Financial Literacy for People with Disabilities

Disability Benefits

You may have heard myths saying that if you work, you’ll lose your disability benefits, including your health coverage. That’s not true. If you get disability benefits, it is possible to keep your benefits while you work towards becoming more self-sufficient.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) and Medicaid have rules that help support your work goals. They help you achieve the life you want.

You Can Work and Keep Your Benefits

Social Security has two disability benefits programs with very similar names:

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) gives monthly payments to people with disabilities who qualify because they used to work. Learn more in DB101’s SSDI article.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) gives monthly payments to people with disabilities who have low income and low resources. You do not need to have worked in the past to get SSI. Learn more in DB101’s SSI article.

Many people think the SSA defines disability as being “unemployable” and that to get benefits, they must prove that they cannot work at all. The fact is, the SSA defines a disability (for adults) as having a physical or mental medical condition that is the main reason you are unable to earn more than the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level. The SGA dollar amount changes every year and is different for people who are blind. In 2024, SGA is $1,550 ($2,590 if you're blind).

This definition doesn’t say that a person cannot work now or ever. For SSA, “disability” is based on how much you can earn from working, which means that people who receive Social Security benefits can work. And Social Security has created rules (work incentives) that promote and support work for people with disabilities.

SSI Rules That Can Help You Work

Social Security’s rules mean that people with disabilities can try out working without worrying about losing their health care or eligibility status. This means that if you get SSI benefits and go to work, you will generally have more money.

When it calculates how much you get in SSI benefits each month, the SSA only counts a little less than half of your earned income, so for every $2 you earn, you keep $1 of your SSI benefits. And you can deduct the cost of things related to your disability that you need to pay for so you can work, like personal care services, mobility devices, assisted technology, and more.

The Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE) lets students under age 22 who are in school at least half-time earn up to a certain amount without their SSI benefits going down.

And if your SSI benefits stop because of how much you earn and then your income goes down, you can restart those benefits without having to reapply.

Learn more in the DB101 section on SSI and Work.

SSDI Rules That Can Help You Work

If you get SSDI benefits, there are three phases that let you try out work without worrying about losing your benefits:

1. Within the Trial Work Period (TWP), you can work and get SSDI benefits at the same time, no matter how much you earn.

2. After the Trial Work Period, the three-year Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE) lets you work and get benefits for every month that your countable earnings are below the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) level ($1,550 in 2024; $2,590 if you’re blind). At the end of your EPE, you will keep getting benefits as long as your countable earnings are below the SGA level. However, once your earnings go over the SGA level, your SSDI benefits will stop.

3. For the first five years after you stop getting benefits, Expedited Reinstatement (EXR) means that if your countable earned income drops below the SGA level, you may be able to quickly get back on SSDI benefits without having to completely reapply.

These three stages let you get a job and see how it goes. If it goes well, you’re in a better financial situation than before. If it doesn’t go well, you keep getting SSDI benefits and are in the same situation as you were before you tried working.

Learn more in DB101’s section on SSDI and Work.

Disability benefits and health care

When you get SSI, you automatically get Medicaid health care coverage. If your income goes up enough that you stop getting SSI cash benefits, you can still get Medicaid under SSI’s 1619(b) rule. And if your income goes even higher, you may be able to get coverage through the Medicaid Buy-In for Workers with Disabilities. Learn more in DB101’s article on SSI.
After you get SSDI benefits for 24 months, Medicare benefits automatically start. Medicare continues throughout all phases of work and for at least eight years after you complete your Trial Work Period (TWP).