Social Security Disability Insurance Is Necessary


On August 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act. Although we take Social Security for granted these days, at the time its passage was considered a revolutionary act.  Opponents of Social Security viewed such things as a slide into Marxism, while others decried government interference in what should have been a solely free market concern.

But prior to the advent of Social Security, the idea of retirement was a fantasy for the vast majority of Americans. You either worked until you couldn’t physically do so or you died. If you couldn’t physically work anymore and you had a family, they took care of you. That is, if your family could afford to do so. 1935 was the middle of the Great Depression. Many people were out of work even if they were fit, skilled and able bodied. And if you were injured on the job (or outside of the job for that matter) and couldn’t work, someone else would have to take care of you.  So before Social Security, the government’s official position on the old, infirm, injured and unemployed was “Not our problem,” and “Lots of luck to you.”

Social Security changed all of that. While it doesn’t offer a huge amount of money for retirees, it at least offers some level of income for people who choose to retire. And contrary to what some people might say, it is not welfare. It is an insurance system that people pay in to throughout their working careers. And it does not just provide income for retirees. It also provides financial support for people who become disabled or injured and are unable to work. This is a very necessary system to have in place. According to the Social Security Administration, a 20 year old worker has a 3 in 10 chance of being disabled before he reaches retirement age. According to the Family Caregiver Alliance, 99,000 people a year suffer a brain injury that is traumatic enough to negatively affect them for the rest of their lives. According to the National Alliance for Mental Illness, 2.4 million Americans suffer from severe schizophrenia, while 5.7 million suffer from severe bipolar disorder. And according to the University of Alabama, approximately 77,000 debilitating spinal cord injuries occur every year. Any one of these injuries or illnesses can make it impossible for someone to hold regular employment, and the idea of these people being simply cast adrift is completely unconscionable. Social Security Disability Insurance allows for some level of income for cases like these.

The quality of life for the elderly and the disabled has improved in leaps and bounds since the government initiated Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Insurance Income (SSI). There is, however, a difference between Social Security retirement payments and Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits. To receive retirement payments, all you have to do is turn 62. To receive Social Security Disability Benefits, you have to prove that you are unable to work. And you have to do so according to some pretty strict standards.

Applying for Social Security Disability benefits and going throughout the lengthy process trying to get Social Security Disability coverage, is daunting at the least, and complicated at worst.  You should have the expertise of someone who fully understands both the process and the legalities involved. The injury law firm of Greenberg and Bederman has spent twenty five years helping injury victims and in the D.C. area.  We have successfully help the disabled, whether from mental illness, physical illness, or an injury that prevents you from working, receive either or both Social Security Disability Insurance benefits and Supplemental Security Income.

Our firm is pleased to have the services of Audrey Randall, who has successfully represented the cases of hundreds of injury victims and those suffering from mental illness in front of the Social Security Administration. Mrs. Randall has distinguished herself as a tireless advocate for those who are unable to work due to no fault of their own.

If you or a loved one has been injured to the point where returning to work is impossible, or if you need help getting through the Social Security Disability Insurance application process, contact Greenberg and Bederman for a free social security legal consultation today.

Our office is in Silver Spring, Maryland, and we can help injury victims in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. Please contact us today.