What is Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)?
What is Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)?
Social Security Disability Insurance (“SSD” or “SSDI” or “Title II Disability”) comes from Title II of the Social Security Act, which was originally passed in 1935 as part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal.”
Citizens Disability’s mission is to help provide people with access to the Social Security Disability benefits that they already paid for while they were working.
What does SSDI Do For Workers?
Social Security Disability provides payments to individuals who used to work in the past but now can’t work due to a sickness or injury.
When you were working, you paid into Social Security with every paycheck. That money went to give you “quarters of coverage.” That means that you get Social Security Disability coverage by paying into the system. Social Security Disability is not an entitlement – it’s an “earned benefit,” something you earned by paying into Social Security while you were working.
How Do I Know If I’m Covered?
When you pay into Social Security Disability and get your “quarters of coverage” you’re covered and can receive Disability Insurance Benefits (“DIB”). For a US citizen, that means if you paid into Social Security for twenty of the last forty quarters (five of the last ten years, four quarters per year, even if they were not sequential), you are eligible to collect disability insurance if you become unable to work due to disability.
How Much Money Is Available To Me Through SSDI?
How much you pay into Social Security Disability determines how much you can collect when you become unable to work. The more you pay in, the more that you can collect if you win your Social Security Disability claim. That amount is called your Primary Insurance Amount, and that’s how much you would receive each month.
The amount you collect from Social Security Disability doesn’t change depending on how much you own, or how much you have in savings. As long as you aren’t working and making above the number Social Security calls “substantial gainful activity,” you can still collect your full Social Security Disability amount.
Will I Ever Lose Coverage? Is This Time-Sensitive?
Because Social Security Disability requires you to pay in, it can also expire. Think of it like an insurance policy – the amount of money you pay in from your paycheck is your insurance premium. As long as you pay in, and have paid in for five of the last ten years (twenty of the last forty quarters), you are still covered by Disability Insurance benefits. Once you pass that date, you can no longer collect Disability Insurance – so it may be in your best interest to act quickly! In order to collect Social Security Disability, you need to be found disabled before your “date last insured” – when you still have enough “quarters of coverage” to be insured with SSD.
Is This Easy To Apply For? Can I Do It Myself?
The Social Security Disability process is long and complicated, and the Social Security Administration has complicated rules that govern how it finds you disabled. It may help you to have a Social Security Disability Advocate help you through the process, although it is certainly possible to file on your own. Take our instant case evaluator to see if you may qualify!
Since 2010, Citizens Disability has been America’s premier Social Security Disability advocate. Our mission is to give a voice to the millions of Americans who are disabled and unable to work, helping them receive the Social Security Disability benefits to which they may be entitled. We have helped tens of thousands of individuals with their SSDI claims. Your success is our mission.
It is easy to get started.
It is easy to get started. No upfront costs – You only pay if we win!
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