tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3778681678950894154.post1110263485792508052..comments2016-10-28T13:17:37.425-08:00Comments on A Tuppence Worth of Steam: The disability fraud epidemic in the USAunt Foggyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09822854807566491775noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3778681678950894154.post-67227321879422832532014-01-11T14:35:10.024-09:002014-01-11T14:35:10.024-09:00Not suggesting there aren't folks trying to de...Not suggesting there aren't folks trying to defraud any system. Certainly there are. But does it justify the horrific process and low rate of approval for legitimate claims? Does it justify the fact that a lawyer becomes necessary just to get a very straightforward and well documented claim through the approval process? It does not.<br />But targeting the least powerful is much easier and less risky than going after the rampant fraud and abuse at much higher levels of income.<br />Aunt Foggyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09822854807566491775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3778681678950894154.post-57452374378970777542014-01-09T05:16:30.746-09:002014-01-09T05:16:30.746-09:00I don't doubt that someone, somewhere, claimed...I don't doubt that someone, somewhere, claimed that there was an epidemic of fraudulent disability claims, or that the majority of such claims were unjust, but I haven't seen anything like that.<br /><br />My guess is that the vast majority - 90%? 99%? - of disability claims are genuine. As you point out, the Social Security Administration does try to make sure that claims are legitimate. Most people are honest, and most people would prefer to work than not, and would be embarrassed to collect a disability payment fraudulently.<br /><br />But you're not suggesting that there is <i>no</i> fraud in the system, or that the New York cops named in the piece weren't defrauding the system, right? Because just as <i>most</i> people do the right thing, there are going to be others who don't mind working all the angles, even the illegal ones. And those people take resources away from the one who truly need the benefit.<br /><br />In my own county, in Maryland, something like half the police retire early on a disability claim. Some are clearly legitimate; others - who are later pictured working at other jobs or playing sports - are clearly not; and yet others are murkier cases. Being a cop is a dangerous job and more cops are going to have career-ending injuries than most other professions, but half seems like a big percentage. I want the fraudsters uncovered, and I'd think everyone, including the most committed advocates of disability pay, would want that as well.Rhianon Jamesonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13627163137265856251noreply@blogger.com