The Washington Post reports:
Are workers using disability as an extended safety net when their jobless benefits lapse? And the answer seems to be: No. The economists exploited the fact that different states have pared back their jobless benefits at different times during the downturn and found that disability applications don’t rise in response.
A previous study by had reached a similar conclusion: Across the United States, disability applications actually rose when unemployment insurance became more generous, and applications fell after unemployment insurance got cut back. This suggests that people aren’t using disability as an extended form of jobless benefits. See full story here! http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/12/03/unemployment-insurance-is-shrinking-will-disability-insurance-grow-in-response/?tid=hpModule_308f7142-9199-11e2-bdea-e32ad90da239