soot
DP Veteran
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I did, but I don't see it as cut and dry as you seem to. Not being able to "manage one's own affairs" is a pretty broad category, wouldn't you agree? One could argue that by the very fact you're on social security you've proven you can't manage your own financial affairs. You're the one who brought in mental capacity although I don't believe the term "manage one's own affairs" necessarily is restricted to mental capacity.
It's a Fox News article that's written in a way as to be deliberately controversial and inflammatory.
Did you catch this part:
If Social Security, which has never taken part in the background check system, uses the same standard as the Department of Veterans Affairs – which is the idea floated – then millions of beneficiaries could be affected, with about 4.2 million adults receiving monthly benefits that are managed by “representative payees.”
An SSI recipient having been appointed a "representative payee" is the operative concept in the Obama policy, and should be central to the article.
It should be explained in detail and compared to the VA's practice of appointing a “fiduciary” to veterans with psychiatric disabilities.
But, again, it being a Fox News article it's kind of thrown in there off hand, almost as though it's an afterthought, while the author rants on about a bunch of nonsense.
A "representative payee" is only appointed to an SSI recipient who has been legally adjudicated as being mentally incompetent.
This isn't about folks like my parents and my uncle (an avid hunter, shooter, veteran, and CCW holder) who are older, and maybe not quite as quick on their feet as they used to be, and who struggle with financial issues in their old age because of the fine print of financial agreements, memory loss, problems with deteriorating eyesight and just the general decline in abilities that many (though certainly not all) seniors suffer from.
For folks like that you get a power of attorney and a joint checking account and have the bills delivered to your address and you just sort of manage their financial affairs for them.
When a recipient is appointed a "representative payee" it's usually because their mental abilities have deteriorated to a point where they can't even make a rational decision in respect to turning over care of their finances to a more capable representative.