2023 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 2022, the OASI Trust Fund was providing monthly benefit payments to about 1,128,000 people because of their disabilities or the disabilities of children. This total includes approximately 21,000 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 2022, the OASI Trust Fund paid a total of $13,266 million to the people described above. Table VI.H1 shows OASI scheduled benefits for disability for selected calendar years during 1960 through 2022 and estimates for 2023 through 2032 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
Estimates under the intermediate assumptions:
	2023	1,141	1,069	71		14,514	13,669	822
	2024	1,153	1,084	69		15,265	14,419	822
	2025	1,170	1,102	68		15,939	15,088	826
	2026	1,189	1,121	68		16,706	15,828	853
	2027	1,209	1,140	69		17,515	16,606	883
	2028	1,227	1,157	70		18,343	17,395	921
	2029	1,246	1,177	69		19,204	18,224	952
	2030	1,264	1,196	68		20,081	19,092	960
	2031	1,284	1,216	68		21,006	19,989	987
	2032	1,305	1,236	69		21,996	20,938	1,028

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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 $14,514 million in calendar year 2023 to $21,996 million in calendar year 2032.

In calendar year 2022, 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 $156,861 million. Of this amount, $13,266 million, or 8.5 percent, represented payments from the OASI Trust Fund. Table VI.H2 contains these and similar figures for selected calendar years during 1960 through 2022 and estimates for calendar years 2023 through 2032.

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
Estimates under the intermediate assumptions:
	2023	162,584	148,070	14,514	8.9
	2024	170,786	155,521	15,265	8.9
	2025	181,291	165,353	15,939	8.8
	2026	192,051	175,345	16,706	8.7
	2027	201,292	183,777	17,515	8.7
	2028	209,539	191,196	18,343	8.8
	2029	216,103	196,899	19,204	8.9
	2030	222,804	202,723	20,081	9.0
	2031	230,957	209,952	21,006	9.1
	2032	240,239	218,243	21,996	9.2

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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.