Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI)

The Social Security Administration administers two programs that can provide you with benefits based on your disability.

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is also referred to as Social Security Disability (SSD). The SSDI program is based on your work and the amount you paid into Social Security. In other words, the amount of your Social Security disability benefit is based on your lifetime earnings before you became disabled and not based on the severity of your disability.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments are made based on your financial need.

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) is funded with Social Security taxes that are paid by wage earners, self-employed people, and employers. For you to be eligible for a Social Security disability benefit, you must have earned enough credits to be insured by Social Security.

The disability benefits paid by Social Security are payable to disabled or blind workers, adults disabled since childhood, and widows or widowers. The amount of your monthly disability payment is calculated on your Social Security earnings record.

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program is funded by general revenues. SSI disability benefits can be paid to adults or children who are blind or disabled, meet the living arrangement requirements, and have limited income and financial resources.

The amount of your monthly SSI payment can vary up to the maximum federal benefit rate. Your payment may be supplemented by the State or can be decreased based on your countable resources and income.

Suggestions regarding Social Security disability:

If you are disabled and not able to work, you should file a claim for Social Security disability (SSD) or SSI based on your disability. You should file your disability claim immediately because it can take a long time to process your claim.

If your initial disability claim is denied, you may want to consider getting an attorney or representative that specialize in Social Security disability claims. Because of the way the Social Security disability system works, you might be approved on your initial application, or more often you may be required to file an appeal. Depending on the State in which you file, initial disability claims can be denied up to 70 percent of the time.

If you are having problems filling out your Social Security disability claims paperwork, you might want to get some assistance. A lot of people that apply for disability benefits or have to file an appeal, either don't fill out the paperwork correctly, or they don't get the paperwork filed to meet the 60 day deadline for the appeal.

Your Social Security disability claim will be evaluated based soley on your medical records. This means that you should get regular and current medical treatment. The judge or examiner will not be able to approve your disability claim if your medical records are not current. In general, you will not be approved for Social Security disability or SSI based on disability if you have not been examined by a medical provider at least once every two months. It is vital that you visit a doctor on a regular basis and have your medical records up-to-date.

If you take prescribed medications for your disability, be sure to keep your prescriptions current and take your medication as prescribed. Having a prescription for your medical condition but not taking them will often result in your claim being denied.

Try to maintain a good attitude with your caseworkers. Remember they deal with a large number of applicants on a daily basis. You will bet more cooperation and assistance by being polite rather than being difficult to work with.

If you want to get updates on the status of your disabilty claim, contact your Social Security office where you filed or the Disability Determination Services. Don't call the Social Security Administration 1-800 number.

Make sure that you always make and keep copies of anything that you submit to Social Security, the Office of Hearings and Appeals, or Disability Determination Services.

Whenever you mail something to the Social Security office, Disability Determination Services, or appeals office make sure that you follow-up with a phone call to confirm that the documents arrived.

Be prepared mentally and financially for the disability claim process to take a long time. Believe it or not, in many cases it can take up to two years to get approved for disability benefits. There really is no way to know how long it will take for your disability claim to be processed.

What is the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA)? Simply stated, the SGA is the dollar amount that you as a disability beneficiary can earn each month while still maintaining your eligibility for disability benefits. If you work and have gross earnings that exceed the $1000 per month SGA for 2011, you are not considered disabled and you are ineligible to receive disability benefits.