On the recordJanuary 25, 1994
I rise on this occasion to bring to the attention of the Speaker of the House, and the American people, a serious flaw in our SSI, our disability payments. The taxpayers are subsidizing, and I repeat, the taxpayers of our country are subsidizing drug addicts and alcohol abuse addicts through the SSI Program, unwittingly. We are fostering their habits and keeping them in their habits. How is this happening? It appears we have learned from those who administer the law in this field that under one of the titles of the Social Security System, a person who, as a worker is deemed to be disabled and goes on SSI because of his drug addiction, can stay on that for life and receive SSI benefits for life without any treatment, while another section of the Social Security program calls for benefits for drug addicts if they receive treatment, and treatment is made a condition of receiving the benefits of SSI. But both of them are failing.
