There are many reasons why millions of Americans are forced to collect disability insurance benefits. Some only do this for a short period of time, until their injury or illness clears up. Others, however, are forced to collect long term disability due to a problem that continues to linger.
Our California readers, among those from every other state, will find this study interesting. According to the Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, mental disorder is the number one diagnostic group for disabled individuals who receive federal disability insurance benefits.
The report dives into the finer details of the 10,088,739 disabled individuals who were receiving this benefit as of December 2012. Believe it or not, this number is almost twice as high as it was in December 1995, showing that a growing number of Americans are seeking federal disability benefits.
The most important statistic is that 35.5 percent of disabled beneficiaries have a mental disorder. Many people associate disability insurance and benefits with those who have been physically injured, however, this report shows that this is not always the case. More than one in three people receiving benefits are doing so as a result of a mental disorder.
Some people receive short or long term disability payments from an insurance company, while others rely on federal benefits. Anybody who faces an issue collecting what is owed to them may be dealing with an uphill climb. Hiring an experienced attorney can be the first step in better understanding the situation at hand and working toward a resolution in the near future.
Source: CNSNews.com, “35.5% of Disability Beneficiaries Have ‘Mental Disorder’; 43.2% in D.C.” Ali Meyer, Jan. 28, 2014