Administrative Burdens: How the Social Safety Net Is Failing Disabled People

Administrative burdens—aspects of programs that make it more difficult for someone to access or maintain assistance for which they otherwise qualify—are riddled throughout the social safety net, especially in programs designed for low-income and disabled Americans. Administrative burdens cause real, lasting harm to huge swaths of disabled Americans, making it difficult for them to navigate a system that is supposed to help them obtain basic necessities such as food, housing, and medical treatments. People with disabilities are more than twice as likely to live in poverty than nondisabled people. Barriers to accessing the social safety net make it much harder for them to escape poverty, which, in turn, harms their communities and the entire economy.