A short article and linked audio from the Maine Public Broadcasting Network recounts a familiar tale that’s being played out around the nation: a bad economy leads to rising numbers of unemployed folk which leads to more applications for disability benefits which leads to longer wait times before decisions are issued. Between 2008 and 2009, new disability claims jumped 14% nationally, and 17% in Maine.
Scott Mack of DDS says the percentage is one of the highest in the nation. He says it’s projected that next year, as many as 4,700 more people will apply for disability in Maine. That will come on top of the number that are already waiting for decisions at various levels of appeal.
It’s a trend that mirrors what’s happening around the country, says spokesman Steve Richardson of the Social Security Administration. “We always see the unemployment rate affects the number of disability claims we receive, and with the recent unemployment numbers at over ten percent, the number of our disability applications are expected to peak in 2010 at over 3.3 million, and that’s kind of what we’re seeing.”
While $500 million dollars of stimulus money has been allocated to Social Security to hire new personnel to cope with the backlog of cases, it’s going to be a while before these numbers begin to come down.
