Social Security Broke and Defunct

Ever wonder why Social Security is broke and defunct?  Small wonder with such things as portrayed by the following news release by the Social Security Administration today.  I have no problem trying to help people with health issues, but why the Social Security Fund?  Why not have special health and medical funds set up to support such causes with money appropriated from general operating  funds or special taxes?  Not Social Security. . . it was originally set up as a retirement fund to supplement people's retirement until it got so large the greedy politicians could not resist using the money for all manner of other things such as this.  Small wonder the Social Security fund is depleted.

Social Security Announces New Conditions for Compassionate Allowances Program

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced 52 new Compassionate Allowances conditions, primarily involving neurological disorders, cancers and rare diseases.  The Compassionate Allowances program fast-tracks disability decisions to ensure that Americans with the most serious disabilities receive their benefit decisions within days instead of months or years.  

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“Social Security will continue to work with the medical community and patient organizations to add more conditions,” Commissioner Astrue said.  “With our Compassionate Allowances program, we quickly approved disability benefits for nearly 61,000 people with severe disabilities in the past fiscal year, and nearly 173,000 applications since the program began.”

The Compassionate Allowances initiative identifies claims where the nature of the applicant’s disease or condition clearly meets the statutory standard for disability. With the help of sophisticated new information technology, the agency can quickly identify potential Compassionate Allowances and then quickly make decisions.  

Social Security launched the Compassionate Allowances program in 2008 with a list of 50 diseases and conditions.  The announcement of 52 new conditions, effective in August, will increase the total number of Compassionate Allowances conditions to 165.  The conditions include certain cancers, adult brain disorders, a number of rare genetic disorders of children, early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, immune system conditions, and other disorders.