Like any other city in the country, Houston is home to many people who suffer from some kind of mental disorder. When such a condition leaves a person unable to continue working and earning a living, they may be able to qualify for Social Security Disability benefits for mental conditions. If the person has a disabling mental condition, however, they may be unable to properly handle the monthly distributions from the Social Security Administration. In these cases, what resources are available to help the disabled person?
The SSA allows a representative payee to handle SSD payments for people who are unable to do so for themselves. In these situations, the SSA typically works with a beneficiary’s family or friends to ensure that the mentally disabled individual is receiving and properly using their benefit payments. If a family member or friend is unavailable to serve as a representative payee, the SSA can refer the matter to a qualified organization that can handle the representative payee duties.
A representative payee is responsible for using the disabled person’s benefits to pay for their living needs. The representative payee should save any unused benefits and apply them to future living expenses as they arise. The representative payee needs to keep records of how they spend the benefits.
After filing a mental disability claim and receiving benefits, the recipient must be able to properly use those benefits. If a mental disability prevents the person from doing so, they can rely on a representative payee for help. As with other questions about SSD benefits, any current recipient or applicant, can seek out the help of an experienced attorney.
Source: SSA.gov, “When People Need Help Managing Their Money,” Accessed on April 6, 2016