In prior columns, I gave readers a brief history of Social Security by highlighting the major changes to the program brought about by annual amendments to the original Social Security law. Every once in a great while, there is a dramatic change, such as the addition of the disability program in 1956. Most years, these amendments are minor and introduce only small technical changes to some of the program’s laws. And occasionally, the annual Social Security amendments introduce relatively modest reforms, such as the 1977 amendments that lowered the duration of marriage requirement for divorced women from 20 years to 10 years.
But the point I am getting at in today’s column is that almost without fail, every amendment to the original Social Security law over the years has expanded or increased outlays or liberalized the rules allowing more folks to qualify for the program’s various benefits.
