Celebrating SSI’s history, imagining the future
We were joined by Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O’Malley, Sen. Tom Harkin, Rep. Danny Davis, as well as an array of distinguished experts and stakeholders for a half-day of discussion at the NYU Global Campus in Washington DC, followed by an evening reception on the Academy’s rooftop.
“We need to see SSI not as a charity begrudgingly given, but as a national commitment to justice, to a dignified life, and now as a way to fulfill the spirit and goals of the Americans with Disabilities Act.”
~Sen. Tom Harkin
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without SSI… I want folks to understand that this program is essential. It was essential for me, it is essential for a lot of my friends who live off of it… These opportunities need to be available for everybody.”
~ Mia Ives-Rublee
“Today in the United States, more Americans die awaiting their initial disability determination than ever before… This is what happens when Social Security does not have its own budget hearing for nine long years.”
~ Martin O’Malley
Related Resources
For more on the bipartisan movement to improve and protect Supplemental Security Income, please see:
In the Press:
“These disabled people tried to play by the rules. It cost them their federal benefits.”
“Supplemental Security Income rules can limit the people the program is meant to help.”
“A mother has been able to care for her son with SSI. But the program also limits them.”
“How an outdated Social Security policy is preventing couples from marrying.”
“Couples say they can’t get married because of this government program’s outdated rules.”
“A program to help the most vulnerable Americans keeps them in poverty instead.”
“Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley agrees SSI program is outdated.”