Public Benefits

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (aka the stimulus bill), Congress has authorized one-time $250 payments to most Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries.

A new bill introduced for the third straight session of Congress hopes to phase out the two year waiting period before SSDI beneficiaries receive Medicare.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that parents of special needs children do not need to hire a lawyer to sue a school district over their children's special education needs.

A Medicare advocacy group has begun pressing Congress to pass a bill that would eliminate the two-year wait imposed on individuals with disabilities before they can qualify for Medicare.

The federal government has designed a new Web site, HealthCare.gov, that helps people, including those with special needs, navigate the new health insurance law.

A final achievement in a short but remarkable life was a contribution to improving housing conditions for those with special needs.

A proposal to establish a new national long-term care insurance program for those with disabilities is under attack by the insurance industry.

A case illustrates the elaborate lengths some disability applicants must go through in order to obtain benefits that are rightfully theirs, and it also is a reminder of a dilemma many beneficiaries face once they receive their awards.

When a person with special needs cannot make important financial decisions, the government sends his benefits directly to a third party, known as a representative payee. ...