their Trends and Fiscal Implications - for the future. I've copied for you the intro to that report. It is 8 pages long, and I need to carefully read it and digest it before I can properly advise all of us on what to do. HOWEVER, based on just this intro, I CAN offer the following advice/recommendations:

1) IF YOU HAVE NOT YET APPLIED, OR ARE IN THE PROCESS - email me and get my PROVEN process for documenting and getting corroboration about your symptom impairments on your ADL's: Activities of Daily Living (work and home). In this way you should be able to comply with any potential future process changes.

2) If YOU ARE ALREADY ON SSDI &/OR SSI - STILL email me for the processes. Do the documentation and corroboration work NOW. They you should be better prepared to comply SUCCESSFULLY with whatever changes might come along.

I'm afraid that absent the careful documentation and corroboration on your part AHEAD of time, you might be in trouble long term.


For example: One recommendation offered is to get folks on Disability Insurance BACK TO WORK. If they - meaning Social Security - change the rules in this manner, then the recommended documentation can GREATLY assist you in showing how you cannot perform "WORK OF ANY KIND" - WHATEVER your past work history was!

So, read the following. If you want a copy of the whole paper EMAIL ME - DO NOT SEND ME A PM; I CAN ONLY GET IT TO YOU AS AN EMAIL ATTACHMENT. csmagura@yahoo.com

THEN, email me and get started on your documentation and corroboration. We cannot fight what may come to pass; but we can be READY to successfully qualify for whatever "rules" are concocted.


Social Security Disability Insurance: Participation Trends and Their Fiscal Implications
July 22, 2010


The Social Security Disability Insurance (DI) program pays cash benefits to nonelderly adults (those younger than age 66) who are judged to be unable to perform “substantial” work because of a disability but who have worked in the past; the program also pays benefits to some of those adults’ dependents. In 2009, the Disability Insurance program paid benefits to almost 8 million disabled beneficiaries and about 2 million of those beneficiaries’ spouses and children.

Between 1970 and 2009, the number of people receiving DI benefits more than tripled, from 2.7 million to 9.7 million (unless otherwise specified, all years are calendar years). That jump, which significantly outpaced the increase in the working-age population during that period, is attributable to several changes—in characteristics of that population, in federal policy, and in opportunities for employment. In addition, during those years, the average inflation-adjusted cost per person receiving DI benefits rose from about $6,900 to about $12,800 (in 2010 dollars). As a result, inflation-adjusted expenditures for the DI program, including administrative costs, increased nearly sevenfold between 1970 and 2009, climbing from $18 billion to $124 billion (in 2010 dollars). Most DI beneficiaries, after a two-year waiting period, are also eligible for Medicare; the cost of those benefits in fiscal year 2009 totaled about $70 billion.

Under current law, the DI program is not financially sustainable. Its expenditures are drawn from the Disability Insurance Trust Fund, which is financed primarily through a payroll tax of 1.8 percent; the fund had a balance of $204 billion at the end of 2009. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that by 2015, the number of people receiving DI benefits will increase to 11.4 million and total expenditures will climb to $147 billion (in 2010 dollars; see Figure 1). However, tax receipts credited to the DI trust fund will be about 20 percent less than those expenditures, and three years later, in 2018, the trust fund will be exhausted, according to CBO’s estimates. Without legislative action to reduce the DI program’s outlays, increase its dedicated federal revenues, or transfer other federal funds to it, the Social Security Administration will not have the legal authority to pay full DI benefits beyond that point.

A number of changes could be implemented to address the trust fund’s projected exhaustion. Some would increase revenues dedicated to the program; others would reduce outlays. One approach to reducing expenditures on DI benefits would be to establish policies that would make work a more viable option for people with disabilities. However, little evidence is available on the effectiveness of such policies, and their costs might more than offset any savings from reductions in DI benefits.

SSA 's length of time for Denied SSDI claimants to wait for a Hearing is 15 months now; they are PROUD?

The Social Security Administration is PROUD of the following statement: "The average processing time for hearing decisions has decreased to 442 days, down from a high of 514 days at the end of fiscal year (FY) 2008."

Seriously - PROUD that it takes 15 MONTHS to wait for a Disability claim HEARING? the DisabilityKey process brings (followed AND qualified) APPROVAL averages 3 months!

Patient Self-Advocacy - WHAT is it; HOW to do it?

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND self-advocacy for EVERYONE, but especially for people with disabilities!! Stanford Univ. in the US came up with a program entitled: Chronic Disease Self-Management - see this link: http://patienteducation.stanford.edu/pr...ograms/cdsmp.html for more information.

Canada, Australia, and the UK have a very similar program called "Expert Patient"; see this link: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/www.dh.gov.uk/en/Aboutus/MinistersandDepartmentLeaders/ChiefMedicalOfficer/ProgressOnPolicy/ProgressBrowsableDocument/DH_4102757 or this site: http://www.expertpatients.co.uk/

Here is the BEST website that I've found that explains the concept in general and has TONS of info; from New Zealand:

http://www.healthnavigator.org.nz/keeping-well/generic-self-management-course/research-additional-information

Finally, I've personally written about this concept in my own blogs on my website: http://www.disabilitykey.com/ - the archived blog way back in 2005 or so. Here's a link to that archived Blog; scroll down about 1/3 of the way to the AUGUST 16, 2005 entry: http://www.disabilitykey.com/blog/

I've taken the Stanford course and am a Certified Chronic Disease Self-Manager Trainer. With this knowledge, I've created a FREE ebooklet about how best to become a Self-Advocate. For a copy, please email me: csmagura@yahoo.com.

Finally, I find that most people have problems getting their doctors to actually LISTEN to them - let alone partner with them. It's more prevalent in the US and is called "Doctor (or illness)-Centered" medicine, versus PATIENT-CENTERED medicine. Canada, the UK, Australia and New Zealand are MILES ahead of the US when it comes to patient-centered medicine.

Here's a current study: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0999/is_7284_322/ai_71820692/

Why I'm learning about the UK Welfare and Disability systems

GREETINGS! As an Expert on the US Social Security (Welfare & Disability Insurance) systems, I'm now learning about what's going on in the UK for 2 reasons: 1) to be better prepared to deal with the upcoming US "Natn'l" Health Care System; and 2) to provide my disability insurance success process - ALL INFO PROVIDED FOR FREE - to you in the UK!

As a way to learn about me, please see my facebook page: Disabilitykey

I've been doing this Advocacy for almost a decade, and have reached over 4,000 folks WORLDWIDE.

I have both PERSONAL expertise with the system - on disability for Multiple Sclerosis and Polyneuropathy (getting approval the 1st time around in under 30 days when the "normal" timeframe is 3 1/2 years); and PROFESSIONAL expertise - a Human Resources Auditor and Executive for 30+ years.

Please check out my website: http:www.disabilitykey.com AND I'm new to this facebook organization: http://www.facebook.com/?tid=1589005602646&sk=messages#!/group.php?gid=100236785459

Please email me: csmagura@yahoo.com to get forms, examples, and process instructions on how to get disability insurance for which you qualify. Looking forward to getting to know you and your concerns better!

OUTSTANDING Health Survey Website: AmIHealthy.com

While researching disease-specific quality of life (QoL) websites, I came across this OUTSTANDING website wherein you can register - all for FREE - take health and QoL questionnaires, get feedback, track progress, and print out analyses for your doctors! Here is the website: https://www.amihealthy.com/

Quality of Life Survey Tools

If you are interested in measuring your own Quality of Life, here is a link to a website that offers 3 links to different surveys. Copy the link and post it into your web browser and it will take you to the website:

http://www.musc.edu/dfm/RCMAR/GeneralTools.html

How I CAN do what I do....

Many of you know me as the "Social Security and ANY type of Disability Insurance Guru"! If you have ever wondered how I - with dx's of both Multiple Sclerosis and Polyneuropathy for over 45 years - and, who only has about 2 - 3 cognitive hours available DAILY, can do what I do - I'll share my secret with you.

FIRST of all, what I am accomplishing requires: 1) a strong spiritual focus; 2) a positive outlook on life; and 3) a willingness to achieve a QOL (Quality of Life) that allows me to focus externally on others.

I achieved all of this by being what I call "successfully 2-sided"; I focused on what I CAN'T DO to get the resources (including disability insurances and a "patient-centered" relationship with my doctors); THEN I focus on what I CAN DO to achieve a positive QOL. Next, I focused on my spiritual life. Finally, I figured out what I was good at doing; what my spiritual life was FORCING - lol - allowing - me to do, and I set about doing it. (Note: I joke about the "forcing", but it is really true. I had to loose all of my physical resources that allowed me to think that I could "fix/resolve" anything. After being angry and frustrated for about a decade, I reached the epiphany that allowed me to stop my "pitty party".)

This led me a decade ago into establishing my DisabilityKey initiatives - as a Nationally Recognized Disability Advocate, Educator, and Expert Witness. To find out more about YOUR acquiring either Disability Insurance(s) for which you qualify, and/or how to achieve your OWN patient-centered relationship with your doctors, please email me: csmagura@yahoo.com.

I have my own daily prayer/song that summarizes what and how I can do what I do:

My Abba up above,
Holy Spirit within me;
Both guide this Servant's hands and mind to show
Disabled HOW to go!

THANKS for visiting this Blog entry. Hope that it just might trigger an idea within YOU!