2024 OASDI Trustees Report

H. ANALYSIS OF BENEFIT PAYMENTS FROM THE OASI
TRUST FUND WITH RESPECT TO DISABLED BENEFICIARIES

(Required by section 201(c) of the Social Security Act)

Effective January 1957, the OASI Trust Fund pays monthly benefits to disabled children aged 18 and over of retired and deceased workers if the disability began before age 18. The age by which disability must have begun was later changed to age 22. Effective February 1968, the OASI Trust Fund pays reduced monthly benefits to disabled widows and widowers at ages 50 and over. Effective January 1991, the requirements for the disability of the widow or widower were made less restrictive.

At the end of 2023, the OASI Trust Fund was providing monthly benefit payments to about 1,126,000 people because of their disabilities or the disabilities of children. This total includes approximately 20,000 mothers and fathers (wives or husbands under normal retirement age of retired-worker beneficiaries and widows or widowers of deceased insured workers) who met all other qualifying requirements and were receiving unreduced benefits solely because they had disabled-child beneficiaries (or disabled children aged 16 or 17) in their care. In calendar year 2023, the OASI Trust Fund paid a total of $14,587 million to the people described above. Table VI.H1 shows OASI scheduled benefits for disability for selected calendar years during 1960 through 2023 and estimates for 2024 through 2033 based on the intermediate set of assumptions.

Table VI.H1.—Scheduled Benefit Payments From the OASI Trust Fund
With Respect to Disabled Beneficiaries 

[Beneficiaries in thousands; scheduled benefits in millions]

Calendar year		Disabled beneficiaries, end of year				Amount of scheduled benefitsa b
		Total	Children  c	Widows- widowers  d		Total	Children c	Widows- widowers  e
Historical data:
	1960	117	117	—		$59	$59	—
	1965	214	214	—		134	134	—
	1970	316	281	36		301	260	$41
	1975	435	376	58		664	560	104
	1980	519	460	59		1,223	1,097	126
	1985	594	547	47		2,072	1,885	187
	1990	662	613	49		2,882	2,649	233
	1995	772	681	91		4,202	3,672	531
	2000	811	707	104		5,203	4,523	680
	2005	836	728	108		6,449	5,556	834
	2010	996	879	117		8,671	7,662	1,008
	2015	1,096	972	124		10,640	9,528	1,109
	2016	1,109	988	121		10,909	9,818	1,087
	2017	1,124	1,006	117		11,222	10,156	1,061
	2018	1,139	1,027	112		11,767	10,729	1,031
	2019	1,144	1,041	103		12,148	11,152	983
	2020	1,147	1,051	95		12,351	11,403	934
	2021	1,136	1,050	86		12,453	11,578	861
	2022	1,128	1,051	78		13,266	12,414	829
	2023	1,126	1,057	70		14,587	13,746	821
Estimates under the intermediate assumptions:
	2024	1,144	1,079	66		15,268	14,440	797
	2025	1,154	1,088	66		15,970	15,129	817
	2026	1,171	1,103	68		16,643	15,757	862
	2027	1,187	1,119	69		17,415	16,493	899
	2028	1,202	1,133	69		18,190	17,242	923
	2029	1,217	1,150	67		18,987	18,018	943
	2030	1,230	1,166	64		19,790	18,838	927
	2031	1,243	1,182	61		20,627	19,685	917
	2032	1,259	1,199	60		21,520	20,574	920
	2033	1,274	1,215	59		22,476	21,511	937

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a

Beginning in 1966, includes payments for vocational rehabilitation services.

b

Amounts for 2020 and 2021 are adjusted to include in 2021 operations those benefit payments regularly scheduled in the law to be paid on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early benefit payments when the normal delivery date is on a weekend or holiday. Such shifts in payments across calendar years have occurred in the past, including in 2016, and will occur periodically in the future whenever January 3rd falls on a Sunday. In order to provide a consistent perspective on trust fund operations over time, all trust fund operations in each year reflect the 12 months of benefits that are regularly scheduled for payment in that year.

c

Also includes certain mothers and fathers (see text).

d

In 1984 and later years, includes only disabled widows and widowers aged 50-59, because disabled widows and widowers age 60 and older are eligible for the same benefit as a nondisabled aged widow or widower. Therefore, they are not receiving benefits solely because of a disability.

e

In 1983 and prior years, includes the offsetting effect of lower benefits payable to disabled widows and widowers who continued to receive benefits after attaining age 60 (62, for disabled widowers prior to 1973), compared to the higher nondisabled widow’s and widower’s benefits that would otherwise be payable. In 1984 and later years, includes only scheduled benefits to disabled widows and widowers aged 50-59 (see footnote d).

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

Under the intermediate assumptions, estimated total scheduled benefits paid from the OASI Trust Fund with respect to disabled beneficiaries will increase from $15,268 million in calendar year 2024 to $22,476 million in calendar year 2033.

In calendar year 2023, benefit payments (including payments for vocational rehabilitation services) with respect to disabled persons from the OASI Trust Fund and from the DI Trust Fund (including payments from the DI fund to all children and spouses of disabled-worker beneficiaries) totaled $166,533 million. Of this amount, $14,587 million, or 8.8 percent, represented payments from the OASI Trust Fund. Table VI.H2 contains these and similar figures for selected calendar years during 1960 through 2023 and estimates for calendar years 2024 through 2033.

Table VI.H2.—Scheduled Benefit Payments^a Under the OASDI Program
With Respect to Disabled Beneficiaries 

[Amounts in millions]

Calendar year		Total b	DI Trust Fund  c	OASI Trust Fund
				Amount  d	Percentage of total
Historical data:
	1960	$627	$568	$59	9.4
	1965	1,707	1,573	134	7.9
	1970	3,386	3,085	301	8.9
	1975	9,169	8,505	664	7.2
	1980	16,738	15,515	1,223	7.3
	1985	20,908	18,836	2,072	9.9
	1990	27,717	24,835	2,882	10.4
	1995	45,140	40,937	4,202	9.3
	2000	60,204	55,001	5,203	8.6
	2005	91,835	85,386	6,449	7.0
	2010	132,916	124,245	8,671	6.5
	2015	154,028	143,388	10,640	6.9
	2016	153,709	142,800	10,909	7.1
	2017	154,048	142,826	11,222	7.3
	2018	155,526	143,760	11,767	7.6
	2019	157,289	145,141	12,148	7.7
	2020	155,933	143,582	12,351	7.9
	2021	152,538	140,085	12,453	8.2
	2022	156,861	143,595	13,266	8.5
	2023	166,533	151,946	14,587	8.8
Estimates under the intermediate assumptions:
	2024	170,494	155,227	15,268	9.0
	2025	179,949	163,979	15,970	8.9
	2026	191,590	174,946	16,643	8.7
	2027	201,912	184,497	17,415	8.6
	2028	206,956	188,766	18,190	8.8
	2029	209,036	190,049	18,987	9.1
	2030	214,626	194,835	19,790	9.2
	2031	221,697	201,070	20,627	9.3
	2032	229,833	208,313	21,520	9.4
	2033	239,387	216,912	22,476	9.4

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a

Amounts for 2020 and 2021 are adjusted to include in 2021 operations those benefit payments regularly scheduled in the law to be paid on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early benefit payments when the normal delivery date is on a weekend or holiday. Such shifts in payments across calendar years have occurred in the past, including in 2016, and will occur periodically in the future whenever January 3rd falls on a Sunday. In order to provide a consistent perspective on trust fund operations over time, all trust fund operations in each year reflect the 12 months of benefits that are regularly scheduled for payment in that year.

b

Beginning in 1966, includes payments for vocational rehabilitation services.

c

Scheduled benefits for disabled workers and their children and spouses.

d

Scheduled benefits for disabled children aged 18 and over, for certain mothers and fathers (see text), and for disabled widows and widowers (see footnote e, table VI.H1).

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.