Improving the Social Security Disability Decision Process (2007) / Chapter Skim
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3 Individuals with Disabilities
3 Individuals with Disabilities
Pages 30-46
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From page 30... ...
programs is to provide cash assistance to individuals who, because of physical or mental impairment, are unable to engage in "substantial gainful activity." This is currently defined by the Social Security Administration (SSA) as earning no more than $900 a month ($1,500 for blind individuals)
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From page 31... ...
None provide information on the number and characteristics of individuals who are prevented from earning more than a minimal amount by engaging in productive work because of identifiable chronic physical or mental impairments that would meet the Social Security definition of disability. Little is known about individuals who meet SSA's disability criteria in every respect except that they are engaged in substantial gainful activity despite their medical condition.
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The surveys estimate that indi TABLE 3-1 Number and Prevalence of Individuals Ages 25-61 with and without Disabilities and Number and Percentage of Those Employed, by Disability Category and by Survey 2003 American Community Survey Total Population Employed Disability Category Number Percent Number Percent All 143,796,355 100.0 107,425,071 74.7 With any disability 17,146,845 11.9 6,738,710 39.3 With a sensory disability 3,944,398 2.7 1,968,255 49.9 With a physical disability 10,819,521 7.5 3,656,998 33.8 With a mental disability 5,745,569 4.0 1,620,250 28.2 With a self-care disability 2,925,715 2.0 535,406 18.3 With a go-outside-home disability 4,227,427 2.9 756,709 17.9 With an employment disability 9,854,223 6.9 1,862,448 18.9 With no disability 126,649,510 88.1 100,686,360 79.5 1994-1995 National Health Interview Survey-Disability Supplement Total Population Employed Disability Category Number Percent Number Percent All 128,104,461 100.0 100,914,424 78.8 With any disability 21,457,049 16.7 11,543,892 53.8 With a sensory disability 5,400,346 4.2 3,477,823 64.4 With a physical disability 4,660,568 3.6 1,868,888 40.1
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From page 33... ...
InDIVIDualS WIth DISabIlItIES TABLE 3-1 Continued With a mental disability 5,402,293 4.2 2,387,814 44.2 With a self-care disability 1,534,615 1.2 329,942 21.5 With a go-outside-home disability 1,613,015 1.3 277,439 17.2 With an employment disability 14,903,532 11.6 6,334,001 42.5 With no disability 106,647,412 83.3 89,370,531 83.8 2002 Survey of Income and Program Participation Total Population Employed Disability Category Number Percent Number Percent All 142,520,000 100.0 108,518,780 76.1 With any disability 26,620,000 18.7 13,017,180 48.9 With a sensory disability 6,490,202 4.6 3,472,258 53.5 With a physical disability 18,790,000 13.2 8,718,560 46.4 With a mental disability 4,394,330 3.1 1,625,902 37.0 With a self-care disability 3,362,523 2.4 766,655 22.8 With a go-outside-home disability 4,931,252 3.5 1,001,044 20.3 With an employment disability 14,420,000 10.1 3,994,340 27.7 With no disability 115,900,000 81.3 95,501,600 82.4 2003 Panel Study of Income Dynamics Total Population Employed Disability Category Number Percent Number Percent All 143,132,000 100.0 115,235,114 80.5 With any disability 30,566,000 21.4 19,103,750 62.5 With a sensory disability na na na na With a physical disability na na na na With a mental disability 13,897,000 9.7 8,574,449 61.7 With a self-care disability 9,395,000 6.6 4,237,145 45.1 With a go-outside-home disability 12,375,000 8.6 5,927,625 47.9 With an employment disability 19,304,000 13.5 10,018,776 51.9 With no disability 112,566,000 78.6 96,131,364 85.4 Decennial Census 2000 Total Population Employed Disability Category Number Percent Number Percent All 138,500,000 100.0 103,955,780 75.1 With any disability 14,006,000 10.1 5,854,508 41.8 With a sensory disability 3,346,000 2.4 1,743,266 52.1 With a physical disability 9,448,000 6.8 3,363,488 35.6 With a mental disability 5,218,000 3.8 1,575,836 30.2 With a self-care disability 2,628,000 1.9 570,276 21.7 With a go-outside-home disability na na na na With an employment disability na na na na With no disability 124,494,000 89.9 98,101,272 78.8 NOTE: The percentage of those with specific disabilities adds up to more than the percentage of those with any disability, because some people report having more than one disability. SOURCE: Burkhauser et al., 2006:Tables 11, 13.
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Among those reporting an impairment, those with a mental impairment were least likely to be employed (between 28 and 37 percent) , the physically impaired somewhat more likely (between 34 and 46 percent)
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Of individuals 21-64 years old with a disability in one functional domain, 61 percent were employed for at least part of the preceding year, with median annual earnings of $18,300, compared with median annual earnings of $25,046 among those without disability. About 52 percent of those with disability in two 2 This age bracket includes those 62-64 years of age who have taken their Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefits early as well as those receiving SSDI benefits and/or SSI payments.
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From page 36... ...
About 29 percent of the 1.7 million in this group were employed, with median annual earnings of $8,383.3 Researchers have used a data set of individuals who reported applying for SSDI and/or SSI in the 1990 SIPP and were matched with SSA administrative records to obtain detailed information on their interactions with the disability decision process and decisions at each step. The matched sample consists of adults who applied for SSDI or SSI disability benefits and whose claims were decided by DDSs during calendar years 1986 through 1993 at the initial or reconsideration level.
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. About 3 percent reported having a sensory disability, 7 percent a physical disability, 5 percent a mental disability, 2 percent a self-care disability, 3 percent a go-outside-home disability, and
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. 4 Internet table: "Disabled Workers: Applications for Disability Benefits & Benefit Awards." Available: www.ssa.gov/OACT/STATS/table6c7.html (accessed October 4, 2006)
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3-1 Recent Social Security Disability Awardees In 2004, the state Disability Determination Services (DDSs) made more than 2.3 million initial decisions on claims, allowing benefits in 944,000 cases (41 percent)
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60% SSDI-only 50% SSDI/SSI SSI-only Adult Percentage of All Awards 40% SSI Child 30% 20% 10% 0% n l ar al s y e ry ta m r tio rin t to so l en le cu as da oc ra ke en m as pl pi ar d s s eo ov er En es lo s/ et cu th di N u R R vo O ar us C er M N Diagnostic Group FIGURE 3-2 Distribution of initial awards of Social Security disability benefits among program and selected diagnostic groups, 2004 (percentage of all awards)
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The actuaries also expect to see a temporary increase in annual SSDI awards for mental disability continue for several years because of an effort beginning in 2001 to identify SSI ben 6 Disabled widows and widowers and disabled adult children of workers are not included in this data series.
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From page 42... ...
SSA reported 3-3 the distribution of awards among diagnostic groups on the basis of initial awards until 1995, when it began to report the distribution among awards made at all stages of the decision process, including the various appeals levels. Because the rate of successful appeals is relatively high for musculoskeletal cases, the percentage of awards based on musculoskeletal disability jumped and depressed the percentage of awards for mental disabilities.
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In 1976, Treitel used SSA administrative records to determine the subsequent fate of men denied benefits on medical-vocational grounds. By 1973, 14 percent had died (compared with 7 percent of the same-age gen eral population)
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used data on denied applicants from the 1972/1974 Survey of Disabled and Nondisabled Adults and the 1978 Survey of Disability and Work matched with Social Security earnings records to compare applicants awarded benefits with those denied benefits. Bound found that 33 percent of the denied applicants were employed at the time of the 1972 survey and 29 percent at the time of the 1978 survey, compared with 92 and 87 percent, respectively, of the same-age general population.
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in which independent multidisciplinary clinical teams consisting of a physician, psychologist, occupational therapist, social worker, and vocational counselor evaluated the medical status and work capacity of a sample of SSDI applicants in person. The teams found 68 percent of those later allowed benefits and 36 percent of those denied benefits to be "not fit for work." The teams determined that another 25 percent of those allowed were only fit for work under "special conditions," "sheltered conditions," "at home only," or "part-time under normal conditions." Nearly a third of the denied applicants (31 percent)
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From page 46... ...
2005. Social Security Disability Insurance Program worker experience.
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