2020 Annual Report of the SSI Program

F. Involvement of SSI Recipients in Other Programs

In this appendix, we present statistics on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients’ participation in other programs using data from the Supplemental Security Record (SSR), the main administrative file for the SSI program. We develop summary data on: (1) current participation by SSI recipients in other programs from a 100 percent extract of the SSR; and (2) previous participation by SSI recipients in other programs from a 10 percent extract of the SSR. Both sets of summary data are representative of the overall SSI recipient population.

Since the amount of an individual’s income affects both the eligibility for and the amount of his or her SSI benefit, the SSR must contain information on participation by SSI recipients in certain other programs that may provide countable income to the SSI recipient. A significant number of SSI recipients are Social Security beneficiaries whose total countable income, including Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits, is less than the Federal benefit rate plus the amount of applicable federally administered State supplementation payment. A smaller number of SSI recipients participate in other programs and receive income such as workers’ compensation benefits or disability cash benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

SSA does not maintain complete information concerning the involvement of SSI recipients in other assistance programs because under the law payments from such programs are not countable income attributable to the individual. We do, however, have some data with regard to entitlement to benefits under two other programs — Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (which replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)) and State Interim Assistance Reimbursement — at the point that the individual applied for SSI benefits. TANF (and AFDC previously) is a State program funded under Part A of Title IV of the Social Security Act. Interim assistance is assistance a State gives to SSI applicants in cash or vendor payments for meeting basic needs while they are awaiting the outcome of the SSI eligibility determination process.

Table V.F1 presents percentages of SSI recipients who: (1) concurrently receive payments from certain other selected programs; or (2) have previously received TANF/AFDC benefits or Interim Assistance Reimbursement.

 

Table V.F1.—Percentage of SSI Federally Administered Recipients in Current-Payment Status with Participation ^a
in Selected Programs Based on SSA Administrative Records, December 2019

		Age groups			All
		0-17	18-64	65 or older
Number of Federally administered recipients, December 2019 (in thousands)		1,132	4,647	2,298	8,077
Program		(In percent)
Program participation by SSI recipients, December 2019
	Federal SSI	99.9	98.7	96.3	98.2
	Federally administered State SSI supplementation	11.0	14.2	29.2	18.0
	OASDI	6.4	28.5	56.5	33.4
	Black Lung	—	b	b	b
	Railroad retirement	—	b	b	b
	Veterans Affairs disability cash benefits	0.8	0.5	0.5	0.5
	Workers’ compensation	b	b	b	b
Previous program participation by SSI recipients at SSI application, December 2019
	TANF/AFDC	19.7	26.0	14.6	21.8
	Interim Assistance Reimbursement	0.8	11.6	11.2	10.0

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a

SSI recipients or households of SSI recipients may participate in more than one of these programs.

b

Less than 0.05 percent of SSI recipients in this age grouping participate in the program.

Note: Total numbers of recipients do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components.

There are other potential sources for information on SSI recipients when that information is not available on the SSI administrative files. These sources include the three surveys described below:

•

The Survey of Income and Program Participation, a U.S. Census Bureau sample survey, is comprised of a continuous series of national panels that collect information, such as the source and amount of income, asset holdings, program participation, and general demographic characteristics for the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population.

•

The Current Population Survey (CPS), a U.S. Census Bureau sample survey conducted monthly by the Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics is the primary source of information on the labor force characteristics of the U.S. population. The CPS March Supplement (the Annual Social and Economic Supplement), collects (in addition to the usual monthly labor force data) information on income, noncash benefits, program participation, and general demographic characteristics for the U.S. resident noninstitutionalized population.

•

The Health and Retirement Study, a survey sponsored by the National Institute on Aging and conducted by the University of Michigan, is a biennial survey that collects information such as health status, health care utilization, income, asset holdings, program participation, and general demographic characteristics for the U. S. population over age 50.