When people become disabled under the statutory definition the Social Security Administration must follow, the agency helps them meet their basic needs and sustain a higher quality of life. Social Security administers disability benefits through two programs: the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. Under both programs, the agency follows a five-step process to determine if an adult has a qualifying disability.
In response to President Biden’s Executive Order on Transforming Federal Customer Experience and Service Delivery to Rebuild Trust in Government, the agency is proud to announce changes that will reduce administrative burdens for applicants and help more people with disabilities receive government benefits and services if they are eligible. On April 18, 2024, Social Security published a final rule, “Intermediate Improvement to the Disability Adjudication Process: Including How We Consider Past Work.”
The final rule announces updates that will improve the application process for disability benefits and reduce the time applicants wait for a decision. The new rule simplifies step four of the process, which assesses whether a person applying for disability benefits can perform any of their “past relevant work.”
“This new rule will lessen the burden and time our applicants face when filling out information about their work history and will make it easier for them to focus on the most current and relevant details about their past work,” said Martin O’Malley, Commissioner of Social Security. “It also improves the quality of the information our frontline workers receive to make decisions, improving customer service, and reducing case processing time and overall wait times.”
Under the final rule, beginning June 22, 2024, when determining past relevant work, the agency will review only five years of past work. The previous policy required people to provide detailed information about 15 years of work history, which was difficult for individuals to remember and often led to incomplete or inaccurate reporting. Also, the agency will no longer consider past work that started and stopped in fewer than 30 calendar days. The new rule makes it easier for people applying for benefits by focusing on their most recent relevant work activity while still providing enough information to continue making accurate determinations.
This final rule is one of several regulation updates Social Security is publishing to improve its disability program. The agency recently announced it will reduce barriers to access the SSI program by updating the definition of a public assistance household (See Social Security to Expand Access to SSI Program by Updating Definition of a Public Assistance Household). The agency also announced it will exclude the value of food from SSI benefit calculations (See Social Security to Remove Barriers to Accessing SSI Payments). Additionally, the agency announced it will expand its rental subsidy exception, currently only in place for SSI applicants and recipients residing in seven States, as a nationwide policy
Fact Sheet
SOCIAL SECURITY
In 2024, an average of almost 68 million Americans per month will receive a Social Security benefit, totaling about $1.5 trillion in benefits paid during the year.
Snapshot of a Month: December 2023 Beneficiary Data
ο Retired workers 50.1 million $95.5 billion $1,905 average monthly benefit dependents 2.6 million $2.3 billion
ο Disabled workers 7.4 million $11.3 billion $1,537 average monthly benefit dependents 1.1 million $0.6 billion
ο Survivors 5.8 million $8.8 billion $1,501 average monthly benefit Social Security is the major source of income for most people over age 65.
ο Nearly nine out of ten people age 65 and older were receiving a Social Security benefit as of December 31, 2023.
ο Social Security benefits represent about 30% of the income of people over age 65. *
ο Among Social Security beneficiaries age 65 and older, 37% of men and 42% of women receive 50% or more of their income from Social Security. *
ο Among Social Security beneficiaries age 65 and older, 12% of men and 15% of womenrely on Social Security for 90% or more of their income. *
*This information is from research released in 2021 using 2015 data.
Social Security provides more than just retirement benefits.
ο Retired workers and their dependents accounted for 77.8% of total benefits paid in 2023.
ο Disabled workers and their dependents accounted for 11.0% of total benefits paid in 2023.
– About 90 percent of workers aged 21-64 in covered employment in 2023 and their families have protection in the event of a severe and prolonged disability.
– About 1 in 4 of today’s 20 year-olds will become disabled and entitled to Social Security disabled worker benefits before reaching age 67.
– 65% of the private sector workforce has no long-term disability insurance.
ο Survivors of deceased workers accounted for 11.2% of total benefits paid in 2023.
– More than one in eight of today’s 20-year-olds will die before reaching age 67.
– About 96% of persons aged 20-49 who worked in covered employment in 2023 have survivors insurance protection for their children under age 18 (and surviving spouses caring for children under age 16).
An estimated 182 million workers will work in OASDI-covered employment in 2024.
ο 31% of the workforce in private sector has no access to private pension coverage.
ο About two-thirds (63%) of workers report they are currently saving for retirement.
Having an employer-sponsored retirement savings plan is a key factor in whether Americans save for retirement. Only 16% of those without access to an employer-sponsored plan said they have any retirement savings.
– In 1940, the life expectancy of a 65-year-old was almost 14 years; today, it is over 20 years.
– The number of Americans 65 and older will increase from about 58 million in 2022 to about 75 million by 2035. 1
– In 2023, there are an estimated 2.7 covered workers per each Social Security beneficiary. By 2035, the Trustees estimate there will be 2.3 covered workers for each beneficiary.
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