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AARPMiller
AARPMiller
Contributor ⭐
September 27, 2011

Share your concerns about Social Security

  • September 27, 2011
  • 337 replies
  • 187712 views

1)     In the article,  Social Security Fears, many Social Security myths are addressed. What concerns you the most about Social Security? 

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      337 replies

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      K
      kayleerae
      Contributor ⭐
      October 3, 2014

      I began receiving Social Security at 65.  I have since been deemed completely and permanently disabled due to several medical problems the worst of which is degenerative disc disease in my spine.  I would like to have my status changed to show I am disabled.  Why am I being told that is impossible as you have only one opportunity to declare this and that is when you first sign up?  Caroline Miller

      GailL1
      GailL1
      Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
      October 3, 2014
      kayleerae wrote
      I began receiving Social Security at 65. I have since been deemed completely and permanently disabled due to several medical problems the worst of which is degenerative disc disease in my spine. I would like to have my status changed to show I am disabled. Why am I being told that is impossible as you have only one opportunity to declare this and that is when you first sign up? Caroline Miller
      ==================================================
      I'm kind of confused here . . . . .
      What difference would it make since you are already 65 years old ?

      IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
      G
      gg637
      Contributor ⭐
      October 24, 2014
      That the purpose for which Social security was founded will be eroded so much that seniors will fall easily into a poverty stricken existence.
      W
      wbrummett
      Contributor ⭐
      December 4, 2014

       I am a disabled worker and I want to know is my ssi benefit going to be reduced when I turn 65 and have to go off of disablity benefits.

      GailL1
      GailL1
      Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
      January 20, 2015
      @wbrummett wrote:

       I am a disabled worker and I want to know is my ssi benefit going to be reduced when I turn 65 and have to go off of disablity benefits.

      ________________________________________________________________________

      You said SSI but did you mean SSDI ????

      SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance Program)

      SSI ( Supplemental Security Income) - the welfare (general fund)ability program for those who are not vested much into the Social Security program

       

      If you are talking about SSDI rather than SSI then the answer is NO.

       

      If you are talking about SSI then the answer is probably still NO. 

       

      The SS (old age / survivors benefit) might be larger because it will depend on how much you have paid into & how long you paid into the Social Security system while working and if all the places you worked participated in the SS system by which there is a calculated offset.

       

      Contact SSA by phone, your SS online account or at their local office, they can tell you for sure what will happen in your own particular case.

       

       

       

       

       

      IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
      R
      rt3213290
      Contributor ⭐
      January 15, 2015

      I am planning on filing for ssdi in 2016 at the age of 56..I will be drawing a pension from a private company in June 2015. I was forced to leave this company in 2007 because of osteo arthritis of both knees. Will this pension affect my SSDI decision or decrease my benefits?

      Thanks Robert

      GailL1
      GailL1
      Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
      January 20, 2015
      @rt3213290 wrote:

      I am planning on filing for ssdi in 2016 at the age of 56..I will be drawing a pension from a private company in June 2015. I was forced to leave this company in 2007 because of osteo arthritis of both knees. Will this pension affect my SSDI decision or decrease my benefits?

      Thanks Robert

        No to both -

        The only thing that SSDI is going to measure you on is your health condition and whether or not it meets their definition of disability.

       

      From SSA:  SSDI 

      "The definition of disability under Social Security is different than other programs. Social Security pays only for total disability. No benefits are payable for partial disability or for short-term disability.

      "Disability" under Social Security is based on your inability to work. We consider you disabled under Social Security rules if:

      • You cannot do work that you did before;
      • We decide that you cannot adjust to other work because of your medical condition(s); and
      • Your disability has lasted or is expected to last for at least one year or to result in death.

      This is a strict definition of disability. Social Security program rules assume that working families have access to other resources to provide support during periods of short-term disabilities, including workers' compensation, insurance, savings and investments."

       

      Follow the links provided in this page:

      SSA: Disability Planner

       

       

       

       

       

      IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
      P
      ph4231
      Contributor ⭐
      January 19, 2015

       the republican party has and will do more to take away our bennifits. they treat social security as a hand out instead of an system that we paid in to. also i have a friend that is on disability and moved to the state of new york. this friend has started being harrased by state agencies threathing to freeze and remove her from social securuty. is this for real? can states mandate our social security benifits?

      prhuds00
      GailL1
      GailL1
      Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
      January 20, 2015
      @ph4231 wrote:

       . . . . also i have a friend that is on disability and moved to the state of new york. this friend has started being harrased by state agencies threathing to freeze and remove her from social securuty. is this for real? can states mandate our social security benifits?

       For both SSDI and SSI, there are periodic disability reviews and many times these are conducted by the state although usually there is a questionaire sent to the beneficiary to be completed beforehand but I don't know if this is always the case.  This has long been the procedure.

       

      The President's 2015 budget proposal reinterated these reviews for program integrity of both SSDI and SSI.

       

      WhiteHouse 2015 Budget Proposal.   (see page 149)

       

      This is only applicable to SSDI and SSI not the Old Age and Survivors benefits.

       

       

       

      IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
      SeanTank
      SeanTank
      Contributor ⭐
      January 20, 2015

      The main thing that concerns me about retirees is not necessarily IF Social Security payments will be made, but HOW MUCH will the payments buy?  Price inflation is here to stay, and yes, at times it will fluctuate, but overall, my opinion is that the prices of goods and services will rise more than 3% per year.  For those with a fix income (e.g. pension, Social Security) this is obviously a problem.  Add in unexpected cost such as long-term care, and the squeeze will definitely be on then.  So what's a potential solution?  Once again, it's just my opinion, but diversifying into precious metals such as gold and silver is one way to offset the harmful effects of price inflation.  As the author of this article shows us, doing something as simple as 'hunting' for copper pennies and silver coins after checking out at the cash register can be beneficial to your bottom line.  Sorry a bit off topic but hopefully helpful!

      S
      scottadamzac
      Contributor ⭐
      March 9, 2015

      I am getting a retirement benefit from my job. Is this included in the 15,000.00  you can earn after receiving social security benefits

      drawpoker
      drawpoker
      Contributor ⭐⭐
      March 13, 2015

      Only earned income ( wages and self-employment earnings)  are counted.  Unearned income,  such as pensions,  investments,  capital gains,  etc,  are not counted by SSA in the annual earnings limit. 

       

      http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/EN-05-10069.pdf

      D
      dm9901952
      Contributor ⭐
      March 13, 2015
      I would like to know what amount of ssi that I would get at age 65. Can they send a statement out to you for that?
      drawpoker
      drawpoker
      Contributor ⭐⭐
      March 14, 2015

      SSI (Supplemental Security Income) is not the same as Social Security.    

       

      Social Security is an entitlement program in which its beneficiaries paid into the system,  either  through payroll withholding or filing Schedule SE.    

       

      SSI is not an entitlement program.  It is welfare.  

       

      Unlike Social Security,  SSI just like any other welfare program,  has rules and eligibility criteria in order to qualify. 

       

      You have to apply locally for welfare payments and assistance.    There is no system to send out "statements" to tell you how much you qualify for,  as this form of welfare bears only minimal relationship to record of lifetime earnings.   Whatever benefits you may qualify for through SSI do not come out of the social security trust funds;  they come out of the public treasury,  hence,  why it is termed to be welfare,  not social security.  

       

      Got it?      

       

       

      J
      jedpac
      Contributor ⭐
      April 12, 2015

      The government will continue to shave the benefits.  They will continue to use ss money for other things and not replenish it or will replenish it at the detriment of others....middle class and poor.  It is about the haves and the have nots in every areana.  Healthcare from medicare and medicaid is

      being shaved to not provide the generalpublic with correct coverage.   It is not right that we must fight to keep our benefits and that every chance the government gets they try to cut something. 

      GailL1
      GailL1
      Community Champion ⭐⭐⭐
      April 12, 2015
      jedpac

      Exactly what are you talking about?????????????
      IT‘S ALWAYS SOMETHING . . . . .. . . . Roseanne Roseannadanna
      B
      bs4906
      Contributor ⭐
      April 17, 2015
      You do not mention theillogical and immoral offset andso called double dipping legislations. These have deprived many honorable hardworking Americans of money to which they are absolutely entitled. My mother was allowed to receive her own well earned state pension plus my deceased father's social securtity thus enabling her to live comfortably in her old age. Her friends who retired only 2 years later were literally forced to choose between their own state pensions and their social security widows pension.
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