[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 37 (Wednesday, February 25, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S684-S685]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Ms. Hassan):
S. 3924. A bill to amend title II of the Social Security Act to
permit disabled individuals to elect to receive disability insurance
benefits during the disability insurance benefit waiting period, and
for other purposes; to the Committee on Finance.
Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the We Can't
Wait Act, a bipartisan bill with my colleague from New Hampshire
Senator Hassan. This legislation addresses a pressing and unnecessary
hardship in our Social Security Disability Insurance Program. This
program, known as SSDI, provides eligible individuals with benefits if
they become disabled and are unable to work. Our bill would give
eligible individuals with disabilities the option of bypassing the
current 5-month waiting period and allow them to access the benefits
that they have earned without further delay.
As my colleagues are aware, SSDI benefits are available only to those
who have worked long enough and contributed sufficiently through
payroll taxes to the Social Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund.
When an individual becomes disabled and meets the program's strict
eligibility standards, he or she should be able to rely on the benefits
that they paid for, benefits intended to provide critical support
during a time of great need.
Imagine that you have worked for many years and you find that you
have contracted a disease that is fatal and that you have very little
time to live. Surely, you should be able to tap into what essentially
is an insurance fund set up for people in exactly that situation. But
because of the 5-month waiting period, there are individuals who
receive no payments at all.
During those 5 months, no payments are made, even though the
disability has been confirmed by the Social Security Administration.
This delay prevents individuals from accessing the insurance they have
earned, at a critical and difficult time in their lives.
Lack of benefits can make it more difficult to obtain timely medical
treatments, cover basic living expenses, and, in some cases where it is
not a terminal condition, begin the process of rehabilitation toward an
eventual return to work, if possible.
The burden of this delay can be heartbreaking. I have heard from
constituents whose loved ones could get no help from SSDI when they
were overtaken by a sudden and terminal diagnosis. Faced with a
terrible disease that demanded every ounce of their energy and their
total focus, they were forced instead to worry over their finances at
the very end of their lives.
This just isn't right. The broader disability determination process
already imposes significant hardships. A 2020 Government Accountability
Office report documented what can be severe consequences of the long
wait times for applicants who appealed initial denials for a Social
Security disability.
Between fiscal years 2014 and 2019, approximately 48,000 individuals
were forced to file for bankruptcy while awaiting a final decision on
their appeals. From 2008 through 2019, an estimated nearly 110,000
people died before receiving a final decision.
These heartbreaking outcomes occur even before many applicants reach
the point of approval. Yet even once they are approved, the additional
5-month exclusion period compounds the suffering for those who have
already proven their eligibility.
Congress has already acted to address this delay in certain
circumstances. In 2020, we passed the ALS Disability Insurance Access
Act. It eliminated the
[[Page S685]]
5-month waiting period for individuals with ALS, a progressive,
terminal disease where every month, every day is critical. That
bipartisan reform was the right thing to do, and I was proud to
cosponsor it.
The We Can't Wait Act builds directly on that precedent. Under our
bill, claimants would have a choice. They could either opt to begin
receiving benefits immediately after approval, rather than waiting 5
months, in exchange for a modest actuarially sound reduction in their
monthly benefit amount, or they could decide to wait the 5 months and
receive the full amount.
As the chief actuary of the Social Security Administration explains
in a letter released today, this small reduction in benefits maintains
the actuarial balance in the trust fund over the 75-year projection
period.
Let me emphasize that this bill makes no other changes in the SSDI
Program. It does not alter eligibility criteria, the determination
process--although that should be speeded up--benefit levels for those
who choose not to bypass the wait, or any other core element in the
program.
It is a precise reform that honors the contributions hard-working
Americans with disabilities have made while removing an arbitrary
barrier to the benefits that they have earned and deserve.
While this reform is carefully targeted, its impact would be
profound. It would end the tragic reality in which Americans with
disabilities suffer and, in some cases, die during an unnecessary 5-
month delay after their disability has been officially certified by the
Social Security Administration.
This is a key point made in a letter supporting the bill by a broad
coalition of organizations committed to the rights, dignity, and well-
being of people with disabilities--groups that advocate every day for
those who need this relief most.
The letter, which is signed by more than two dozen organizations,
goes on to make the point that the 5-month exclusion period is
unnecessary and harms disabled Americans who are often financially
hanging on by a thread.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have the letter of
endorsement from this coalition printed in the Record immediately
following my remarks.
The We Can't Wait Act is straightforward, compassionate, and fiscally
responsible. It would provide a crucial option to Americans who simply
can't wait even 5 months for the benefits they have worked for and
desperately need.
I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this commonsense and
much needed legislation.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
We Can't Wait
The undersigned organizations are proud to join in support
of the We Can't Wait Act. Today, hundreds of thousands of
Americans with disabilities are unable to access Social
Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits when they need
them most, even though they have paid into the SSDI program
all their working lives. In fact, current law and policy
impose obstacles to workers that unfairly delay their
insurance, medical treatment, and return to work.
By design, SSDI is not a benefits program--it is a funded
insurance program supported by workers' paycheck deductions,
is only available to those who have contributed enough
through work, and is limited based on how long one has
worked. In return, SSDI ensures that if eligible workers ever
become disabled, they will be able to access the insurance
they need to survive.
However, hundreds of thousands of American workers who have
paid into SSDI face obstacles each year as they try to access
the benefits they need. Disabled workers are denied their
insurance for the first five months after becoming eligible.
This exclusion period is fundamentally unfair. As the
Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported, more than
100,000 American workers died while awaiting a decision on
their SSDI eligibility, a process that can often take 18
months. In addition, an estimated 50,000 workers were forced
to file for bankruptcy while they waited for SSDI coverage.
The five-month exclusion period is unnecessary and harms
disabled Americans who are often financially hanging on by a
thread.
By passing the We Can't Wait Act, Congress can ensure an
equitable and cost-effective system that supports all
individuals with significant health challenges and does not
harm the SSDI Trust Fund. The We Can't Wait Act would allow
disabled Americans to elect to access their benefits during
the five-month exclusionary period in exchange for a small
reduction in their monthly benefits. The election would be
voluntary and the Social Security Administration would be
required to provide a benefits calculator and other resources
to help applicants decide. The adjustment rate would be set
initially at 5.75%, which is much less than the interest
rates at which people often have to borrow money to meet
their immediate needs. The Social Security Administration
would assess and adjust the rate periodically to ensure it
does not reduce the SSDI Trust Fund.
Considering these crucial factors, we, the undersigned,
urge Congress to pass the We Can't Wait Act.
Alliance for Aging Research; American Association of People
with Disabilities; American Cancer Society Cancer Action
Network; American Council of the Blind; Assure Disability;
Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law; Bender
Consulting Services, Inc.; Brain Injury Association of
America; Center for HIV Law & Policy; Communication First;
disABILITY Law Center of Virginia; Disability Rights Maine;
Disability Rights North Carolina; Disability Rights
Pennsylvania; Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund;
National Alliance on Mental Illness; National Association of
Disability Representatives; National Association of the Deaf;
National Disability Institute; National Disability Rights
Network; National Federation of the Blind; National
Industries for the Blind; National Organization of Social
Security Claimants' Representatives; National Organization on
Disability; Paralyzed Veterans of America; Respectability;
World Institute on Disability.
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