- Social Security Disability Insurance is sometimes called SSD, SSDI or Title II benefits. As long as you are disabled, unable to perform substantial work, and your disability is expected to result in an incapacity of at least 12 months or to result in your death, you can continue receiving payments. However, the combined total of your SSDI benefit and other benefits, except for veterans' benefits, state and local benefits and SSI cannot exceed 80 percent of the income you earned prior to becoming disabled.
- Your benefits may be affected if you receive workman's compensation benefits in a lump sum. In some jurisdictions, state law dictates that for the purposes of calculating SSDI benefits, any lump sum payments must be treated as if they were being paid out over the recipient's lifetime. This can help the recipient avoid having benefits reduced because of the 80 percent rule
- The Social Security Administration does not consider a lump sum paid to catch-up on previously due payments to be a lump sum, and will not reduce benefits solely because of the lump sum. If you have incurred legal or medical expenses in connection with your workman's compensation claim, you may be able to exclude this amount from the offset calculation that would potentially result in a reduction of benefits.
- Supplemental Security Income, an alternative program for low-income individuals is strictly means-tested, though there are certain exclusions and exemptions, which are different in every state. However, states will generally allow married couples to retain more in assets than unmarried couples, and exempt a limited amount of certain kinds of property, such as cemetary plots, life insurance death benefits and a limited amount of home equity.
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