For four years it seems that the Trump Administration has took steps to make qualifying for Social Security disability benefits more difficult. These steps include changing the criteria to Social Security’s medical determinations, increasing the number of Continuing Disability Reviews (CDR), which could result in more people being kicked off benefits, and new policies to limit the number of people approved for benefits.
Prior to being elected Trump said he would protect Social Security benefits, but his administration has only tried to make the process more difficult, but that should change in just a matter of days. President-Elect Joe Biden has said he would be an advocate for people with disabilities and outlined a number of policies that would benefit people with disabilities. Below are Biden’s objectives related to people with disabilities.
- Guarantee access to high-quality, affordable health care, including mental health care, and expand access to home and community-based services and long-term services and supports in the most integrated setting appropriate to each person’s needs and based on self-determination.
- Expand competitive, integrated employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
- Protect and strengthen economic security for people with disabilities.
- Ensure that students with disabilities have access to educational programs and support they need to succeed, from early interventions to post-secondary education.
- Expand access to accessible, integrated, and affordable housing, transportation, and assistive technologies and protect people with disabilities in emergencies.
- Advance global disability rights.
In addition to these objectives, Biden said he planned to create a position in the White House dedicated to advocating for people with disabilities. This has never really been done by a president, so it appears Biden is serious about giving the people with disabilities in this country a voice. Below is an outline of the position Biden intends to create.
Ensure people with disabilities are included in policy development by creating a senior position in the White House dedicated to disability community engagement and policy coordination.
Biden will appoint a director of disability policy within the Domestic Policy Council to ensure that these issues receive the attention they deserve at the highest levels of government and are integrated in broader policy discussions. This senior White House official will also engage with a variety of disability stakeholders, including disability community leaders, representatives from disability organizations, and people with disabilities and their family members. The position will ensure that the Administration is getting diverse perspectives and that policy is being developed, implemented, and evaluated with input from people with disabilities. In addition, Biden will ensure senior leaders across federal agencies, including in the Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, State, and Justice, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, share his commitment to breaking down the barriers that hold back people with disabilities. Biden will identify and aggressively recruit qualified people with disabilities to fill leadership positions across the Administration, not merely those positions that relate to disability programs and policies.
