SLEDGE: Who can receive Social Security and SSI?

Q: Under what circumstances can a person receive Social Security benefits and SSI at the same time? Does receiving one reduce the payment amount of the other? — Adrienne J.

A: Adrienne, Social Security benefits can be received along with SSI (Supplemental Security Income, the needs-based benefit program administered by Social Security) when the Social Security income, plus any other countable income the person might have, is less than the amount the person could otherwise have received from SSI alone. And while a Social Security benefit will reduce (or entirely eliminate, if high enough) an SSI payment, a monthly SSI payment will not reduce a Social Security benefit. 

Let’s say, for example, that a person is receiving Social Security in the amount of $620 a month; has no other countable income (not all income is countable for SSI, by the way; there are exclusions that we can apply); has total countable resources under $2,000; and would otherwise qualify for the 2009 maximum SSI monthly payment of $674. First we apply a $20 general income exclusion, leaving countable Social Security income of $600. Then we subtract this $600 from $674 maximum payment rate, leaving $74 due in SSI benefits.

An important point to remember is that even just $1 in SSI will usually entitle the recipient to Medicaid.

SSI payments can also be affected by one’s living arrangement. If the SSI recipient is getting substantial help from others for his support and maintenance, he might find himself placed in a lower payment category than someone who lives alone and pays all their own monthly living expenses. In 2009, this could mean a maximum SSI benefit amount of $449, not $674. In that case, a Social Security benefit of $620 — our example above — would mean that the person would have too much income for SSI to be payable.

To be eligible for SSI at all under the age of 65, a person would have to file a claim and we would have to determine that the applicant is disabled. Depending on their citizenship or residency status SSI applicants 65 or older may not need to have a disability decision made in order to be found eligible for SSI. People interested in filing for disability should go to http://www.socialsecurity.gov for further information.