Social security disability benefits are paid out to recipients who are not able to work because of an injury or disability. Some recipients of social security disability have never worked, while others worked for many years and are now disabled for one reason or another. The more an individual has paid into the system over their working years, the higher their social security disability payment will be each month.
Disability benefits are different than regular social security, in that those that receive traditional social security benefits are doing so because they are retired and have reached the age in which they can collect benefits. Those that collect regular social security benefits do not need to be disabled to qualify. In fact, people that begin to collect social security disability benefits before they reach their retirement age will have their benefits switch over to regular social security benefits once they meet the age requirement. The bottom line is that you receive disability benefits when you can’t work, and regular social security when you have aged into the system.
Social Security Disability Benefits Statistics in the United States
- In 2013, the total number of social security benefit recipients totaled 8,363,477.
- 7,206,359 of these recipients were blind or otherwise disabled.
- Children accounted for 1,321,681 of the total number of recipients in 2013.
- 2,770,750 of the recipients of social security benefits also received benefits from OASDI (Old age, survivor and disability insurance).
- California had the highest number of social security recipients overall, with a total number of 1,304,222.
- Wyoming had the lowest number of social security recipients overall, with a total number of 6,888.
New York Social Security Disability Benefit Statistics
- In 2013, 698,928 people were on social security disability benefits in New York.
- Of the 698,928 people receiving benefits in the state of New York, 569,501, were blind or otherwise disabled
- 238,255 of the recipients in the state of New York also received OASDI benefits in 2013.
- 89,438 of the recipients were under 18 years old in the State of New York in 2013.
- 241,309 if the people who received social security disability benefits in 2013 in the State of New York were 65 and older.
- The number of recipients who were between the ages of 18 and 64 in the New York for 2013 was 368,181.
States with the Highest Number of People on Disability Benefits
- In 2011, 6% of the residents in Michigan were receiving disability benefits.
- Of the 6% in Michigan receiving benefits, 32.3% were on disability for recurring neck and back pain, the 12th highest in the United States.
- The unemployment rate in Michigan during this time was 10.4%, making Michigan tied for the 6th highest in unemployment in the United States.
- In 2011, the state with the highest percentage of residents on social security disability benefits was West Virginia.
- 9% of the working age population in the state of West Virginia received social security disability benefits in 2011.
- 39% of the individuals receiving benefits in West Virginia suffered from chronic neck and back pain.
- The average monthly benefit for people in West Virginia was 1,140, the tenth highest in all of the United States.
Disability Recipients by Gender in the United States for 2013
- The total number of men receiving benefits in 2013 was 321,011.
- Women accounted for 307,041 of the number of recipients in 2013.
- The number of men who received benefits who also had children was 182,039.
- The number of women who received benefits who also had children in 2013 was 148,445.
- 84,276 of the workers receiving social security disability benefits had three or more children.
- 12,621 of the recipients had both a spouse and three children overall.