It’s not unheard of for veterans to apply for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits. After all, their jobs make them highly susceptible to injuries and illnesses that could render them disabled. But how much SSDI can veterans get?
Veterans can be legally entitled to the maximum amount of SSDI possible, like non-veterans. However, their actual benefit amount is based on their past earnings and working record. In general, veterans are awarded more SSDI benefits than non-veterans.
Continue reading this article below to find more details about how much SSDI veterans get.
SSDI Overview
SSDI refers to the federal government’s disability benefits program. Workers who become disabled and are unable to return to the workforce are eligible for SSDI benefits. The amount of your SSDI benefits will be based on your past earnings and length of employment.
Veterans can qualify for SSDI if they are unable to work and fulfill medical criteria similar to those for VA disability benefits. Receiving SSDI is not contingent on meeting any income thresholds.
VA disability benefits are deemed “non-work” income. It’s possible to get benefits from both the Social Security Administration and the Veterans Administration. If your medical condition meets Social Security Administration criteria, you may qualify for SSDI along with VA benefits. This is the case irrespective of your VA grade or the amount of your monthly VA disability payment.
How Much SSDI Can Veterans Get?
Veterans made up 14.5% of all adult Social Security recipients in 2022. The average disability payout for male veterans who are 61 or under, according to SSA figures, is $1,431, a total of $182 higher than the average disability benefit for male non-veterans of the same age.
A veteran’s VA disability compensation is higher than the SSA disability benefit once their disability rating is at least 70%.
Any person, veteran or not, can get the full $3,627 in monthly SSDI benefits. Whether or not a person is a veteran and the amount of veteran benefits they receive has no bearing on the amount of money a person receives from SSDI.
How much you receive in SSDI benefits depends on how much you have contributed to the system over the years.
In 2023, the typical monthly SSDI payment will be $1,483, and the maximum SSDI payment is $3,636 per month.
You may also be eligible for up to 12 months of retroactive benefits from the date of your initial application, much like a request to file with the VA.
How to Qualify for Maximum SSDI Benefits
A total disability is required to be eligible for SSDI. A total disability is defined as follows:
- You are unable to work due to a medical issue.
- Your illness will keep you unable to work for at least a year or longer.
- There are no jobs, either your previous work or something new, that you are able to do.
To qualify for Social Security disability benefits when you have a total disability, you must have made payments into the system. Disability benefits are only available to those who have paid into the system long enough.
In most cases, you’ll need 40 work credits or more to qualify. You need to have obtained a minimum of 20 of those credits within the previous ten years before becoming disabled. One work credit is equal to $1,640 in 2023 in income or self-employment income. You can earn up to four work credits in a given calendar year.
When determining your monthly payments for SSDI, the Social Security Administration will take into account all of the factors described above. The amount you receive in benefits may be higher or lower than average.
Calculating Your Social Security Disability Benefits
The Social Security Administration considers your employment record and average monthly earnings that contributed to income taxes (and hence Social Security insurance payments) when determining your SSDI benefit payout. Those earnings are referred to as Average Indexed Monthly Earnings (AIME).
The Social Security Administration next applies a formula to determine the Primary Insurance Amount (PIA).
This is the minimum monthly benefit you can expect to get from SSDI. It rises each year with inflation according to the yearly Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) formula; for example, in 2023, it will be 8.3% higher than in 2022.
Any income you may earn will affect your eligibility for benefits. If you are not blind and have a monthly income of more than $1,470, or greater than $2,460 if you are blind, you may lose your eligibility for SSDI.
This amount earned each month is referred to as Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). You will lose your SSDI benefits if your income is higher than the SGA threshold. The SGA does not include veterans’ benefits.
SSDI vs. VA Benefits: Main Differences
While both programs available to veterans are quite similar, there are some differences. The requirements for SSDI and Veterans Affairs disability compensation (VA disability) are unique. So long as you match the criteria for both programs, applying to one government agency should not prevent you from applying to another for the same benefit. Furthermore, approval for one benefit does not affect your chances of approval for the other benefit.
The key difference between SSDI and VA disability lies in the fact that Social Security only looks at whether or not you are disabled, while the VA uses a sliding scale from 0% to 100% to determine your eligibility.
The Veterans Administration assigns a disability rating depending on the severity of your medical condition, and that rating dictates the level of benefits you receive from the VA.
However, to qualify for SSDI, you must be suffering from a severe health condition that will either prevent you from working for a year or ultimately lead to your death. The amount of your payments is based on how much you have contributed to Social Security.
It is possible to apply for both SSDI and VA disability benefits independently if you are eligible for both.
Social Security can consider your VA rating as evidence of your impairment, but it has no bearing on your SSDI application. In addition to VA benefits, you may be eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments.
You could lose your SSI payments if your VA compensation is higher than the maximum allowable income.
In 2023, SSDI beneficiaries can earn up to $1,470 per month without affecting their SSDI payments. This represents an increase from the maximum SSDI of $1,350 for the year 2022.
But for a veteran without dependents, the monthly VA payout can range from $165.92 for a 10% disability rating up to $3,621.93 for a 100% rating.
Tips for Veterans Seeking SSDI Approval
American veterans have a reputation for being tough, non-complaining, and hardworking people. When seeking medical attention for a severe disability, however, it is essential to have open and continuous communication with doctors.
This is beneficial for both mental and physical health, and it also provides the Social Security Administration with a comprehensive record for reviewing the claim.
Results of objective imaging procedures like MRIs and X-rays, as well as in-person evaluations and findings, lists of drugs and adverse reactions, and reports of treatment recommendations, are all carefully documented in the computerized medical records kept by the VA hospitals.
If a veteran is having trouble with the Social Security Administration, they shouldn’t try to handle it alone.
When applying for Social Security disability benefits, veterans should also include the names of any doctors or hospitals outside of the VA system who have treated them. The Social Security Administration takes into account all requested and received medical records, not only those from the VA.
The Social Security Administration requires applicants to prove their impairment through medical evidence, so applicants should be sure to document all relevant medical records.
In addition to continuing their treatment in the same manner and citing all medical records on the application, veterans must also submit the verification letter that comes with their VA Rating Decision.
A 100% P&T rating from the VA qualifies a veteran for priority processing of their Social Security Administration claim; therefore, this is very crucial to add to the application.
If a veteran participates in the VA Caregiver Program and receives care from a member of their own family, the decision of whether to award a caregiver by the VA must also be filed with the Social Security Administration.
Activities of daily living, such as medication management, personal hygiene, meal preparation, housekeeping, and transportation to and from medical appointments, are frequently factored into the Caregiver Program’s weekly or monthly hourly evaluations.
If a veteran applies for Social Security disability benefits, they will need to show that they are unable to work full time, and the VA Caregiver decision and authorized care hours are very good evidence of this.
Finally, service members should discuss their Social Security disability claim with their primary care physician and any specialists they’re seeing. The doctor should conduct a Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) evaluation to provide an opinion on the veteran’s limitations in finding or retaining employment due to their disabilities.
By law, the Social Security Administration must consider all disability-related medical opinions. The most essential consideration in this is whether or not the applicant has adhered to their treatment record.
The submission of an RFC by a veteran’s treating physician strengthens the application; ideally, the physician should have a long history of treating the veteran and specialize in the veteran’s disability (for example, a psychologist or psychiatrist who has previously treated a veteran with PTSD).
Things to Know Before Applying for SSDI
Here are some things to know before you apply for SSDI:
Your Disability Must Be Severe
The application process will involve a thorough review of your disability. To qualify for SSDI the level of impairment must be severe enough to prevent you from working. The government also has a predetermined list of disabilities that are always considered permanent.
There is a good chance that your application will be accepted if you can demonstrate that you meet the criteria for those conditions. Your SSDI benefits are based on your past earnings.
The Social Security Administration Rejection Rate Is High
Don’t be surprised if the Social Security Administration rejects your application when they finally respond to it. Most people who apply for government aid have their initial applications for these benefits denied. There are several possible reasons for this:
- Your impairment isn’t sufficiently severe
- Your case does not meet the requirements, according to the SSA
- Incomplete or inaccurate paperwork due to a lack of knowledge
There’s also a chance that you won’t get the full amount of benefits to which you may be entitled. In situations like these, you do have options available to you, and with the assistance of an attorney, you can file an appeal to obtain the benefits you deserve.
Keep Appealing
You have been contributing to SSDI for most of your working life. Don’t let the fact that you were turned down discourage you to the point where you give up too soon.
Although the process of appealing a decision is not simple, what is even more challenging is falling into economic difficulty as a result of a lack of assistance and resources in the form of money.
Conclusion
So, if you’re a disabled veteran looking for some financial assistance, it’s not a bad idea to apply for Social Security Disability Insurance. Plus, if you choose an SSDI attorney to represent you, they will provide comprehensive instructions for filing and appealing your initial application.
