One of our favorite misconceptions to debunk is that people who receive Social Security disability benefits are living the good life and many of them don’t deserve the benefits they are receiving and are just too lazy to work. This could not be further from the truth and a recent Detroit Free Press article documents just how high on the hog those who receive disability benefits live.
Shylah Outlaw was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a progressive central nervous system disease, more than 10 years ago. She now relies on a wheelchair to get around and Social Security agrees she is unable to work. She has a monthly income of about $900; about 80 percent of that income comes from Social Security disability benefits. It would be difficult for one person to live on $10,800 a year, but Outlaw also has a 16-year-old daughter to provide for, but the reality is Outlaw’s daughter, Tamara, has had to quit school to care for her mother.
The mother and daughter combo has no permanent place to live. They had been “house hopping” between the residences of family and friends for four months before they were granted a small one-bed motel room funded through a charitable organization. This is not a permanent solution as the Outlaws do not know how long they can continue to stay at the motel before they must leave. Added to that stress is the fact that in Michigan, where the Outlaws live, there is a six-year backlog on Section 8 Housing that subsidizes rent in the private market. Stories like what the Outlaws are facing is not an abnormality unfortunately as many people on disability benefits wonder where their next meal is coming from or where they are going to spend the next night sleeping because their benefits do not provide a decent living.
