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Sam wants to work but he is worried that he would lose his Social Security Disability Income Benefits (SSDI) which provide him with money each month to live on as well as allowing him to receive Medicare benefits for his health care.

Like many others, when Sam applied for SSDI he was denied benefits but was successful in the appeal process to obtain benefits retroactively.  Sam has been doing pretty good and would love to get back into the work force.

He worries that if he starts working he would lose his SSDI and then not be able to get back on the program.  He also worries that he would also lose his Medicare benefits and what if he has a set back and needs Medical care.  Sam simply does not have the resources and back up system to take such a risk.

Well this was and continues to be the dilemma for many people who are disabled and on SSDI.

Well, there is an option:  THE TICKET TO WORK PROGRAM. Not perfect and quite frankly somewhat complicated but it can work.  There is hope.

The Ticket to Work Program provides most people receiving Social Security benefits (beneficiaries) more choices for receiving employment services. Under this program the Social Security Administration (SSA) issues tickets to eligible beneficiaries who, in turn, may choose to assign those tickets to an Employment Network (EN) of their choice to obtain employment services, vocational rehabilitation services, or other support services necessary to achieve a vocational (work) goal. The EN, if they accept the ticket, will coordinate and provide appropriate services to help the beneficiary find and maintain employment.

Through the Ticket to Work Plan’s work incentives program, any month that an SSDI beneficiary earns more than $700 counts as a month of “trial work.” If during any five-year period an SSDI beneficiary has nine months where he earns more than this $700 limit, the trial period ends. When this happens, the SSDI beneficiary does not receive an SSDI payment in any month where he makes “substantial earnings” of more than $980 (in 2009). For three years after the end of the trial period a beneficiary can immediately regain benefits if he falls below the substantial earnings level and still has a disability.

Also, a beneficiary receiving Medicare because of participation in SSDI can continue to receive free Medicare Part A services for up to four and a half years following the end of the trial period.

Unfortunately, the rules for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries are much more focused on income and asset levels, which make it harder for an SSI beneficiary to hold a full time job, even under the Ticket to Work program, and maintain benefits.

For children under 18, Parental attention and planning well before a child turns 18, usually with the assistance of local vocational agencies and qualified attorneys, offers the best chance for successfully navigating the maze of educational and employment opportunities.

For more details on the Ticket to Work program, go to: http://www.ssa.gov/work/.

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Tags: employement network, health care, medical benefits, social security benefits, social security disability income, ssdi, supplemental security income, ticket to work program

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 29th, 2009 at 8:28 am and is filed under Personal Finance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.