Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, 2010

Beneficiaries Who Have Filed for Workers' Compensation or Public Disability Benefits

Notes

In December 2010, approximately 581,000 disabled workers on the Social Security Disability Insurance program had filed for workers' compensation or public disability benefits. Disability payments from private sources, such as private pension or insurance benefits, do not affect Social Security disability benefits, but workers' compensation and other public disability benefits may reduce them. Workers' compensation is paid to a worker because of a job-related injury or illness. It may be paid by federal or state workers' compensation agencies or employers or by insurance companies on behalf of employers.

Other public disability benefits that may affect Social Security disability benefits are those paid by a federal, state, or local government for disabling medical conditions that are not job related. Examples are civil service disability benefits, military disability benefits, state temporary disability benefits, and state or local government retirement benefits that are based on disability. Persons who receive Social Security disability benefits and one of the following types of public benefits will not have their Social Security disability benefit reduced:

Veterans Administration benefits;
State and local government benefits, if Social Security taxes were deducted from earnings; or
Supplemental Security Income.

The total amount received from workers' compensation or other public disability benefits and Social Security disability benefits cannot exceed 80 percent of the worker's average current earnings before he or she became disabled. The monthly Social Security disability benefit includes benefits payable to family members. If the total amount of these benefits exceeds 80 percent of average current earnings, the excess amount is deducted from the Social Security benefit. The benefit will be reduced until the month the worker reaches age 65 or the month the other benefits stop, whichever comes first.

Example

Before becoming disabled, the worker's average current earnings were $4,000 a month. The disabled worker, his or her spouse, and their two children would be eligible to receive a total of $2,200 a month in Social Security disability benefits. However, the disabled worker also receives $2,000 a month from workers' compensation. Because the total amount of benefits received ($4,200) is more than $3,200 (80 percent of average current earnings), the family's Social Security disability benefits will be reduced by $1,000.

Chart 7. Distribution of workers, by diagnostic group and sex, December 2010

Among disabled workers who are also receiving workers' compensation or public disability benefits, a disease of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue was the primary diagnosis in December 2010. Mental disorders were the second leading disabling condition. A disorder of the nervous system and sense organs was the third most common disability for women. Injuries were the third most common disability for men. All other impairments were fairly evenly split between men and women.

Show as table

Table equivalent for Chart 7. Distribution of workers, by diagnostic group and sex, December 2010 (percent)
Diagnostic group	Men	Women
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	1.7	2.6
Injuries	8.3	4.4
Mental disorders	16.9	22.1
Circulatory system	4.3	2.3
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	58.1	54.7
Nervous system and sense organs	4.7	7.5
All other impairments	6.1	6.3

SOURCE: Table 34.

Table 31. Distribution of workers and dependents who have filed, by reason for having or not having an offset, December 2010
Reason	Total		Workers		Spouses and children
Reason	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All disabled beneficiaries and nondisabled dependents	740,307	100.0	580,834	100.0	159,473	100.0
	With offset
Receipt of—
Workers' compensation only
Black Lung	380	0.1	275	a	105	0.1
Harbor Workers and Longshoremen	602	0.1	448	0.1	154	0.1
Federal employees	2,974	0.4	2,302	0.4	672	0.4
State	113,605	15.3	79,923	13.8	33,682	21.1
Public disability only
Federal	1,557	0.2	1,334	0.2	223	0.1
State	9,581	1.3	8,159	1.4	1,422	0.9
Local	568	0.1	418	0.1	150	0.1
Workers' compensation and—
Federal public disability	16	a	15	a	1	a
State public disability	517	0.1	413	0.1	104	0.1
Local public disability	7	a	6	a	1	a
Social Security Disability Insurance (reverse offset)	56,915	7.7	45,039	7.8	11,876	7.4
	Without offset
High average current earnings	377,698	51.0	305,141	52.5	72,557	45.5
Entitlement to workers' compensation or public disability benefits is pending	175,887	23.8	137,361	23.6	38,526	24.2
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
a. Less than 0.05 percent.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.

Table 32. Distribution of workers and dependents who have filed, by state or other area of residence, December 2010
State or area	Total		Workers		Spouses and children
State or area	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All areas	740,307	100.0	580,834	100.0	159,473	100.0
Alabama	13,950	1.9	10,623	1.8	3,327	2.1
Alaska	648	0.1	509	0.1	139	0.1
Arizona	9,628	1.3	7,816	1.3	1,812	1.1
Arkansas	7,109	1.0	5,511	0.9	1,598	1.0
California	106,915	14.4	88,496	15.2	18,419	11.5
Colorado	9,269	1.3	7,532	1.3	1,737	1.1
Connecticut	5,960	0.8	4,579	0.8	1,381	0.9
Delaware	2,082	0.3	1,627	0.3	455	0.3
District of Columbia	358	a	300	0.1	58	a
Florida	38,704	5.2	30,871	5.3	7,833	4.9
Georgia	22,218	3.0	17,365	3.0	4,853	3.0
Hawaii	2,139	0.3	1,705	0.3	434	0.3
Idaho	2,554	0.3	2,016	0.3	538	0.3
Illinois	18,394	2.5	14,173	2.4	4,221	2.6
Indiana	5,617	0.8	4,274	0.7	1,343	0.8
Iowa	4,420	0.6	3,459	0.6	961	0.6
Kansas	3,808	0.5	2,998	0.5	810	0.5
Kentucky	21,064	2.8	16,236	2.8	4,828	3.0
Louisiana	11,783	1.6	8,492	1.5	3,291	2.1
Maine	5,877	0.8	4,642	0.8	1,235	0.8
Maryland	5,346	0.7	4,361	0.8	985	0.6
Massachusetts	16,413	2.2	12,444	2.1	3,969	2.5
Michigan	37,176	5.0	29,040	5.0	8,136	5.1
Minnesota	7,123	1.0	5,814	1.0	1,309	0.8
Mississippi	7,242	1.0	5,461	0.9	1,781	1.1
Missouri	13,776	1.9	10,822	1.9	2,954	1.9
Montana	2,919	0.4	2,409	0.4	510	0.3
Nebraska	2,215	0.3	1,715	0.3	500	0.3
Nevada	4,039	0.5	3,361	0.6	678	0.4
New Hampshire	4,050	0.5	3,067	0.5	983	0.6
New Jersey	19,037	2.6	14,501	2.5	4,536	2.8
New Mexico	3,892	0.5	3,128	0.5	764	0.5
New York	87,372	11.8	66,400	11.4	20,972	13.2
North Carolina	22,206	3.0	17,427	3.0	4,779	3.0
North Dakota	982	0.1	767	0.1	215	0.1
Ohio	18,323	2.5	14,876	2.6	3,447	2.2
Oklahoma	8,401	1.1	6,753	1.2	1,648	1.0
Oregon	6,342	0.9	5,212	0.9	1,130	0.7
Pennsylvania	38,094	5.1	29,120	5.0	8,974	5.6
Rhode Island	3,155	0.4	2,596	0.4	559	0.4
South Carolina	14,349	1.9	11,089	1.9	3,260	2.0
South Dakota	1,035	0.1	823	0.1	212	0.1
Tennessee	14,770	2.0	11,576	2.0	3,194	2.0
Texas	17,404	2.4	13,362	2.3	4,042	2.5
Utah	2,030	0.3	1,556	0.3	474	0.3
Vermont	1,167	0.2	900	0.2	267	0.2
Virginia	11,852	1.6	9,225	1.6	2,627	1.6
Washington	12,557	1.7	10,251	1.8	2,306	1.4
West Virginia	9,602	1.3	7,505	1.3	2,097	1.3
Wisconsin	9,517	1.3	7,414	1.3	2,103	1.3
Wyoming	618	0.1	492	0.1	126	0.1
Outlying areas
Puerto Rico	43,084	5.8	32,926	5.7	10,158	6.4
Other ^b	246	a	147	a	99	0.1
Foreign countries	1,476	0.2	1,070	0.2	406	0.3
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
NOTE: Distribution is by state or other area of residence, not by the state paying benefits.
a. Less than 0.05 percent.
b. Includes American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and U.S. Virgin Islands.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.

Table 33. Distribution of workers who have filed, by diagnostic group and age, December 2010
Diagnostic group	Total, all ages	Under 35	35–39	40–44	45–49	50–54	55–59	60–64
	Number
Total	580,834	8,448	15,290	35,193	71,283	120,845	158,167	171,608
Congenital anomalies	323	8	13	28	55	65	75	79
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	11,903	69	185	509	1,162	2,319	3,512	4,147
Infectious and parasitic diseases	4,374	50	86	335	747	1,019	1,127	1,010
Injuries	39,428	1,236	1,540	2,876	5,071	7,953	9,869	10,883
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	50	11	8	3	3	12	6	7
Developmental disorders	105	7	9	13	27	15	21	13
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	70	6	5	7	9	17	19	7
Intellectual disability	5,939	164	193	593	1,042	1,374	1,386	1,187
Mood disorders	68,149	1,337	2,257	5,301	10,152	15,098	17,443	16,561
Organic mental disorders	13,709	397	556	1,159	1,968	2,944	3,392	3,293
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	7,886	354	340	775	1,319	1,890	1,801	1,407
Other	13,971	391	543	1,130	2,111	2,829	3,052	3,915
Neoplasms	6,137	150	159	327	691	1,251	1,666	1,893
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	407	20	17	27	61	89	96	97
Circulatory system	20,474	140	227	621	1,514	3,168	6,054	8,750
Digestive system	3,592	45	84	153	423	753	1,109	1,025
Genitourinary system	2,974	136	148	264	456	567	727	676
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	329,618	3,066	7,497	17,990	38,336	69,180	92,780	100,769
Nervous system and sense organs	33,645	685	1,106	2,282	4,406	6,852	8,839	9,475
Respiratory system	8,588	61	132	314	648	1,552	2,490	3,391
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	726	18	24	53	108	142	178	203
Other	688	19	18	42	85	160	186	178
Unknown	8,078	78	143	391	889	1,596	2,339	2,642
	Percent
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Congenital anomalies	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	a	a
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	2.0	0.8	1.2	1.4	1.6	1.9	2.2	2.4
Infectious and parasitic diseases	0.8	0.6	0.6	1.0	1.0	0.8	0.7	0.6
Injuries	6.8	14.6	10.1	8.2	7.1	6.6	6.2	6.3
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	a	0.1	0.1	a	a	a	a	a
Developmental disorders	a	0.1	0.1	a	a	a	a	a
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	a	0.1	a	a	a	a	a	a
Intellectual disability	1.0	1.9	1.3	1.7	1.5	1.1	0.9	0.7
Mood disorders	11.7	15.8	14.8	15.1	14.2	12.5	11.0	9.7
Organic mental disorders	2.4	4.7	3.6	3.3	2.8	2.4	2.1	1.9
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	1.4	4.2	2.2	2.2	1.9	1.6	1.1	0.8
Other	2.4	4.6	3.6	3.2	3.0	2.3	1.9	2.3
Neoplasms	1.1	1.8	1.0	0.9	1.0	1.0	1.1	1.1
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Circulatory system	3.5	1.7	1.5	1.8	2.1	2.6	3.8	5.1
Digestive system	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.4	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.6
Genitourinary system	0.5	1.6	1.0	0.8	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.4
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	56.7	36.3	49.0	51.1	53.8	57.2	58.7	58.7
Nervous system and sense organs	5.8	8.1	7.2	6.5	6.2	5.7	5.6	5.5
Respiratory system	1.5	0.7	0.9	0.9	0.9	1.3	1.6	2.0
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1
Other	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Unknown	1.4	0.9	0.9	1.1	1.2	1.3	1.5	1.5
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
a. Less than 0.05 percent.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.

Table 34. Distribution of workers who have filed, by diagnostic group and sex, December 2010
Diagnostic group	Total		Men		Women
Diagnostic group	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All disabled workers	580,834	100.0	352,389	100.0	228,445	100.0
Congenital anomalies	323	0.1	180	0.1	143	0.1
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	11,903	2.0	5,861	1.7	6,042	2.6
Infectious and parasitic diseases	4,374	0.8	3,508	1.0	866	0.4
Injuries	39,428	6.8	29,384	8.3	10,044	4.4
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	50	a	32	a	18	a
Developmental disorders	105	a	70	a	35	a
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	70	a	44	a	26	a
Intellectual disability	5,939	1.0	4,518	1.3	1,421	0.6
Mood disorders	68,149	11.7	31,495	8.9	36,654	16.0
Organic mental disorders	13,709	2.4	10,239	2.9	3,470	1.5
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	7,886	1.4	5,177	1.5	2,709	1.2
Other	13,971	2.4	7,811	2.2	6,160	2.7
Neoplasms	6,137	1.1	3,294	0.9	2,843	1.2
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	407	0.1	194	0.1	213	0.1
Circulatory system	20,474	3.5	15,124	4.3	5,350	2.3
Digestive system	3,592	0.6	2,297	0.7	1,295	0.6
Genitourinary system	2,974	0.5	1,993	0.6	981	0.4
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	329,618	56.7	204,653	58.1	124,965	54.7
Nervous system and sense organs	33,645	5.8	16,553	4.7	17,092	7.5
Respiratory system	8,588	1.5	4,932	1.4	3,656	1.6
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	726	0.1	379	0.1	347	0.2
Other	688	0.1	304	0.1	384	0.2
Unknown	8,078	1.4	4,347	1.2	3,731	1.6
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
a. Less than 0.05 percent.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.