Legal News

Recently, the Social Security Administration (SSA) started a national communications campaign to raise awareness of their Disability Insurance Benefit (DIB) program. This campaign is called the “Faces And Facts Of Disability.” As the title suggests, the campaign is focused on providing facts about the program as well as sharing personal stories from beneficiaries. The campaign features a video that addresses some of the basic requirements of the DIB program. It also provides information on some common misconceptions about the program as well as interviews with a couple beneficiaries. Here are some interesting and startling facts from the video: More than one in four workers who are 20 years old and insured for DIB benefits will become disabled prior to retirement age; For people who start receiving DIB at the age of 55, one in five men and one in seven women will die within five years of the onset of their disability. Some misconceptions that are addressed in the video: Some people believe the beneficiaries’ receive a lot of money from the SSA and are paid too much.  The video states that in 2014, the average monthly check is only $1146. This is barely above the poverty level; Many people believe that there is a high rate of fraud with disability claims. The video states that the fraud incidence rate is a fraction of one percent. Please click here to view the entire video. The SSA has created a special webpage for the campaign which includes a message from the SSA commissioner, an online quiz about disability, facts related to the DIB program, personal stories, and more.  To see the “Faces And Facts Of Disability” webpage click here.

There is a variety of types of income that Social Security determines as wages for tax purposes, but others it does not. Social Security has developed rules that identify which types of income are wages and which type of income are not. Do payments from a plan or system for sickness, retirement, etc. count as wages? Payments you receive from a plan or system established by your employer for insurance or annuities are not wages. The plan must generally provide for all employees and/or their dependents or for a class(es) of employees and their dependents. The terms and conditions of the plan must be communicated to all employees or the class(es) affected. In addition, the plan must provide payment eligibility standards that include: Length of service, salary, classification, or occupation; The minimum period payments are made; and A formula for computing the minimum benefit for each eligible employee. Does sick pay count as wages? Payments you receive for sickness and accident disability count as wages for the first six calendar months after the last month you worked. (For payments made by an employer to a disabled former employee). Do payments to a profit-sharing or stock bonus plan count as wages? Effective January 1, 1984, payments your employer makes to a profit-sharing or stock bonus plan are wages if: You have the choice of receiving cash instead; The payments and the amounts are not included in your gross income; One of the following conditions exists: The payments are made under a qualified cash or deferred arrangement; or The payments are made under section 401(k)(2) of the IRC. The payments are counted as wages at the time the distributions are paid to the trust. Do payments from or to a tax-exempt trust fund count as wages? Payments made from or to a tax-exempt trust fund on behalf of you or your beneficiary are not wages, if the payments made are “from or to a trust” that does not pay income tax under sections 401 and 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). Do payments from or to a tax-exempt annuity plan count as wages? Payments made from or to an annuity or bond purchase plan on behalf of you or your beneficiary do not count as wages if at the time of payment the: Annuity plan is qualified under section 403(a) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC); or Bond purchase plan is qualified under section 405(a) of the IRC. Do amounts deferred under a nonqualified deferred compensation plan count as wages? Effective January 1, 1984, delayed payments under your Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan are wages: When you perform services; or When you meet the conditions required for payment. Note: If an agreement was in existence on March 24, 1983, between you and a nonqualified deferred compensation plan for services you performed before 1984, the payments are excluded from wages if the payment would have been excluded from wages under Social Security before 1983.    

In a pervious blog we discussed the Social Security trust funds, from which all types of Social Security benefits come from, but besides understanding where the benefits come from and understanding the trust funds, it is also important to understand where the money in the trust funds come from. Of course, as you might expect, the trust funds receive tax dollars from Americans, but it is a bit more complex than that. How Are Social Security Benefits Funded? To pay for Retirement, Survivors, Disability Insurance, and Hospital Insurance Benefits, taxes are collected from employers, employees, and the self-employed who are working in jobs and businesses covered by Social Security. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) funding comes from the general revenues of the U.S. and in States which supplement the Federal benefits from State funds. SSI is a needs-based program that provides benefits to people who are disabled and/or retired. How are hospital insurance benefits funded? Hospital Insurance Benefits are either paid from the FICA/SECA taxes or by monthly premium payments. Funding depends on the circumstances of eligibility. How are medical insurance benefits funded? To pay for Medical Insurance Benefits, the law provides for the collection of monthly premiums. The people enrolled in the program (or in some cases, the State) pay these premiums Since the premiums cover only about one-fourth of the cost of the program, the Government pays the remaining amount from general revenues. Starting in January 2007, people enrolled in Medicare Part B with modified adjusted gross incomes over a set threshold were required to pay a higher percentage of their total Part B premium costs. Increases in Part B premiums for these individuals were phased in from 2007 to 2009. How are prescription drug benefits funded? Prescription drug benefits are funded by general revenues of the U.S., monthly beneficiary premiums, and state payments.

We recently just celebrated another Veteran’s Day where we honored all of those who have served our country in the military. All of those who served should be aware of the benefits available to them by the Veteran’s Administration and the best time to talk about those benefits is right around Veteran’s Day. Although we are a Social Security disability law office advocating benefits for our clients, many of our clients are veterans who are also eligible to receive separate benefits from the Veteran’s Administration. According to benefits.gov, there are a variety of benefits veterans should be aware of, some of these include: Basic Medical Benefits Package – Includes a comprehensive medical package, offering primary and specialty care, inpatient and outpatient care, and in some cases dental care. Eligible veterans can apply by visiting vets.gov. Veteran’s Pension – This pension is available to assist low-income veterans who served during wartime, who meet certain age or non-service connected disability requirements. Homeless Veteran’s Assistance Center – This program helps veterans and their families find safe and affordable housing. This service also includes opportunities to help veterans find work. Veteran’s Compensation for Service Connected Disability – This benefit is a monthly tax-free payment to disabled veterans who are eligible to receive compensation. In addition to these programs, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs (VA) has a lot more information available about all the programs offered on the Veteran’s Benefits Administration website which can be found here. Many times government programs are difficult to navigate and many eligible Americans are unaware they are able to access these benefits. In addition to benefits for disabled veterans, Social Security also offers monthly benefits to disabled workers who are unable to work due to their impairments and who meet specific medical requirements as established by the Social Security Administration.    

Residual Functional Capacity (RFC) forms can be among the most supportive documents a treating physician can complete. This form shows the treating physician’s opinion of an individual highlighting the various limitations due to medical conditions. Many people often assume that if a physician is supportive that in itself means that you are disabled. However, this is not correct. It is very important for a claimant to obtain a written statement from the physician elaborating on the limitations regarding functional capabilities. Social Security wants to know exactly what conditions prevent a person from working and this document is the best way to show those limitations.  The RFC should also explain why a person is limited in other areas as well. There are two different types of RFCs, physical and mental health. The physical RFC is used to determine different types of physical limitations. The RFC has various boxes to check that show limitations. After a series of questions and boxes for the physician to mark, the form asks questions about medical or clinical findings that support a physician’s conclusion.  For example:  Are lifting and carrying affected by the claimant’s impairment?  Occasionally (very little up to 1/3 of 8 hour work day) less than 10 lbs, 10 lbs, 20 lbs, 25 lbs, 50 lbs, 100 lbs or more.  Frequently (1/3 to 2/3 of 8 hour work day) less than 10 lbs, 10 lbs, 20 lbs, 25 lbs, 50 lbs, 100 lbs or more.  Your doctor will check off which lifting limitation applies to you. The mental RFC is used to determine how a psychiatric condition limits the ability to work.  This form is very similar to the physical RFC except the questions are different and geared towards mental health limitations.  Generally, there are a series of questions for the physician to answer about the claimant’s ability to carry out very short and simple instructions and other mental health capabilities in a work place setting.