SSI Policy and Older People

(1) determine whether older people in poverty were being maximally served by SSI policy; and

(2) explore literature related to policy changes that can be made to better serve the elderly poor with respect to SSI.

A comprehensive review of the SSI research as it relates to the low-income elderly was conducted to meet the study's purposes. This review of the literature included congressional documents, empirical sociological and public policy research studies, and general theoretical articles on supplemental security income and public policy.

The reviewed research clearly showed that a substantial portion of the low-income elderly who are entitled to SSI are not receiving it. Several barriers appear to be responsible for this under-utilization.

These barriers were said to be: stringent eligibility requirements; unnecessarily complicated program rules; state-by-state differences in how income is calculated; inconsistent definitions of participant asset limits; lack of assistance to homebound persons; unintelligible and lengthy forms; unclear deadlines; discourteous treatment by intake workers; the stigma associated with receiving benefits; feelings of invasion of privacy; fear of the government; problems verifying information for persons born in other countries; problematic aspects of benefits for widows; transportation difficulties, long waiting times, and verification requirements.

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n the application process result in a complex and intimidating mass of program rules and regulations which are particularly difficult on the elderly. These barriers are said to include complex forms, the absence of "one-stop shopping," transportation difficulties, long waiting times, attitudes of intake workers, and verification requirements. It should be noted here that not all policy analysts agree with the foregoing conclusions regarding enrollment of older people for SSI benefits. In this regard, McGarry (1992) analyzed why many of the elderly who are eligible for benefits from the Supplemental Security Income Program (especially elderly widows) do not enroll. Using data from SIPP, she found that only 56 percent of those who are eligible for SSI were presently receiving benefits. It was noted that because of the high quality of these data this estimate is likely to be more accurate than those in many previous studies. After accounting for measurement error in the expected benefit, McGarry (1992) observed that participation was primarily determined by the financial situation of the eligible individuals. She noted that this finding did not support the widespread belief that the application process was too difficult for ol

Category: Government - S