Maybe it’s been tough for you to stay in jobs. Your health keeps getting in the way. Or you used to work, but it’s been a long time.
Money is always short, and it’s hard.
For people with difficult health problems and spotty work histories, financial relief can come in the form of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.
SSI provides monthly financial assistance and qualifies you for Medicaid health coverage.
It is one of two disability benefits programs run by Social Security. The other one, Social Security Disability Insurance (SSI), requires you to have a substantial recent work record before becoming unable to work.
But you don’t need that with SSI. You need to show Social Security two things:
A Social Security Disability lawyer can help you with this system—and you don’t pay a fee until you win benefits.
Lachman & Gorton Law Office has helped thousands of people for over 40 years. If you’re in Binghamton, Elmira, Rochester, across Upstate New York or in Central New York, talk to us about how you can get on more stable financial ground with SSI, and how we can help.
Qualifying for Supplemental Security Income requires looking at your health problems from a certain angle.
These are the basic medical requirements for SSI:
Almost any kind of health problem you can think of can qualify you for SSI. Physical and mental health problems both qualify.
What matters is that your medical conditions must be severe enough to make it impossible for you to work.
And you can’t just tell Social Security that you have such a medical condition.
You have to give them information to back it up. That can include medical records and reports from your doctors and statements from people who know you.
You can get a disability attorney to help you with this. An experienced lawyer knows the rules, how to find the information you need, and how to explain your situation to Social Security.
At Lachman & Gorton, you can start with a no-commitment consultation on your case and what you’ll need for a successful claim.
Supplemental Security Income also is designed for people with limited financial resources. (Unlike SSDI, which doesn’t care how much you own or have coming in from other sources, only that you can’t earn money from work anymore.)
These are the basic financial qualifications for SSI as of 2022:
The amount of money you receive from SSI once you’re approved changes from year to year.
The payment you could get from the federal government was up to $841 per month for a single person in 2022 or $1,261 for a couple.
New York State also provides a supplement that can add to your monthly payment. That amount changes depending on your income level, living situation and county where you live.
The monthly checks you can get from SSI help you pay for essential needs—and give you an increased sense of security so you can rest easier.
But Social Security makes it difficult to get benefits, using tough standards for whether your health problems reach the level of qualifying as a disability. Social Security denies most people at first.
A disability lawyer can serve as your guide through the process.
Talk to Lachman & Gorton, and start moving toward financial relief.