Incentives for both SSDI and SSI

Now you know that you want to work and that it doesn’t mean you will automatically lose the disability benefits you need. But what if your future earnings are high enough that you do lose your cash benefits? What if you work for 4 months and realize you are in too much pain and can’t keep up? What if you can’t afford the transportation to and from work?

Incentives by Program	SSI	SSDI
Ticket to Work Program	✔️	✔️
Expedited Reinstatement of Benefits	✔️	✔️
Impairment Related Work Expenses	✔️	✔️
PASS Plan	✔️	✔️
Blind Work Expenses	✔️	❌
Student Earned Income Exclusion	✔️	❌
Continued Medicaid – 1619 (A)	✔️	❌
Continued Medicaid – 1619 (B)	✔️	❌
Trial Work Period	❌	✔️
Extended Period of Eligibility	❌	✔️
Subsidy	❌	✔️
Extended Period of Medicare Coverage	❌	✔️

Just because you start working, SSA does not automatically decide you are no longer disabled.

This is a common concern for individuals currently receiving benefits and for individuals applying for benefits who also hope be able to continue to work at some level. Many factors go into SSA’s disability determination. Your ability to work does not automatically disqualify you.

Expedited Reinstatement—If your SSDI and/or SSI payments are terminated due to an excess of earned income or a combination of earned and unearned income AND if you become unable to work again due to your medical condition, you may request that SSA restart your payments under expedited reinstatement. You may have heard this referred to as “EZ back on.” You will not have to file a new disability application as long as you make this request within 5 years of the termination date and you continue to meet all requirements. If so, Social Security will begin paying up to 6 months of provisional cash benefits while they conduct a medical review to determine if you are still disabled.

There is assistance available to cover costs related to returning to work.

When you return to work, you may have Impairment Related Work Expenses (IRWE). These are expenses for items or services that you pay for out-of pocket that you need in order to work and are directly related to a medically determinable impairment. Both SSDI and SSI subtract these out of pocket expenses from earnings. With SSDI, IRWEs can reduce the SGA level earnings when a SGA determination is made. With SSI, IRWEs will reduce the countable income.

IRWE can include some of these examples in certain instances:

Transportation Costs
Service Animals
Attendant Care Services
Residential Modifications
Medical Services
Job Coaching
Medical Supplies
Medical Equipment
Prescription Drugs

In section 1, we mentioned the availability of community partners who provide job assistance and resources to individuals with disabilities.

One of the federal job assistance programs available to SSDI and SSI beneficiaries between the ages of 18-64, is the Ticket to Work Program, which offers free vocational rehabilitation, training, job referrals, and other employment support. If you are using your “ticket” (i.e., it is assigned to an Employment Network) and you are making timely progress towards your employment goal, SSA will not conduct any regularly scheduled medical reviews!

The SSA has a Ticket to Work Hotline available that allows you to get information about work, benefits, or the work incentive programs.

Call 1-866-YOURTICKET (1-866-968-7842), Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. EST. If you’re deaf or hard of hearing, you may call the TTY number, 1-866-833-2967.

Or visit www.socialsecurity.gov/work for more information on the Ticket to Work Program. And visit www.choosework.ssa.gov/ to find an Employment Network near you.

Ticket to Work service providers serving Kentucky include:

Career Opportunities, LLC
Center for Accessible Living
Community Services Project
Kentucky Office of Vocation Rehabilitation
Options Unlimited
Path Forward of Kentucky
Employment Solutions
Alliance Professional Services
Owensboro Goodwill Industries