516. What benefits may a child receive based on disability?

Under title XVI (Supplemental Security Income (SSI)),a child under the age of 18 who is found to be disabled may be eligible for childhood disability benefits. Under title II, an adult child may be eligible for Childhood Disability Benefits as a child of a parent who is entitled to benefits as a disabled or retired worker or of a deceased parent who was insured under Social Security if he or she became disabled before the attainment of age 22.

There are two Social Security disability programs that include disabled children.

Under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, a child from birth to age 18 may receive monthly payments based on disability or blindness if:

• He or she has an impairment or combination of impairments that meets the definition of disability for children and

• the income and resources of the parents and the child are within the allowed limits.

Under the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program, an adult child (a person age 18 or older) may receive monthly benefits based on disability or blindness if:

• He or she has an impairment or combination of impairments that meets the definition of disability for adults; and

• the disability began before age 22; and

• the adult child's parent worked long enough to be insured under Social Security and is receiving retirement or disability benefits or is deceased.

Under both of these programs, the child must not be doing any "substantial" work, and must have a medical condition that has lasted or is expected either to last for at least 12 months or to result in death

Last Revised: Apr. 19, 2010