Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, 2019

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

Notes

In December 2019, approximately 459,000 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 is reduced until the month the worker reaches full retirement age 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 2019

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 2019. 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 2019 (percent)
Diagnostic group	Men	Women
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	1.1	1.6
Injuries	7.7	3.9
Mental disorders	12.3	16.2
Circulatory system	3.5	2.0
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	65.4	63.6
Nervous system and sense organs	4.5	6.8
All other impairments	5.4	5.9

SOURCE: Table 34.

Table 31. Distribution of workers and dependents who have filed, by reason for having or not having an offset, December 2019
Reason	Total		Workers		Spouses and children
Reason	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All disabled beneficiaries and dependents	542,122	100.0	459,152	100.0	82,970	100.0
	With offset
Receipt of—
Workers' compensation only
Black Lung	496	0.1	357	0.1	139	0.2
Harbor Workers and Longshoremen	332	0.1	263	0.1	69	0.1
Federal employees	4,059	0.7	3,433	0.7	626	0.8
State	68,216	12.6	52,322	11.4	15,894	19.2
Public disability only
Federal	507	0.1	449	0.1	58	0.1
State	7,840	1.4	6,840	1.5	1,000	1.2
Local	397	0.1	324	0.1	73	0.1
Workers' compensation and public disability	397	0.1	349	0.1	48	0.1
Social Security Disability Insurance (reverse offset)	40,668	7.5	34,430	7.5	6,238	7.5
	Without offset
High average current earnings	358,198	66.1	307,838	67.0	50,360	60.7
Entitlement to workers' compensation or public disability benefits is pending	61,012	11.3	52,547	11.4	8,465	10.2
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
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 2019
State or area	Total		Workers		Spouses and children
State or area	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All areas	542,122	100.0	459,152	100.0	82,970	100.0
Alabama	9,874	1.8	8,057	1.8	1,817	2.2
Alaska	388	0.1	329	0.1	59	0.1
Arizona	6,754	1.2	5,836	1.3	918	1.1
Arkansas	4,498	0.8	3,716	0.8	782	0.9
California	66,454	12.3	58,559	12.8	7,895	9.5
Colorado	6,070	1.1	5,244	1.1	826	1.0
Connecticut	4,886	0.9	4,109	0.9	777	0.9
Delaware	1,682	0.3	1,455	0.3	227	0.3
District of Columbia	252	(L)	236	0.1	16	(L)
Florida	28,321	5.2	24,187	5.3	4,134	5.0
Georgia	19,587	3.6	16,548	3.6	3,039	3.7
Hawaii	1,384	0.3	1,181	0.3	203	0.2
Idaho	2,045	0.4	1,701	0.4	344	0.4
Illinois	15,766	2.9	13,153	2.9	2,613	3.1
Indiana	4,209	0.8	3,481	0.8	728	0.9
Iowa	4,251	0.8	3,635	0.8	616	0.7
Kansas	2,649	0.5	2,223	0.5	426	0.5
Kentucky	13,467	2.5	11,082	2.4	2,385	2.9
Louisiana	7,991	1.5	6,454	1.4	1,537	1.9
Maine	4,731	0.9	4,047	0.9	684	0.8
Maryland	4,065	0.7	3,538	0.8	527	0.6
Massachusetts	15,500	2.9	12,915	2.8	2,585	3.1
Michigan	27,123	5.0	22,628	4.9	4,495	5.4
Minnesota	7,029	1.3	6,095	1.3	934	1.1
Mississippi	5,354	1.0	4,361	0.9	993	1.2
Missouri	9,087	1.7	7,811	1.7	1,276	1.5
Montana	1,667	0.3	1,437	0.3	230	0.3
Nebraska	1,527	0.3	1,270	0.3	257	0.3
Nevada	3,133	0.6	2,745	0.6	388	0.5
New Hampshire	3,663	0.7	3,046	0.7	617	0.7
New Jersey	12,781	2.4	10,534	2.3	2,247	2.7
New Mexico	2,873	0.5	2,482	0.5	391	0.5
New York	69,592	12.8	58,238	12.7	11,354	13.7
North Carolina	20,980	3.9	17,842	3.9	3,138	3.8
North Dakota	551	0.1	484	0.1	67	0.1
Ohio	12,243	2.3	10,661	2.3	1,582	1.9
Oklahoma	5,695	1.1	4,910	1.1	785	0.9
Oregon	5,355	1.0	4,676	1.0	679	0.8
Pennsylvania	36,225	6.7	30,339	6.6	5,886	7.1
Rhode Island	2,761	0.5	2,348	0.5	413	0.5
South Carolina	13,099	2.4	11,026	2.4	2,073	2.5
South Dakota	765	0.1	650	0.1	115	0.1
Tennessee	12,266	2.3	10,290	2.2	1,976	2.4
Texas	9,909	1.8	8,194	1.8	1,715	2.1
Utah	1,337	0.2	1,095	0.2	242	0.3
Vermont	998	0.2	856	0.2	142	0.2
Virginia	9,434	1.7	7,914	1.7	1,520	1.8
Washington	10,213	1.9	8,790	1.9	1,423	1.7
West Virginia	4,571	0.8	3,649	0.8	922	1.1
Wisconsin	7,393	1.4	6,263	1.4	1,130	1.4
Wyoming	482	0.1	407	0.1	75	0.1
Outlying areas
Puerto Rico	18,120	3.3	15,629	3.4	2,491	3.0
Other ^a	121	(L)	84	(L)	37	(L)
Foreign countries	951	0.2	712	0.2	239	0.3
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
NOTES: Distribution is by state or other area of residence, not by the state paying benefits.
(L) = less than 0.05 percent.
a. 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 2019
Diagnostic group	Total, all ages	Under 35	35–39	40–44	45–49	50–54	55–59	60–FRA
	Number
Total	459,152	2,884	5,938	13,397	29,392	64,429	134,231	208,881
Congenital anomalies	221	(X)	(X)	16	26	32	70	69
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	5,940	33	64	119	319	839	1,675	2,891
Infectious and parasitic diseases	2,423	13	25	83	135	352	735	1,080
Injuries	28,553	388	668	1,197	2,150	4,170	7,856	12,124
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	64	19	5	3	6	9	7	15
Developmental disorders	94	6	4	5	6	19	29	25
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	98	8	10	10	10	15	22	23
Intellectual disability	3,197	48	66	96	230	573	931	1,253
Mood disorders	36,073	312	539	1,255	2,836	5,706	10,059	15,366
Organic mental disorders	9,297	143	244	423	807	1,429	2,583	3,668
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	4,642	187	152	250	403	726	1,197	1,727
Other	9,869	203	374	595	977	1,701	2,643	3,376
Neoplasms	5,581	117	119	202	396	726	1,581	2,440
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	325	13	12	22	25	48	83	122
Circulatory system	13,560	61	121	273	656	1,654	3,878	6,917
Digestive system	2,314	22	57	96	173	315	662	989
Genitourinary system	2,704	87	86	172	293	459	722	885
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	297,079	805	2,692	7,132	17,227	40,312	89,088	139,823
Nervous system and sense organs	24,927	337	544	1,117	1,934	3,742	6,990	10,263
Respiratory system	6,172	17	34	97	262	707	1,778	3,277
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	450	11	14	24	28	54	132	187
Other	398	(X)	(X)	10	38	53	97	189
Unknown	5,171	48	95	200	455	788	1,413	2,172
	Percent
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Congenital anomalies	(L)	(X)	(X)	0.1	0.1	(L)	0.1	(L)
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	1.3	1.1	1.1	0.9	1.1	1.3	1.2	1.4
Infectious and parasitic diseases	0.5	0.5	0.4	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5
Injuries	6.2	13.5	11.2	8.9	7.3	6.5	5.9	5.8
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	(L)	0.7	0.1	(L)	(L)	(L)	(L)	(L)
Developmental disorders	(L)	0.2	0.1	(L)	(L)	(L)	(L)	(L)
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	(L)	0.3	0.2	0.1	(L)	(L)	(L)	(L)
Intellectual disability	0.7	1.7	1.1	0.7	0.8	0.9	0.7	0.6
Mood disorders	7.9	10.8	9.1	9.4	9.6	8.9	7.5	7.4
Organic mental disorders	2.0	5.0	4.1	3.2	2.7	2.2	1.9	1.8
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	1.0	6.5	2.6	1.9	1.4	1.1	0.9	0.8
Other	2.1	7.0	6.3	4.4	3.3	2.6	2.0	1.6
Neoplasms	1.2	4.1	2.0	1.5	1.3	1.1	1.2	1.2
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	0.1	0.5	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Circulatory system	3.0	2.1	2.0	2.0	2.2	2.6	2.9	3.3
Digestive system	0.5	0.8	1.0	0.7	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.5
Genitourinary system	0.6	3.0	1.4	1.3	1.0	0.7	0.5	0.4
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	64.7	27.9	45.3	53.2	58.6	62.6	66.4	66.9
Nervous system and sense organs	5.4	11.7	9.2	8.3	6.6	5.8	5.2	4.9
Respiratory system	1.3	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.9	1.1	1.3	1.6
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	0.1	0.4	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Other	0.1	(X)	(X)	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Unknown	1.1	1.7	1.6	1.5	1.5	1.2	1.1	1.0
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
NOTES: FRA = full retirement age; (L) = less than 0.05 percent; (X) = suppressed to avoid disclosing information about particular individuals.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.

Table 34. Distribution of workers who have filed, by diagnostic group and sex, December 2019
Diagnostic group	Total		Men		Women
Diagnostic group	Number	Percent	Number	Percent	Number	Percent
All disabled workers	459,152	100.0	278,963	100.0	180,189	100.0
Congenital anomalies	221	(L)	126	(L)	95	0.1
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	5,940	1.3	3,130	1.1	2,810	1.6
Infectious and parasitic diseases	2,423	0.5	1,967	0.7	456	0.3
Injuries	28,553	6.2	21,452	7.7	7,101	3.9
Mental disorders
Autistic disorders	64	(L)	47	(L)	17	(L)
Developmental disorders	94	(L)	58	(L)	36	(L)
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified	98	(L)	53	(L)	45	(L)
Intellectual disability	3,197	0.7	2,423	0.9	774	0.4
Mood disorders	36,073	7.9	16,595	5.9	19,478	10.8
Organic mental disorders	9,297	2.0	6,901	2.5	2,396	1.3
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders	4,642	1.0	3,065	1.1	1,577	0.9
Other	9,869	2.1	5,050	1.8	4,819	2.7
Neoplasms	5,581	1.2	2,892	1.0	2,689	1.5
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	325	0.1	168	0.1	157	0.1
Circulatory system	13,560	3.0	9,893	3.5	3,667	2.0
Digestive system	2,314	0.5	1,400	0.5	914	0.5
Genitourinary system	2,704	0.6	1,821	0.7	883	0.5
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	297,079	64.7	182,452	65.4	114,627	63.6
Nervous system and sense organs	24,927	5.4	12,636	4.5	12,291	6.8
Respiratory system	6,172	1.3	3,671	1.3	2,501	1.4
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	450	0.1	217	0.1	233	0.1
Other	398	0.1	176	0.1	222	0.1
Unknown	5,171	1.1	2,770	1.0	2,401	1.3
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Workers' Compensation and Public Disability Benefit file, 100 percent data.
NOTE: (L) = less than 0.05 percent.
CONTACT: (410) 965-0090 or statistics@ssa.gov.