I do not understand the reason for the delay in receiving ALS benefits. Was this time to assure that someone actually had ALS, and not some other condition? I would think that medical science has advanced enough to make a more rapid, accurate and detailed diagnosis which should eliminate the waiting period. Putting additional financial hardship associated with a delay in full coverage of social security disability benefits seems unnecessarily cruel.

Yes, the 5 month waiting period may be a lifetime for an ALS patient. My question is, why does anyone with a disability have to wait? Disabilities don’t wait? Rent/mortgages don’t wait. You still have bills to pay & groceries to buy for 5 months.

This disease is so devastating. I watched a friend and colleague die of this. The diagnoses comes after the disease has started to have serious effects. She and her family needed help right away. No job = no insurance. Very very sad.

Representatives, Vote Yes on the ALS Disability Insurance Access Act of 2019. Seems easy enough. Everything seems to be lined up nicely. S. 578 the Senate version passed. We are now waiting for the House to vote. If the lede is correct the vote is there. All that is needed a President's signature. Need we say more? When will this happen days, weeks or months?

Absolutely. ALS is nightmare enough without having some greedy bastard in the government refuse to give them their own tax dollars back in disability insurance. Any and every single thing that we can do to make things less awful should be done.

What is the point of "waiting"? One can never be compassionate....too soon.

ALS does not wait and help shouldn’t either.

Why would we want to add to someones problems by making the them wait to get help.

Delaying support for ALS patients appears extremely cruel for someone already having to meet the challenges of the disease itself. A logical rationale just doesn't seemed provided.

What moron decided that people with a documented ALS diagnosis must wait for 5 months to get what they have already earned? The diagnosis should be the key to getting these benefits.

Yes but don’t stop with ALS there are more debilitating illnesses out there that do not get recognized for disability payments.

Makes sense. Puzzled as to why the five month waiting period was applied to begin with.

Why does this question even need to be asked? What kind of fucking morons do we have in Washington DC where this is an issue? Time to start voting all of these idiots out of office regardless of party

Duh

Why in the red hell should benefits to provide needed care be denied? NO...pay these people! ANYONE saying benefits should be withheld should be ashamed of themselves for playing medical expert! How ridiculous you are!

There is no defensible reason to delay payment for any debilitating disease. ALS especially is generally a rapidly worsening disease that results in the most unimaginably horrible death. All claims for disability should be expedited, with ALS being in a category of it's own, a doctor's diagnosis (They frequently misdiagnose it as fibromiaglgia

ALS is a horrible way to die. People with this diagnosis must start getting benefits as soon as diagnosed.

I had two very good friends that had cancer and applied for disability so they could fight the disease. They both received their disability within a month of their dying. This was after more than a year for each of them where they worked until they couldn’t get out of bed anymore just to keep a roof over their heads. They both were finally taken in by relatives that could only watch them die. There’s some sort of test for the disease. You got it you aren’t going to get over it. Give them some peace on their journey to their death. This country sucks. In Europe you get sick with terminal illness you get their disability.

Since ALS is a terminal disease, why should they have to wait 5 stinking months? Their situation will not improve, only worsen.