Trump Targets The Disabled With New Rule To Take Away Social Security Disability Benefits

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Trump is proposing a new rule that would force those on Social Security Disability to go through more paperwork and red tape or lose their benefits.

Trump Is Trying To Take Away Social Security Disability Benefits

Under Trump, the Social Security Administration is proposing a large increase in the number and frequency of reviews of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries.

The review process involves time and paperwork to determine ongoing eligibility. If a recipient can’t complete the paperwork, they will lose their benefits, which in most cases are the only source of income for millions of disabled Americans.

Democrats Urge The Social Security Administration To Abandon The Rule Change

In a letter provided to PoliticusUSA: House and Senate Democrats wrote to the Social Security Administration:

We urge you to immediately withdraw the Social Security Administration’s harmful and unjustified proposed rule to subject Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability beneficiaries to more frequent continuing disability reviews (CDRs).

This unwarranted proposal would deprive many people with disabilities of the Social Security, SSI, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits that they are eligible for and rely on for survival. The Social Security Administration (SSA) should instead use its limited resources to restore strong customer service to the American people, reversing the long waiting times, backlogs, and other service problems that have become common across the agency in recent years.

There is no need for the rule change. The purpose is to make it more difficult for persons with disabilities to keep their benefits. Trump’s tax cuts have blown a massive hole in the deficit that he is trying to close by slashing the social safety net and harming the most vulnerable Americans.

During the 2016 campaign, Trump promised to protect Social Security and Medicare. Instead, he is declaring war on the programs to pay for his tax cuts for the wealthy.

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Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

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Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association

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