Many people across the state of Texas are familiar with the former Vice President Dick Cheney and his battle with heart disease. Because he has been in the public eye for so many years, the nation has become more aware of a very serious condition that kills about 600,000 Americans every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
But what few people know is how close the former vice president came to relinquishing his title and his job. Knowing this now, some of our readers might be wondering the same question we wanted to pose in this week’s blog post: if the former vice president had quit his job because of his heart condition, could he have applied for Social Security Disability benefits?
Just like thousands of Americans across the nation, Cheney’s heart condition progressed over the years and began affecting his ability to work. By 37 years of age, he had suffered his first heart attack and in 2007, he needed to have his implanted defibrillator replaced. His doctors began to worry about whether his stress levels during the September 11 attacks would be too much and constantly warned him about how a decrease in blood flow could affect his decision-making skills.
For many Americans, this would have been too much to handle and likely would have meant that they were unable to work. These may have even been the thoughts that the former vice president even had and, because of the seriousness of his condition, may have actually qualified him for SSD payments. While some of our readers don’t believe the former politician would have applied for such helpful benefits, it’s worth noting that he may have been able to and could have used those benefits to help pay for the many medical expenses he accrued over the past few years.
As many of our readers can attest, this is often the safety net people need in order to focus their attention on getting healthier instead of worrying about finances.
Source: News Max, “Dick Cheney Was Ready to Resign if Heart Troubles Worsened,” Greg Richter, Oct. 20, 2013