DEAR EDITOR:
When most Americans work they have no choice in paying into the Social Security system.
Working people are what have made this country so great. Workers have been there for our government, paying into a system that should be there to supposedly continue to help the disabled, families and children.
When a worker who has paid into the system for 25 and 30 years or more and reaches retirement age, those funds are there for them at retirement age. But if you become terminally ill under that retirement age and you can't access the system, there's a problem. There should be no question as to them accessing the system which they have paid into under certain circumstances. Maybe American workers should have their names on those funds that they've paid into while working. There would be a lot more people not trying to access funds from the Social Security because they did not work and pay in.
There really is a problem in this country when a person who's never worked a day in their lives and have never paid into the system can collect. Again, not to be insensitive to those people who are truly in need and disabled, but when you have years of paying into this system and become terminally ill, it's not right for the Social Security Administration in our country to play games while really waiting for you to die so those years of funds that you have paid in goes to the next person.
There's no integrity there. This system will affect each and every one of us at some point in our lives. The Social Security Administration has worked pretty well for workers for the most part, but it certainly has some cracks in the system that are in need of repair.
Reforming or correcting them may not be such a bad idea, especially for workers who've worked hard and paid their dues into the system but have not yet reached the retirement age and with no fault of their own have become terminally ill. There is no way they should encounter a closed door.
Gale Johnson
Warren