Noland?s muscular dystrophy qualified her for benefits from her father?s Social Security insurance when she was a young teen. She earns a few bucks here and there selling Avon products. Hale, 38, tinkers in Web design.
He said back pain and limited movement in one arm keep him out of the cooking jobs he once held.?But years of appeals to receive Social Security benefits have been unsuccessful.
?I know this guy in St. Joe who qualified in his late 20s, but he?ll still lift car engines, replace a transmission, work on his house,? Hale said. ?People like that make it harder for people like me to get Social Security.?
Among the non-beneficiaries around Benton County, it?s a common observation.
?There are more people on disability here than I?ve ever seen,? said William McKinney, who installs satellite TV systems and moves furniture. ?I grew up in Independence, lived in Butler, spent time in Oklahoma, in Springfield. Nothing like here?
?I think some of them are disabled just enough to be labeled that way so they feel they don?t have to work.?
Chris Stewart of the Katy Trail Community Health Centers disagreed: ?I don?t think that?s anywhere near the norm.?
She attributed the region?s high reliance on disability benefits to factors linked to poor general health: Poverty, low graduation rates, geographic isolation and higher than normal levels of drug and alcohol abuse.
As for assessing their patients? ability to work, Katy Trail physicians don?t get involved, Stewart said:
?They?ve said it puts them in a difficult situation in terms of advocacy or non-advocacy ? We provide medical records and let others make that decision,? meaning the medical advisers and administrative judges employed by the Social Security Administration.
Source: http://firedoglake.com/2012/01/30/late-night-fdl-gaming-the-system/
brandon jacobs beyonce and jay z baby steelers vs broncos rupaul meet the press barry sanders barry sanders
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.