There are roughly 300 million Americans. Some 100 million of those are children or retirees. Of the remaining roughly-200 million eligible workers, MORE THAN 5 PERCENT claim to be “disabled” and unable to work. They generally draw monthly “disability” checks for life.
The “labor participation rate” is now near an historic low. See here.
The “disability” “program” is–like all similar programs worldwide–running short on cash. Today the program pays about $142 billion annually–many times the annual budgets of some ten states. See here.
Of course, many “disabled” people could work and work very productively. Numerous studies have documented that those who go on disability checks tend to report drastically lower-than-average lifetime earnings. Indeed, many become trapped in a vortex of poverty from which they can never escape.
