Can You Collect Social Security and Long-Term Disability?
Posted on Wednesday, February 15th, 2023 at 6:09 pm
When you become disabled and cannot work, you may have several options for getting the money you need. The Social Security Administration (SSA) provides benefits to disabled individuals who cannot work. You may also qualify for long-term disability benefits through private insurance companies or your employer.
You may be wondering whether you can receive Social Security disability benefits and long-term disability benefits at the same time. Generally, the answer is yes. However, each case is different.
For example, several factors determine whether you can receive both benefits. Such factors include:
- Income
- Terms of your long-term disability policy
- Social security classification of your disability
What Is Long-Term Disability?
Long-term disability benefits are a type of insurance that may provide financial assistance to disabled individuals. This benefit usually covers a portion of the individual’s salary or income for a specific period of time.
To qualify for this financial assistance, you must meet certain criteria, such as having a qualifying medical condition. In addition, this medical condition must prevent them from performing their job for an extended period. The specific criteria depend on the insurance policy or program paying your benefits.
Your long-term disability benefits are usually calculated on a percentage of your monthly income. Typically, the percentage will be between 50 and 60 percent. As a result, if your monthly income is $5,000 and your insurance is for 50 percent of your monthly salary, you will receive $2,500 per month.
How Long Can You Stay on Long-Term Disability?
How long you receive long-term disability payments depends on your long-term disability insurance plan. For example, your policy may offer payouts for a specific period, such as five or ten years, or it could provide payments through retirement age.
What Are Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits?
The Social Security Administration (SSA) offers the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program to help disabled individuals. The SSDI program provides financial assistance to individuals who cannot work because of their disability. SSDI benefits are not automatic. You must apply for SSDI and qualify before you start receiving the benefits.
To qualify for SSDI, applicants must have worked and received a certain amount of work credits. The number of work credits needed depends on the age of the applicant and when they became disabled. Additionally, an individual must have a severe physical or mental impairment. A severe impairment is one that limits your ability to perform work-related tasks for at least 12 months.
How Many Social Security Disability Benefits Will I Receive?
If you qualify for SSDI, the amount you receive monthly depends on your average lifetime earnings before you become disabled. Therefore, the more your worked and made before the injury, the more you will receive.
How Do Social Security Disability Benefits and Long-Term Disability Benefits Work Together?
You can receive both SSDI and long-term disability benefits at the same time. However, if you qualify for both, the amount you receive from SSDI may affect your long-term disability benefits.
Typically, an insurance company will reduce their payout by the amount of SSDI benefits you receive. For example, if you are receiving $2,500 in long-term disability benefits and you qualify for $1,000 in SSDI benefits, your long-term disability benefits will reduce by $1,000. As a result, if you receive both SSDI and long-term disability benefits under this scenario, you will get $1,500 from your long-term coverage and $1,000 from SSDI.
This reduction in LTD benefits is known as an offset and benefits the insurance company. As a result, most long-term disability insurance providers require those they insure to apply for SSDI benefits. This can allow them to reduce their payout requirements.
Can You Receive Both Long-Term Disability Benefits and Supplemental Security Income?
Another common question is whether an individual can collect long-term disability benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) simultaneously. SSI is a government program that provides financial assistance to people who are disabled, blind, or over the age of 65 with limited income and resources.
Unlike SSDI, the SSI program only considers an individual’s financial needs. As a result, you must make under a specific amount per month to qualify. So, while it’s possible to receive both SSI and long-term disability benefits, you may not qualify for SSI benefits if you make too much money.
Contact a Disability Attorney for Help Today
An experienced disability attorney can help answer any questions you have about disability benefits. When you cannot work because of a disability, it can be scary because applying for benefits can be a complex process. The attorneys of Abell and Capitan Law have experience helping clients seek the compensation they deserve.
Our attorneys can answer your questions and help you apply for disability benefits. We can also review your insurance policy to better understand the benefits you should receive.
Contact the experienced disability attorneys of Abell and Capitan Law for a free consultation by calling us at (267) 419-7888.