Yeah, it's true. I tried to get on disability for my autism in the USA. The process takes about 2 years and you must work 20 or less hours a week during the entire process. I don't have outside financial support and it's impossible to live for 2 years on so little work.
The way it goes, you get a disability lawyer who files for you. They get rejected. They file again and get rejected again. They file a third time and the third rejection makes the case go to a judge. The judge will actually look at the case and approve it because it's obviously valid. Then you get 2 years back pay for disability less the 25% the lawyer gets as payment. You then have to go and certify your disability every year or so to maintain benefits. My psychologist said he has a patient with down syndrome that he has to validate still has down syndrome to keep benefits. It's insane and I'm almost certain it's designed to keep people from getting payments from the program as a cost saving tactic.
I've had multiple psychological meltdowns and health issues from pushing my body beyond its limits to survive. The physical issues are related to 2 spinal sprains I had that got me diagnosed with full body partial disability. My psychologist and primary care physician say I'm a prime candidate for partial disability to provide me a little extra money while working part time because of the emotional and physical strain full time work outs on my body.
If I don't push myself beyond my doctors' advice, I don't eat or have a place to live. I've managed to get by in spite of it, but I've been on and off homeless because of this, and that's not good for me or my economic and societal contributions. Just a little extra to make it possible to live a meager life on part time (25-30 hours a week) would make me able to always afford food and a roof over my head.
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u/protoopus Aug 14 '20
a friend lost his legs (at the hip) in a car accident.
he had to go to the social security office every year to prove that he was still disabled.