A person may be eligible for more than one federal benefit program. Under the Social Security disability program however, your benefits may be impacted if you receive other types of government payments.
For instance, if you are currently eligible for and receiving workers’ compensation benefits, you may find a reduction in Social Security disability benefits that are provided to you. A person may be eligible for workers’ comp benefits if he or she has suffered an on-the-job injury. Workers’ compensation is paid out by federal or state agencies, insurance companies and employers. If you receive these types of benefits, there may be a reduction in the Social Security disability benefits that you receive.
In addition, if you are also eligible for and receiving other types of benefit payments, like civil service disability benefits, state government retirement benefits, local retirement benefits, or temporary state disability benefits, you may find that these sources of income also impact your Social Security disability benefits. Private disability payment payouts, such as those from a private pension, may not have any impact on your disability benefits.
In order to determine whether you are eligible for a reduction in Social Security disability benefits, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will often times calculate the combined total amount of the benefits you receive, then determine whether this exceeds a certain percentage of your average earnings before you fell ill or suffered the injury that led to your disability.
Understanding the effects of various benefits on your disability eligibility is not only very important, but also one of the areas where an expert can make a lot of difference. Don’t be afraid to ask for help from a qualified disability lawyer if you are looking at options for replacing lost income due to your inability to work.