If you begin receiving government disability benefits, you may wonder about the effect on your temporary total disability benefits from worker’s compensation. Government benefits programs usually factor in your income and assets when determining how much money you will receive in benefits.
Social Security Disability Insurance
You may receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) at the same time as temporary total disability (TTD) benefits. Your TTD benefits will not end or get reduced if you qualify for SSDI. However, the Social Security Administration does reduce the amount of SSDI benefits in many cases.
The SSA will reduce your SSDI benefits if the total of your SSDI benefits, TTD or other workers’ compensation benefits, and other public disability benefits is more than either:
- 80 percent of your average earnings before your disability began; or
- Your family’s total prior Social Security benefit.
Your SSDI benefits will get reduced to the point that your total benefits are 80% of your pre-disability earnings. Total benefits include other public benefits (besides SSDI and workers’ comp), which are any benefits paid under a Federal, State, or local public law or plan because of your disability.
The SSA continues to reduce your SSDI benefits as long as your total benefits meets one of the two requirements above, until you turn either age 62 or 65. The ending age depends on when your disability began and when you began to be entitled to benefits. If you are able to go back to work and stop receiving TTD, notify the SSA to end the SSDI reduction. If you start receiving permanent total disability benefits, also notify the SSA. At that point, your SSDI reduction should end.
Other Types of Benefits
If you receive other types of government benefits besides SSDI or other public disability benefits, you will not see a change in the amount of TTD benefits paid. Your TTD benefits compensate you for wage loss while you are off work recovering from a workplace injury. Receipt of the following types of benefits has no effect on TTD:
- Unemployment benefits
- Sick pay
- Needs-based benefits such as public housing vouchers
- Private health insurance or pension
Need help getting workers’ compensation for your injury? Joe Osterbauer, Esq. and the Osterbauer Law Firm stand up for injured Minnesota workers’ rights. Joe’s 27 years of workers’ compensation experience and his team’s speedy service combine to get clients the results they need. To schedule a free consultation, visit Osterbauer Law Firm online or call Joe’s office at (612) 334-3434.
