Supplemental Security Benefits (SSI)
gives cash assistance
to people with limited income and resources
who are age 65 or older, blind or disabled.
Caretakers & Parents
Get a term life quote here, to protect your loved one
What is the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program and how can I apply?
- Is SSI Title XVI?
- SSI Income & Asset Limits * SSA Site
- SSI Home Page – Table of Contents on Social Security Website
- Medicaid – Medi-Cal is generally automatic.
- WHAT DOES “DISABLED” MEAN FOR AN ADULT?If you are age 18 or older we may consider you “disabled” if you have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment (including an emotional or learning problem) which:
results in the inability to do any substantial gainful activity; and
can be expected to result in death; or
has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.
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WHAT IS SUBSTANTIAL GAINFUL ACTIVITY (SGA)?
We use the term substantial gainful activity (SGA) to describe a level of work activity and earnings that is both substantial and gainful. SGA involves performance of significant physical or mental activities, or a combination of both. For your work activity to be substantial you do not need to work full time. Work activity performed on a part-time basis may also be SGA. If your impairment is anything other than blindness, earnings averaging over $1,070 a month (for the year 2014) generally demonstrate SGA.
Gainful work activity is:
work performed for pay or profit, or
work of a nature generally performed for pay or profit; or
work intended for profit, whether or not a profit is realized.
Links & Resources
Disability Benefits 101 on SDI * SSI *
publication 10026 – Benefits for Children with Disability
Children with disabilities can get SSI, too.
To find out if you can get SSI and learn how to apply, go to Supplemental Security Benefits (SSI)
See also publication 10026 – Benefits for Children with Disability.
If you’ve worked long enough you may qualify for SSDI Social Security Disability Income.
California SSI add on 11125
SSI and SSDI – Contact Info
Social Security Disability Benefits # 10029
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More than you ever wanted to know on SSI
Understanding SSI # 17-008 120 pages
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How does being incarcerated – Jail, #Prison affect Social Security or SSI Benefits?
How do you get benefits reinstated?
If you’re receiving SSI, your payments are suspended while you’re in prison. Your payments can be reinstated in the month you’re released. However, if your confinement lasts for 12 consecutive months or longer, your eligibility for SSI benefits will terminate and you must file a new application for benefits.
If Social Security suspends your disability or SSI benefits because you were in prison, you can request for Social Security to reinstate your benefits. You’ll need to contact Social Security and provide a copy of your official release documents before they can act on your request.
For SSI beneficiaries, benefits are terminated when the person is incarcerated for a year or more.
See our separate website on Criminal Law
Forms to Get one released from Prison
Which prison?
http://www.dcor.state.ga.us/Divisions/Facilities/StatePrisons
Is he on SSI or SSDI?
Were benefits suspended or terminated?
Was he getting benefits before?
Does the prison have a pre-release agreement with Social Security?
Please read this pamphlet from Social Security
https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10504.pdf
A prerelease agreement is a written or verbal agreement between an institution and SSA to cooperate in the processing of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applications under the prerelease procedure. For a complete description of prerelease agreements see SI 00520.910 – Prerelease Agreements – Institutionalization. https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0423530001
After you know your release date, notify someone at your facility that you want to start your SSI payments or Social Security benefits. The institution then will notify us if you are likely to meet the requirements for benefits. We will get an application from you several months before your anticipated release. That way, we can begin processing your application. Your benefits can start as soon as possible after your release.
If your institution does not have a prerelease agreement with the local Social Security office:
After you know your anticipated release date, call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). Tell the representative you are scheduled to be released from an institution and want to apply for benefits. Please have your Social Security number handy. We will set up an appointment with your local Social Security office to take your application when you are released. https://faq.ssa.gov/en-US/Topic/article/KA-02597
Helping Inmates Obtain Federal Disability Benefits: Serious Medical and Mental Illness, Incarceration, and Federal Disability Entitlement Programs https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/211989.pdf
Social Security and Health Care Benefits for the Incarcerated
This fact sheet describes (i) income support through the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) programs, and (ii) health coverage under Medicaid and Medicare, which together can enable someone with mental illness to transition successfully from jail or prison to community life. http://www.bazelon.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/2017-06-29-New-SSA-and-Incarceration-Fact-Sheet-FINAL-VERSION.pdf
Resources & Links
How to Navigate California County Jails: A Guide for Inmates and Their Loved Ones
#Work and Disability
If you work while disabled, here’s the information
Here’s resource material and excerpts:
Disability Benefits https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10029.pdf
We base your SSI payments on how much other income you have. When your other income goes up, your SSI payments usually go down. When
you earn more than the SSI limit, your payments will stop for those months. But, your payments will start again for any month your income drops to less than the SSI limits. Be sure to tell us if your earnings drop, or if you stop working.
If your only income is SSI, and the money you make from your job, we don’t count the first $85 of your monthly earnings. Each month, we reduce your SSI benefits 50 cents for every dollar that you earn over $85.
Example: You work and earn $1,000 in a month; and your only income comes from your earnings and your SSI.
$1,000
-$85
$915 divided by 2 = $457.50
We would take $457.50 from your SSI payment.
You may be eligible for a plan to achieve self-support that allows you to use money and resources for a specific work goal. These funds don’t count when we figure out how your current income and resources affect your benefits. Copied from: Working While Disabled—How We Can Help (Publication No. 05-10095). http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10095.pdf
A guide to all our employment supports can be found in our Red Book (Publication No. 64-030), http://www.ssa.gov/redbook
A Summary Guide to Employment Support for Individuals with Disabilities Under the Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental
Security Income Programs. http://www.socialsecurity.gov/redbook/eng/main.htm
Also visit our website, http://www.socialsecurity.gov/work.
SSI #Resources & Income Limits
To get SSI, your countable resources must not be worth more than $2,000 for an individual or $3,000 for a couple. We call this the resource limit.
Countable resources are the things you own that count toward the resource limit. Many things you own do not count.
Learn More:
Resources SSA.Gov
HOW DOES DEEMING WORK FOR A CHILD?
The term deeming means – identifies the process of considering another person’s income and resources to be available for meeting an SSI claimant’s (or recipient’s) basic needs of food and shelter. SSA.gov *
If a child is under age 18, not married, and lives at home with parent(s) who do not receive SSI benefits, we may consider a portion of the parents’ income and resources as if they were available to the child. We may also count a portion of a stepparent’s income and resources if the child lives with both a parent and a stepparent (or an adoptive parent and a stepparent). We also do this when a child is temporarily away at school, returns home during weekends, holidays or during the summer and remains subject to parental control.
We make deductions from deemed income for parents and for other children living in the home. After we subtract these deductions, we use the remaining amount to decide if the child meets the SSI income and resource requirements for a monthly benefit.
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For more information, see the SSI Spotlight on Deeming Parental Income and Resources. |
WHEN DOES DEEMING NOT APPLY?
Deeming from the parent stops when a child attains age 18, marries, or no longer lives with a parent. Deeming does not apply, and we may pay up to $30 plus the applicable State supplement when:
a disabled child receives a reduced SSI benefit while in a medical treatment facility; and
the child is eligible for Medicaid under a State home care plan; and
deeming would otherwise cause ineligibility for SSI benefits.
Also, we do not consider the income of a parent for deeming purposes if the parent receives a Public Income Maintenance payment (PIM) such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and his or her other income was used to compute the PIM payment.
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See SSI AND ELIGIBILITY FOR OTHER GOVERNMENT AND STATE PROGRAMS for information on TANF. |
If either child or parent is temporarily absent from the household (less than 60 days), the rules about deemed income still apply. ssa.gov/ssi child-ussi
In–Kind Income is food or shelter that you get for free or less than its fair market value.
Bibliography
Supplemental Security Income # 11125
- Publication 3966, Living and Working with Disabilities
SSI-Related Programs & Coverage Groups
Income & Assets Chart
Will a settlement affect Government Benefits - Too high resources & income?
Is Medi-Cal #automatic for SSI – Supplemental Security Benefit beneficiaries – recipients?
***Yes, according to
- Nolo.com *
- Disabilty Secrets.com *
- CA Health Care Advocates *
- Western Poverty Law Center
- See our webpage on DAC Disabled Adult Children & Pickle Amendment
- Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) and Medicaid – Medi-Cal are needs-based programs.
Many individuals receive SSI due to poverty and others receive SSI due to disability.
In most states, including California, disabled people who qualify for SSI automatically become eligible for Medi-Cal, Medicaid, which is the joint federal and state program providing medical coverage for the needy.
Medicaid Medi-Cal benefits can cover items like prescription medication, transportation, and home-based care.
See Table of Contents on SSI Home Page
See our page on definition of household.
We didn’t get a redetermination packet this year. Are we OK, what’s going on?
Medi-Cal may have done your renewal through electronic verification through the Federal Hub Try checking our pages for various counties, our contact page for Medi-Cal and the link for all counties. Many counties have an online system that you can enroll in, to get up to the minute status and give them your updates online.
Links & Resources
Disability Benefits 101 on SDI * SSI *
Our webpage on
DAC Disabled Adult Children *
SSI Supplemental Security Benefits
SSDI Social Security Disability Insurance
SSI in CA Factsheet
My Medi-Cal
How to get the Health Care You Need
24 pages
Smart Phones - try turning sideways to view pdf better
- Medi Cal Explained CHCF
- 10 Essential Health Benefits
- Our Webpage onMedi Cal Benefits
- Western Poverty Law - Exact Legal Rules on Coverage for Low Income Californian's
Our Webpage on
COVID 19
Main Social Security Page, Disability Page and related pages
Medicare and You 2020 #10050
Everything you want to know
Video by Steve Shorr based on Medicare & You Pamphlet
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF3xKVvt2Bk&w=560&h=315]
Don’t like computers?
Prefer a printed version be mailed to you?
Audio MP 3
Use our scheduler to Set a phone, Skype or Face to Face meeting
Intake Form – We can better prepare for the meeting
6 Steps to apply for Social Security Disability
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLZGEZBGxbk]
SSI Child Disability Starter Kit (for children under age 18)
Adult Disability Starter Kit(for children age 18 or older)
What you need to know to get Social Secuirty Disabiltiy Benefits # 10153
Reviewing your Disability Publication # 10068
How Social Security decides if you are still disabled # 10053
Attorney’s that can help you through the Social Security Disability maze
California Social Security Attorney.org/
Elkind & Shea (Maryland and a few other East Coast States)
CA State Bar Attorney Referral Service
21 comments on “SSI – Medi-Cal automatic qualification”
i lost my medical [Medi-Cal] card that i got with my ssi https://medi-cal.healthreformquotes.com/eligibility/aged-and-disabled/ssi/ssi/
how do i get a new card?
We’ve answered that question before on this page https://medi-cal.healthreformquotes.com/contact-info/#stolen
My brother and sister-in-law are on Medi-Cal…
Can they both get SSI…they have no other income except SS?
I don’t quite understand your question. If they are disabled and qualify for SSI, then Medi-Cal is automatic.
What do you mean by SS income? Please be specific.
Maybe you are asking if SSI has income limits, as opposed to Medi-Cal. Check these links for Income Limits.
https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-11125.pdf
https://socialsecurity.healthreformquotes.com/ssi/resource-and-income-limits-ssi/
I am a menifee ca resident receiving ssi..
when my wife receive her ssi this jan 2020, i now received a letter informing me my medi-cal will be stopped jan 31, 2020.. ..
why is this ?
My guess would be that you are over the MAGI Income Limit 138% for Medi Cal.
Do you qualify for an exemption under the Pickle Amendment?
Please send us a copy of the letter and your latest tax return. We are prohibiting from accepting hearsay evidence.
I lost Medi-Cal card for my disabled autistic 23 year old son, how do I get a duplicate card?
Medi Cal’s FAQ’s say you need to contact the county office
What county are you in?
See our Contact Page for Medi Cal. Our pages also include links to the online websites where you can also get an ID card.
Did Medi Cal assign you to a private insurance company? Then you would check their website.
I went from SSI TO SSDI as a disabled adult child or whatever its called
i was disabled before 22 years old. i got ssi at 20
my dad retired fully last December – next thing you know they moved me from SSI TO SSDI
It’s my understanding that SSDI is a better program to be on than SSI, mainly that it pays more income.
While SSI provides automatic enrollment in Medi-Cal, SSDI gives you automatic enrollment into Medicare, after 2 years.
Check our Medi-Cal eligiblity pages, Western Poverty Law, the Guide to Medi-Cal Programs and our resources page.
Here’s Nolo Press – Disability Secrets on the difference between SSDI and SSI.
What about this document on the pickle amendment on the SCDD State Council on Disability Website?
See our write up on the Pickle Program
I’m in California. How much do I get on SSI?
SSI/SSP Rates
Effective January 1, 2020
The Non-Medical Out of Home Care (NMOHC) Payment Standard will be as follows:
Supplemental Security Income (SSI): $783
State Supplementary Payment (SSP): $423.37
Total NMOHC Payment Standard: $1206.37
Amounts are double for SSI/SSP couples.
The NMOHC Payment Standard includes the following components:
Room and board: $520.37
Care and supervision: $549 maximum
Amount payable for basic services: $1069.37
Personal and incidental needs allowance (must be provided to the recipient): $137
If your SSI case is reviewed by the SSA and you tell them that an asset is or was not yours, do they investigate the person you claim owned the asset?
Can they get information on other people to pursue investigating them, or do they have to get a court order or such to pull another person’s info to check their status?
If the other person is also receiving SSI benefits, do they automatically have access and the right to look into them?
In essence are you throwing the other person under the bus and prompting an investigation into them?
First off, I don’t know if I should be insulted that I’m being asked this question. I don’t know if you are asking me to be an accessory to a crime. Tax Evasion? Even if it’s not a “crime” is it moral and ethical? I’m mandated to take ethics to renew my license. I resent that Covered CA mandates that I help people enroll in Medi Cal without any compensation.
Let’s take a look at the 23 page application for SSI.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION–PLEASE READ CAREFULLY
Failure to report any change within 10 days after the end of the month in which the change occurs could result in a penalty deduction.
The Social Security Administration will check your statements and compare its records with records from other State and Federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, to make sure you are paid the correct amount.
We have asked you for permission to obtain, from any financial institution, any financial record about you that is held by the institution. We will ask financial institutions for this information whenever we think it is needed to decide if you are eligible or if you continue to be eligible for SSI benefits. Once authorized, our permission to contact financial institutions remains in effect until one of the following occurs:
(1) you or your spouse notify us in writing that you are canceling your permission,
(2) your application for SSI is denied in a final decision,
(3) your eligibility for SSI terminates, or
(4) we no longer consider your spouse’s income and resources to be available to you. If you or your spouse do not give or cancel your permission you may not be eligible for SSI and we may deny your claim or stop your payments.
I declare under penalty of perjury that I have examined all the information on this form, and on any accompanying statements or forms, and it is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.
I understand that anyone who knowingly gives a false or misleading statement about a material fact in this information, or causes someone else to do so, commits a crime and may be sent to prison, or may face other penalties, or both.
Everyone has to live somewhere, and a home does not count as an asset for SSI purposes. S0, if someone is receiving SSI benefits and a family member gives – gifts them a home or buys one in the SSI recipients’ name or the money to buy said home, does that gift count as income or count against them in any way?
WHAT RESOURCES DO NOT COUNT FOR SSI?
For SSI, we do not count:
the home you live in and the land it is on;
household goods and personal effects (e.g., your wedding and engagement rings); https://www.ssa.gov/ssi/text-resources-ussi.htm
2) What to Purchase: Recipients of SSI need to plan spend-downs carefully. Here are some suggestions for what an individual could buy to spend down a lump sum:
Buying a home or paying off a mortgage, if the SSI recipient is on the title or has a lifetime agreement to be a tenant of the home. Additionally, home repairs, maintenance, remodeling or adding accessibility features could all be approved expenses. https://www.tcnf.legal/how-to-avoid-being-cut-off-ssi-benefits-when-you-get-a-sum-of-money/
SSI brochure
https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-11011.pdf