If you have a medical condition that prevents you from working in gainful employment in South Bend, IN, you may qualify for critical financial assistance through the Social Security Administration’s disability benefit programs. However, because the SSA maintains specific eligibility requirements for benefits, you may benefit from having experienced legal counsel to guide you through the application process or assist you with filing an administrative appeal if the SSA denies your application.
Contact Wambach Disability Law for a free initial case review with a Social Security disability attorney to learn more about the different Social Security programs that can provide you with financial assistance if you have a medical condition that leaves you unable to work due to disability.
The Social Security Administration oversees several programs that provide monthly financial assistance payments to individuals with disabilities that prevent them from engaging in gainful employment. The two main Social Security disability benefit programs are Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income. These programs target different categories of individuals with severe disabilities. Social Security Disability Insurance focuses on workers who must leave the workforce due to a prolonged or permanent severe disability. Supplemental Security Income provides financial assistance to low-income individuals with disabilities that render them unable to work.
The Social Security Administration also operates specialized disability benefit programs for disabled widows/widowers and adult children of working individuals. These programs allow disabled individuals to access SSD benefits based on a qualifying family member’s work history or based on special criteria for disabled widows/widowers and adults who developed disabilities in childhood.
Although the SSD benefit programs can provide people with critical financial assistance, the Social Security Administration maintains strict eligibility criteria for these programs. As a result, individuals who apply for disability benefits from the SSA may need experienced legal counsel to help them prepare an application that gives them the best chance of success in getting their applications approved. A Social Security Disability attorney can help with crafting an application and pursuing administrative appeals after an initial denial by the SSA.
The Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program provides monthly disability benefit payments to workers who have paid into the Social Security system through payroll taxes and who become unable to continue working due to a severe disability. Because eligibility for SSDI depends on paying into the Social Security system, a SSDI recipient’s benefits will depend on their contributions to Social Security over their career.
A person may qualify for SSDI benefits when they have sufficient work history to demonstrate their contribution to the Social Security system. The Social Security Administration measures a person’s work history by work credits. A person earns a work credit when they earn a certain amount of income subject to Social Security taxes, up to a maximum of four credits per year. SSDI applicants must meet a specific threshold of lifetime work credits and recent work credits earned in the few years preceding the onset of their disability. The number of work credits a person needs to qualify for SSDI depends on their age when their disability began, with younger workers typically requiring fewer work credits.
As with all Social Security disability benefit programs, an applicant must demonstrate that they have a disability as defined by Social Security regulations. A qualifying disability must arise from a medical condition that will likely last for at least 12 months or result in the person’s death. The Social Security Administration uses a five-step sequential process to evaluate whether a medical condition constitutes a disability. When a condition qualifies as a “disability” at any step, the SSA will approve the applicant’s claim for benefits. However, if the SSA cannot find an applicant disabled at any of the five steps, it will deny the applicant’s claim. The five steps of the evaluation process include:
SSDI provides monthly payments, which the Social Security Administration bases on the recipient’s contributions to the Social Security system during their career through payroll taxes. Recipients will continue to receive benefits as long as they remain disabled and unable to work. However, when an applicant reaches full retirement age, their disability benefits will convert into permanent retirement benefits. Monthly benefits begin in the sixth whole month after the onset date of an individual’s disability. Individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig’s disease) do not have a waiting period for SSDI benefits.
SSDI recipients also become eligible for Medicare coverage after receiving SSDI benefits for 24 months.
People who apply for SSDI benefits can face various challenges in getting approved, such as:
The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program provides disability benefits to people who cannot work due to severe medical conditions and who have limited income or financial resources. SSI provides benefits based on need. Unlike SSDI, an applicant for SSI benefits does not need to have a work history to qualify for benefits. Instead, in addition to demonstrating a qualifying disability, an SSI applicant must also show that they meet the financial criteria for the program. SSI benefits continue as long as a recipient remains disabled and continues to meet the financial criteria for eligibility.
A person who applies for SSI benefits must meet the same disability criteria as applicants for SSDI benefits. However, an SSI applicant must also fall under the financial thresholds for the program, which include separate income and asset thresholds. As of 2025, a person must earn less than $2,020 per month (before taxes and deductions), although married couples who apply together or adults with disabilities that began in childhood who live with parents may have different income thresholds. Furthermore, an applicant cannot have more than $2,000 in assets ($3,000 for a married couple).
SSI provides a flat monthly benefit subject to deductions. As of 2025, individuals can receive up to $967 per month, and married couples can receive up to $1,450 per month. However, the Social Security Administration can make deductions from this benefit payment based on other income or money received by a recipient. For example, the SSA will reduce an SSI payment by $1 for every $2 earned from:
The SSA also reduces SSI payments dollar-for-dollar for money received from non-work sources, such as:
SSI recipients may also have their monthly payments reduced based on the income earned by a spouse or parents with whom they live. The SSA can also reduce SSI payments for a recipient who lives in someone else’s household without paying their fair share of food and housing costs.
People who apply for SSI benefits can face several challenging obstacles to getting approved, including:
The Social Security Administration also provides financial benefits to disabled widows or widowers, allowing them to access assistance based on their deceased spouse’s work record. When a widow’s or widower’s spouse worked long enough to qualify for SSDI or retirement benefits at the time of their death, the surviving widow or widower can qualify for Social Security disability benefits.
A person applying for DWB benefits must meet specific eligibility requirements, including:
An applicant between the ages of 50 and 60 must also demonstrate they have a disability that meets the SSA’s criteria.
The DWB program provides monthly benefits based on the widow(er)’s age at the time of application, their deceased spouse’s primary insurance amount (the amount they could receive for SSDI or retirement benefits), and whether the deceased spouse had collected early retirement benefits. After 24 months, DWB benefit recipients can also qualify for Medicare.
A disabled adult child may access disability benefits either through SSDI or SSI. Disabled adult children who apply for SSI must meet the program’s income and asset thresholds. However, they can also apply for SSDI benefits based on their parents’ work record if they have a disability that began before age 22.
Disabled adult children who apply for SSDI benefits for a disability must meet specific eligibility criteria:
Disabled adult children who apply for SSI must meet that program’s eligibility requirements.
An adult child who receives SSDI benefits based on their parents’ work records can receive 50 percent of the higher primary insurance amount between their parents. Furthermore, after 24 months of benefit, the child will also qualify for Medicare. Disabled adult children who receive SSI will receive benefits under that program’s rules.
Contact Wambach Disability Law today for a free, no-obligation consultation with a Social Security disability attorney to learn more about the disability benefit programs for residents of South Bend, IN. We’re happy to discuss whether you may qualify for benefits when you have a medical condition that prevents you from working and guide you through the application process.
If a disability has kept you from working, you may qualify for Social Security disability benefits. Get the answers you need right now when you contact Wambach Disability Law today for a free, no-obligation consultation with a knowledgeable, caring Social Security disability lawyer.
