Trying to help an adult with mental illness can be a thankless perilous task.  I am the representative payee for my adult son, whom is bi-polar with a horrible temper, but a huge loving heart.  Any parent that has struggled through getting SSI for their adult child with mental illness can attest to the pitfalls within our Social Security System.  I have found that I am not alone in this regard.

Many families, such as mine, know early on that their child is maladaptive or has behavioral issues that need treatment, but when the child becomes an adult it can become impossible to get the help that they desperately need.  After many years of bureaucratic struggle, we thought our problems would come to a resolution when he was finally approved for SSI.  I thought this meant that he would be able to have financial and medical support and treatment so he had a chance at living a semi-normal life.  However, I found that the representative payee was responsible for paying the bills with NO ability to enforce medical compliance with the ill family member. 

Examples of problems that could be fixed with policy changes by the Social Security Administration: 

1) Currently, my son has the right to choose his own representative payee.  But, he is smart enough to find someone who will just hand over the money to him. When he was embezzled out of some of his back pay,  he came back to me to "fix it". We reported the crime to the Social Security Agency, who launched an investigation, but in essence did nothing. When I went to the Waukegan, IL office to report the suspected misappropriation of funds, I was told that there was nothing that Social Security could do except wait until the money was gone and then they would go after the guy that took his money and make him responsible for "paying it back".  However, by this time, the money is gone and "the guy" has no way of paying it back. Additionally, he was never prosecuted. I was also told by Social Security staff that family members come in and complain "all the time", but the recipient has the right to choose who they designate as their payee.  So what is Social Security staff supposed to do?  NOTE:  The payee does not have to be a relative, an accountant, or an agency. The payee can be anyone as long as they are not a felon. Yes, not everyone that is mentally ill is unable to handle their finances.  However, for the ones who are easy targets or do not have good financial judgment, this issue is a real problem.

2) So, a mentally ill bi-polar patient also learns that this monthly payment does not require any ongoing medical or mental health treatment.  He does not HAVE to take medicine, nor does he HAVE to go to treatment, no matter how aggressive he may be.   Additionally, there is no law that requires him to continue being seen by a psychiatrist or go for follow-up evaluations. To me, there is no incentive to strive to improve or get better.

Hence, he is by law an "adult", an adult that has made some seriously bad life choices.  Yes, a functioning adult should have the right to learn from their mistakes, but a mentally ill person CANNOT learn from their mistakes because they are emotionally not functioning as an adult.  The number 18 or 21 is not magic.  This heart wrenching pattern is a reoccurring theme throughout many households in the US.  I have spoken to others who share the same story.

Mental health law is determined by state law.  In Illinois, the only way to force help for someone that cannot act in their own best interest is to have them declared mentally incompetent. Can you imagine how this act plays out within family dynamics?  This concept that the mentally ill that struggle with functioning as responsible members of society are "adults" is, within itself, CRAZY!  I have tried to get a local mental health organization to become his representative payee and it requires HIS approval (which he will not give).  Agencies do NOT want to take on problem people.  Are you starting to see my point? 

3)  I have been the recipient of endless calls/texts that begin when the Social Security check hits the bank account at 1:17 a.m. until the money is in his hands and it is spent.  This means that there are 28 more days in the month that he now has no money to live on. 

Again, the only hold over his head is his check. If family members could get agency assistance to require ongoing treatment or a case worker, this would go a long way in making sure that mentally ill adults are getting the treatment they need.  Believe me, the last thing that any family member wants to do is call the police for assistance when their loved one is in a rage. 

For the above reasons, I am asking for your support in signing my petition that the Social Security Commissioner reviews these problem as a "public health issue" to better work with families that so desperately need ongoing support. Thank you.