Many of our Los Angeles readers have probably seen the news by now about the coming debate over how to rectify the financial issues facing the Social Security Disability fund. For those who don’t know, there have been reports that this fund could facing significant financial challenges beginning as early as next year – challenges that reportedly could lead to a cut in the amount of monthly benefits that are provided to millions of Americans.
The U.S. Congress – recently taken over by the Republican Party – has signaled that the most frequently used method of addressing the issues with the Social Security Disability fund may be off the table. This method, used many times before, was to simply transfer some funds from the Social Security retirement fund to the disability fund. With the signals coming from Congress, this may not be an option.
President Obama recently weighed in on the issue, and it appears that he is in favor of using this same method that has been used previously to address the issue again. It is probably obvious to everyone involved that this would only be a temporary fix, and there doesn’t seem to be much consensus – or even many ideas – on how to address the problems with the financial solvency of the fund for the long run.
Millions of Americans, including thousands of Los Angeles residents, will likely be keeping a close eye on how this issue is addressed in the coming months. And, with the 2016 presidential election beginning to crept into the political discussion, there may be more talk than ever before about possible changes to the Social Security Disability system.
Source: Reuters, “Why White House disability insurance fix makes sense,” Mark Miller, Feb. 2, 2015
