A comment not quite related to the above posts, but I thought it interesting to add: In my line of work, I provide service coordination for people with developmental disabilities. Most of my caseload falls into the range of severe to profound mental retardation. They all receive either SSI or Social Security disability benefits. Along with these benefits come a mandatory $139-159 personal allowance benefit each month (cash paid to the individual). These folks live in group homes with all their needs taken care of (rent, utilities, food, furniture, medical care, therapies, etc.). However, they also have an asset limit of $2000 (SSI) or $4150 (Medicaid). If they exceed these amounts, they can lose their cash, medical, and food stamp benefits. So what's that mean? It means that every few months, we scramble to spend their money. These folks are absolutely dependent on Medicaid for their day habilitation programs, for the care they receive in the group home, for their numerous appts., etc. They cannot do without their benefits. So, we buy them lots of nice new clothes, massage therapy in their homes, toys and gadgets, televisions, movies, trips for those who are able. I'm not saying that they don't deserve this - they certainly do enjoy the things they purchase - but I do want to make the point that even buying these things, some of these folks accumulate more money than they can easily spend - yet we have to find a way to spend it or else they can lose all their benefits. Talk about a broken system. This is where the social security money is going.
And yet I worked with another family who made $35k a year working two full time minumum wage jobs and had a severely disabled son who got turned down for SSI benefits because they owned two cars (necessary to get to their jobs - they lived in a rural area) and a small piece of land adjoining their property. It doesn't make sense.
|