A Record Number of Americans are Now Drawing SSA Disability Benefits

According to a report recently release by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in five adult Americans now live with a disability.

That amounts to approximately 53 million adults out of an overall population (adults and children) of approximately 321 million which, at 16 percent of the population, is still a remarkable figure.

Despite not correlating to a one-to-one ratio, that still translates into a record number of Americans currently drawing SSA disability benefits.

According to the SSA website, as of July 2015, some 10,821,000 individuals are drawing Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) roughly totaling $11,061,000 a month for an individual average of about $1,022.16 per month.

As for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), the numbers are about 8,323,000 drawing the benefit which equates to some $4,701,000 a month for an individual average of roughly $540.48 per month.

There may be some overlap in the figures as occasionally an individual may qualify for both DIB and SSI.  In addition to these monthly monetary benefits individuals who draw DIB may also receive Medicare while SSI recipients may receive Medicaid.

Interestingly enough, according to the report, our immediate region led the nation in percentages of adults with disability:  Alabama 31.5%, Mississippi 31.4% and Tennessee with 31.4% as well.

An interesting angle on the growing SSA disability numbers is that, according to Forbes, since the 1990s every time there has been a recession and people have had difficulty finding a job or making ends meet, the filings for benefits “spiked,” leading to it claiming the program is effectively replacing “welfare.”

If you or your child have been denied disability benefits or suffer from a severe impairment that is expected to last more than twelve months and that prevents you from doing any of your past or other work or is causing developmental delay, please contact our office nearest to you to set up a free consultation appointment to discuss your situation.