Maximum Social Security Benefit Essay

On August 14, 1935 in Austin, Texas, President Franklin D. Roosevelt inked his signature on the Social Security Act. It was originally implemented to resolve problems with unemployment, old age insurance, and public health and welfare. The Great Depression was the catalyst for the creation of the Social Security program, and the basic structure was very similar to Germany’s social insurance programs from the 1880s. Today, social security is mostly used for retired senior citizens starting at the age of 62. At 62, American citizens can begin to collect, but will only receive 35% of their monthly benefit due, rather than the maximum amount of 50% when they reach the full retirement age of 66. (cite) In addition, social security is dispersed to about 14 million disabled people under the age of 62, who can no longer work in the labor force for various reasons. The people who qualify as disabled are just a small percentage of those collecting compared to senior citizens, and are often not mentioned when social security issues are brought up because of their minute effects on social security distribution.

There are also state taxes to consider. Most states don’t tax disability benefits, but there are still some that impose taxes using the federal government income brackets as listed above. These states are:

The Social Security Act was created as a way to help keep families together. It helped disabled individuals against the expense of their illness. As well as it gave children and families a chance to live a healthy and secure life. The first two programs were the most essential at this time. The first program Title I, was a grant for old-age assistance. The second program that developed was Title II, which was a federal assistance for old-age, survivors and individuals with disabilities that included insurance benefits. The act includes a large list of programs that one might qualify for such as, retirement insurance, disability insurance, medical insurance for elderly, veterans benefits, unemployment insurance and much more. According

f) disability benefits under the United States Social Security Act . . .or similar plan or act that the Insured Person or, the Insured Person’s spouse and children are entitled to receive because of the Insured Person’s disability.

According to Section 4733 of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the Working Disabled program is limited to individuals who are working and also meet the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability criteria, except for the application of “substantial gainful activity” (SGA) criteria. Although an individual must be working for purposes of the Working Disabled program, the fact that the individual is working is not to be considered in making the disability decision.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) gives out Social Security Disability benefits to millions of disabled Americans every year. However, about 70% of disability claims are denied during initial stages of application due to various reasons. Disability applicants whose SSDI claims are denied can file for an appeal or seek the help of a Social Security Disability attorney.

Many people with disabilities are not in labor force, therefore relying on social assistance benefits which also do not offer a lot. They are unlikely to be employed and those who work have low paying salaries.

There are many types of Social Security benefits available for people in different situations and of all ages. There are Social Security Child’s Insurance Benefits that go to children with disabled or retired parents that are also taking Social Security benefits. Disabled widower’s insurance benefits are paid to disabled widows or widowers of a deceased worker. Divorced spouses of workers that are receiving benefits are eligible for Divorced Spouse Benefits. And the Supplemental Security Income is intended for blind or disabled applicants over the age of 65 (Benefits.gov, n.d.).

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is provided to people aged 65 or older and the disable. During the 1990’s, many of the SSI recipients were people with disabilities. However, after new legislation, many of the disable recipients were dropped, majority being children. Some of those children were mentally handicap, had multiple impairments, personality disorders, arthritis, burns, etc. Eligibility was tighten by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 so that only the most restrictive medical diagnosis were accepted. Illegal and legal immigrants were denied supplemental security income until they became citizens and found work in the United States. Many people were not pleased with the changes and they even

A person earns a maximum of four credits each year, you need ten years of covered work to collect social security retirement benefits. Under certain circumstances a person may qualify for social security disability payments with fewer than the usual 40 points. If a person was to die their family may qualify for their benefits even if that person has less than 40 credits. Social security calculates benefits based on a monthly average of your highest 35 earnings years. The amount is determined based on how much was earned and the age you choose to start collecting benefits. The earliest age a person can start collecting social security benefits at 62 years of age at a reduced rate, 67 is the full retirement age because the person is most likely to be born in 1960 or later. The later the person claims their social security benefits, the higher the monthly payment could

Social security benefits: social security benefits are difficult to obtain because of the strict definition of disability and qualifications. If the insured refuses to receive a social security disability allowance, the social security team will pay you an extra

    A person with a disability, or handicap, can be defined as someone with a physical or mental impairment, which has a substantial or long-term adverse affect on his or her ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities (Employment 2). Handicap workers face many challenges in the work place that the average person overlooks. Also, many special arrangements and alterations have been made to the workplace for people with handicaps. Accessibility, transportation, workload, and salary are just some of the many issues that must be considered with the prospect of employing the handicap.

Social Security system provides benefits to retired citizens by taxing the work force on payroll checks. The American Association of Retired People announces, “Maximum Taxable Earnings, in 2012, workers paid Social Security taxes on income up to $110,100. In 2013, the figure will rise to $113,700, based on an increase in average wages.” The AARP shares the maximum taxable earnings from workers has rose since last year. By raising the taxable amount, workers will then be taxed on a higher income. Time states, “People retiring today will be among the first generation of workers to pay more in Social Security taxes than they receive in benefits over the course of their lives, according to a new analysis by the Associated Press.” The analysis shares that many of the newer generation that will retire in the future will be paying more in

     The Social Security program provides benefit payments to workers who are too severely disabled to engage in gainful employment. In order to be eligible for such benefits, an individual’s disability must have existed for at least 6 month and must be expected to continue for at least 12 months. Those eligible for disability benefits must have worked under Social Security for a t least 5 out of the 10 years before becoming disabled. Disability benefits, which include auxiliary benefits for dependents, are computed on the same basis as retirement benefits and are converted to retirement

“For purposes of nondiscrimination laws (e.g. the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act), a person with a disability is generally defined as someone who (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more "major life activities," (2) has a record of such an impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an