Project Category: Disability insurance

This research proposal seeks to analyze the effects of disability transfer programs on the educational attainment of individuals whose disability is early-onset (before the age of 18), comparing the implications of policies aimed at children from those targeting...

Hispanics in the United States have high rates of disability, yet data has shown that awareness of the Social Security disability programs is lower than average among Hispanics. To date, little is known about the challenges, barriers, and facilitators faced by...

Significant barriers to employment exist for people with disabilities (PWD). This mixed-methods study proposes to address the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) goal of reducing these barriers by examining the impact of academic training on attitudes toward PWD...

Cancer is among the most common health problems that adults face, leading to work disruptions and, consequently, decreased economic security of workers and their families. Black adults have higher risks of cancer-related job disruptions than their white counterparts....

Applications for SSDI and SSI benefits have been declining by more than expected for over a decade. There are few hypotheses for this decline. In this project, we will try to understand true and perceived barriers to applying for benefits by asking people with...

This project aims to document and understand how SSDI beneficiaries’ mortality rates vary across counties and states, both in absolute terms and relative to nonbeneficiaries in their communities. In addition to describing the geographic dispersion in mortality, we...

Social Security Disability Insurance beneficiaries face two waiting periods before they receive benefits.  There is a five-month waiting period for cash benefits and a subsequent 24-month waiting period for Medicare benefits.  Because of these rules, some individuals...

Fewer than 50% of all American adults with work disabilities currently receive disability benefits, presenting a stark divergence between self-reported work-disability prevalence and disability awards. Yet, we know little about how work-disabled adults make their...

SSI and SSDI uptake are important mechanisms for workers with disabilities adjusting to negative shocks in the labor market. In this project, we aim to determine the extent to which structural barriers have excluded historically disadvantaged groups disproportionately...

Accommodations improve the employment outcomes of people with disabilities, although there are racial (and possibly ethnic) disparities in accommodation receipt. This project will investigate the effect of occupation, industry, and other factors on these...

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically altered Americans’ health and work in ways that may trigger significant changes in the size and composition of disability program participation. In this project, we use Social Security Administration data to study trends in...

This project will use data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to study whether workers who suffer permanently disabling injuries covered by Workers Compensation (WC) subsequently end up on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). If this occurs, then the...

This project will examine the physical/mental functioning and use of accommodations among workers in three key occupations, selected from 14 identified as physically demanding and highly prevalent among SSDI applicants. SSA’s input will be sought when selecting the...

The decision to apply for DI is based on the interplay between one’s health, the demands of one’s job, employer accommodations, and the ability to find a new job that better matches health status and job demands. In the proposed research, we explore how changes in the...

There is mounting evidence that the health of older, working age adults, the most frequent claimants of DI benefits, is worsening.  At the same time, there is some evidence from SSA actuaries that after adjusting for demographic factors, the percent of insured workers...

Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and nonelderly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries face strong incentives not to work because their benefits could be sharply reduced. Most beneficiaries of Veterans Affairs (VA) Disability Compensation (DC)...

The validity and reliability of the tools SSA uses to assess claimant physical and mental functional capacity and physical and mental occupational requirements is critical to the effective provision of disability benefits and employment support services. This project...