Overview of the Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) program
Hosted/Facilitated by: Miranda Kennedy with the NDI Technical Assistance Team
Presented by: Elizabeth Jennings with the National Disability Institute and Kevin Nickerson with the
NDI Technical Assistance Team
U.S. Department of Labor
2013 Ticket/EN Series
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Disability Employment Initiative
(DEI)
• DEI Projects at the state level and/or local level participating
LWIBs are required to become Employment Networks under
Social Security Administration’s Ticket to Work Program.
• Training and Technical Assistance to DEI Projects in attaining
Employment Network status and implementing effective EN
operations is provided under U.S. DOLETA contract with NDI
Consulting, Inc. and the National Disability Institute (NDI).
• Evaluation of the impact of the DEI Projects implementation
and outcomes as Employment Network will be provided under
U.S. DOL ODEP contract with Social Dynamics.
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Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this training webinar, DEI grantees
and participants and partners from the public
workforce system will :
• Understand the basics of the Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) program
• Have basic knowledge of key Work Incentives specific to
the SSI program
• Understand the value of Work Incentives, and how they
can apply to the work of an EN
• Next Steps
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Subject Matter Expert
Elizabeth Jennings
Director of Training and
Technical Assistance,
National Disability Institute
ejennings@ndi-inc.org
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Agenda
• Overview of SSA disability programs, and
eligibility requirements
• Review of Work Incentives associated with
the SSI program
• Options for returning to disability benefits,
if needed
• Time for Q & A
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Overview of SSA disability
programs, and eligibility
requirements
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What is SSI?
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a Title XVI
program
• SSI is the payer of last resort
• An individual must prove that they are financially
eligible for SSI (needs based)
• Monthly income less than $710/month
• Assets less than $2000 (for single individuals)
• Eligible couple = $1066/month and $3000 assets
• Federal Benefit Rate Maximum: 2013 equals $710
per month
• Medical Insurance = Medicaid
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Federal Benefit Rate (FBR)
• Not everyone receives the full benefit amount
• The rate of pay an individual is eligible for is based
on:
- Family composition (i.e. living alone, with others, etc.)
- Marital status
- Deeming of income
- Type of housing (i.e. congregate care)
- In-Kind support and maintenance
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SSI Income At-A-Glance
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a Title XVI
Program
• Income: Anything received in cash or in kind that
can be used to meet needs for food or shelter
• Two Types of Income: Earned Income and
Unearned Income
Earned Income: Typically, gross wages - salaries, commissions,
bonuses, self-employment; sheltered workshop earnings
Unearned Income: All income that is not earned income.
Unearned income is counted when it is actually or
constructively received
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SSI: Resources At-A-Glance
• Resources: Cash or other liquid assets or real or
personal property that an individual owns and could
convert to cash which can be used to provide for
food or shelter.
• The general rule is that an item received in a month
is income and, unless spent, becomes a resource in
the following month.
• General resource limit in 2013 is $2,000 for an
individual, $3,000 for an eligible couple (Note: This
rate was established on 1/1/89)
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Review of Work Incentives
associated with the SSI program
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SSI Work Incentives & Wages
SSI Work Incentives enhance economic stability and can
protect Medicaid
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Student Earned Income Exclusion
Impairment Related Work Expense (IRWE)
Blind Work Expense
Plan For Achieving Self-Support (PASS)
Property Essential for Self-Support (PESS)
1619a
1619b
Section 301
Special Condition/Subsidies
Expedited Reinstatement
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SSI Budget Example:
Earned Income Only
NOTE: FBR = $710.00 (this is a single
person, living alone rate for 2013,
includes Federal Benefit Rate ONLY)
STEP 1:
(calculate countable earnings)
Earned income =
$1,120
Apply G.I.E.
Apply 2 for 1 rule
- $20
$1,100
- $65
$1,035
/2
Total countable income =
$517.50
Apply E.I.E.
STEP 2:
(adjust SSI based on FBR)
FBR =
Subtract T.C.I.
$710.00
$517.50
$192.50 (New SSI)
Adjusted SSI = $192.50
Plus earnings = $1,120.00
$1,312.50
G.I.E. = General Income Exclusion
E.I.E. = Earned Income Exclusion
T.C.I. = Total Countable Income
F.B.R. = Federal Benefit Rate
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Student Earned Income
Exclusion (SEIE)
•
The SEIE allows an individual who is under age 22 and
regularly attending school to have earnings excluded from
income as shown below:
•
For Year 2013, Monthly Exclusion is $1730, Maximum
exclusion for calendar year is $6,960
•
Effective 4/01/05 To qualify for this exclusion, an
individual must be:
–
under age 22; and
–
a student regularly attending school per
00501.020D.
SI
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Impairment Related Work Expense
(IRWE)
IRWE reduces gross income due to disability-related out of
pocket expenses that allow a person to earn income, even if
those items or services are needed for non-work activities
The following must apply:
– Expenses must be directly related to supporting the disability
– Cost must be paid out of person’s pocket and not covered by
other funding sources
– Expense must be paid in a month wages are earned
– Expense must be reasonable
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Plan to Achieve Self-Support
(PASS)
• The purpose of PASS is to allow SSI recipients to set
aside income and/or resources to be used to assist in
achieving specific work goals
– A PASS can be used to assist in the costs of education, starting a
business or purchasing support services that will result in the
reduction / cessation of benefits
• By utilizing PASS, an SSI recipient can help to off-set the
costs associated with the return to gainful employment
by reducing countable income and potentially increasing
the amount of SSI cash benefits due.
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Plan to Achieve Self-Support
(PASS)
The PASS must:
• Have a specific work goal
• Have a specific time frame for reaching the goal
• Show what money and any other contributions will be used to reach
the work goal
• Show how any money set aside in savings will be kept separate from
other funds
• Show how the money and resources will be saved and, later, spent
• Be submitted in writing and approved by Social Security’s PASS
Cadre
• Include a Business Plan if the PASS is for self-employment
• Be reviewed periodically to assure compliance
• Increase an individual’s ability to be self-supporting by decreasing the
amount they receive in cash benefits from Social Security
www.passonline.org
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SSI & Section 1619(b) Medicaid
Protects Medicaid when SSI Cash Benefit is Zero:
 The person must lose eligibility for SSI cash benefits due
to excess earnings (not unearned income)
 Person must be otherwise eligible for SSI
 Person must need Medicaid to Work
 Earnings must be below State’s Earned Income
Threshold:
www.ssa.gov/disabilityresearch/wi/1619b.htm#threshold
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Ticket/EN Subject Matter Expert
Kevin Nickerson
E: knickerson@ndi-inc.org
P: (607) 272-7570 Ext. 136
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Options for returning to
disability benefits, if needed
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Options for Returning to Rolls
• Re-Application
• Expedited Reinstatement (EXR)
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Good Record Keeping
• Open SSA mail immediately
• Keep EVERYTHING SSA sends
• Make copies of EVERYTHING sent to SSA
• Report new work activity to the local SSA Office (in writing,
keep a copy of letter sent)
• Provide wage data to SSA regularly by providing a copy of
pay check stubs
– Wage data may be FAXED, hand delivered, mailed, or reported by phone
• For more information about wage reporting by phone:
http://www.ssa.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-telephone-wage.htm
– Be sure to write your S.S. # on pay check stubs, and your name if not
already printed on check stubs
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Questions/Comments
If you have a comment or
question you can:
A: Submit it to the host in writing
via the Chat or Q&A Box to the
right, or…
B: Click on the “raise hand” icon
to have your line un-muted and
ask your question/make your
comment.
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Summary
In today’s presentation we covered the
following:
• Basics of SSI benefits program
• SSI Work Incentives, and how they can assist
beneficiaries in the return to work
• Options for maintaining health insurance while
working
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Next Steps
Plan to attend the next training in this series:
Tuesday, March 26th (3:00pm – 4:00pm EST)
Part 5: Ticket to Work and Benefits Planning, Other
State and Federal Work Incentives
Upon completion of this training you will:
•
•
Have basic information about complimentary non-SSA incentives that
SSA beneficiaries can and should utilize
Recognize coordinating work incentives and how they are designed to
increase an individual's work effort
We look forward to seeing you in D.C. in March!
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Contact Information
Elizabeth Jennings
Director of Training and Technical Assistance
National Disability Institute
E: ejennings@ndi-inc.org
Kevin Nickerson
NDI Technical Assistance Team
E: knickerson@ndi-inc.org
P: (607) 272-7570 Ext. 136
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