SSI Disabled Recipients Who Work, 2004

Blind and Disabled Recipients

Chart 1. Number who work, December 1987–2004

The number of blind and disabled recipients who work almost doubled between 1987 and 2004, from 173,000 to 328,000. Initially, the number of participants under sections 1619(a) and 1619(b) were approximately equal. However, participation under section 1619(b) gradually increased to five times the initial total, and it now exceeds participation under section 1619(a) by more than four to one. The number of working recipients not participating under either of these provisions has increased by more than 65 percent.

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Table equivalent for Chart 1. Number who work, December 1987–2004 (thousands)
Year	1619(a)	1619(b)	Other
1987	14.56	15.63	142.66
1988	19.92	15.63	153.60
1989	25.66	18.25	161.93
1990	13.99	23.52	182.42
1991	15.53	27.26	186.82
1992	17.60	31.65	199.67
1993	20.03	35.30	210.32
1994	24.32	40.68	217.48
1995	28.06	47.00	223.57
1996	31.09	51.91	225.31
1997	34.67	57.09	228.09
1998	37.27	59.54	229.66
1999	25.53	69.27	245.83
2000	27.54	83.57	249.31
2001	22.10	76.46	247.56
2002	17.27	82.18	241.46
2003	17.13	71.10	235.45
2004	17.12	73.68	237.41

SOURCE: Tables 1 and 9.

Chart 2. Percentage who work, by state, December 2004

In 13 states, mostly in the South and Southeast, less than 5 percent of blind and disabled recipients were working in December 2004. The highest employment rates, 15 percent or more, were in the upper Midwest: Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

Map linked to data in table format, provided in the Percentage of all blind and disabled recipients column of Table 2.

SOURCE: Table 2.

Table 1. Number and percentage who work, selected months, 1976–2004
Month	All blind and disabled recipients ^a	Recipients who work
Month	All blind and disabled recipients ^a	Total	Receiving SSI ^b	Section 1619(b) participants	Total as a percentage of all blind and disabled recipients
December
1976	2,088,242	70,719	70,719	. . .	3.4
1977	2,186,771	83,697	83,697	. . .	3.8
1978	2,249,025	87,697	87,697	. . .	3.9
1979	2,277,859	92,270	92,270	. . .	4.1
1980	2,334,241	99,276	99,276	. . .	4.3
1981	2,340,785	102,632	102,632	. . .	4.4
1982	2,314,364	107,803	102,288	5,515	4.7
1983	2,391,262	113,899	108,734	5,165	4.8
1984	2,499,046	--	--	--	--
1985	2,633,552	--	--	--	--
1986	2,795,756	--	--	--	--
1987	2,945,244	172,855	157,223	15,632	5.9
1988	3,046,074	189,144	173,519	15,625	6.2
1989	3,172,270	205,837	187,583	18,254	6.5
1990	3,386,603	219,932	196,415	23,517	6.5
1991	3,681,050	229,619	202,355	27,264	6.2
1992	4,126,816	248,917	217,268	31,649	6.0
1993	4,544,777	265,649	230,350	35,299	5.8
1994	4,870,564	282,476	241,793	40,683	5.8
1995	5,115,014	298,635	251,633	47,002	5.8
1996	5,252,991	308,300	256,395	51,905	5.9
1997	5,189,724	319,855	262,766	57,089	6.2
1998	5,293,829	326,475	266,933	59,542	6.2
1999	5,317,861	340,618	271,353	69,265	6.4
2000	5,395,935	360,427	276,855	83,572	6.7
2001	5,500,481	346,110	269,655	76,455	6.3
2002	5,618,506	340,910	258,733	82,177	6.1
2003	5,740,683	323,682	252,585	71,097	5.6
2004	5,850,359	328,204	254,523	73,681	5.6
2002
March	5,538,532	339,430	266,835	72,595	6.1
June	5,573,711	342,946	265,597	77,349	6.2
September	5,620,838	348,244	265,871	82,373	6.2
December	5,618,506	340,910	258,733	82,177	6.1
2003
March	5,657,353	334,378	259,820	74,558	5.9
June	5,705,871	329,740	257,724	72,016	5.8
September	5,749,384	329,195	255,619	73,576	5.7
December	5,740,683	323,682	252,585	71,097	5.6
2004
March	5,796,837	321,030	251,498	69,532	5.5
June	5,834,265	323,624	250,726	72,898	5.5
September	5,869,004	328,831	253,174	75,657	5.6
December	5,850,359	328,204	254,523	73,681	5.6
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Supplemental Security Record (Characteristic Extract Record format), 100 percent data.
NOTES: . . . = not applicable; -- = not available.
a. Includes section 1619(b) participants.
b. Includes section 1619(a) participants and SSI recipients earning less than the substantial gainful activity level ($830 effective January 2005).
CONTACT: Clark Pickett (410) 965-9016 or ssi.workers@ssa.gov.

Table 2. Number and percentage who work, by state or other area, December 2004
State or area	All blind and disabled recipients	Recipients who work
State or area	All blind and disabled recipients	Number	Percentage of all blind and disabled recipients
All areas	5,850,359	328,204	5.6
Alabama	144,687	3,850	2.7
Alaska	8,789	601	6.8
Arizona	82,175	3,555	4.3
Arkansas	78,316	3,611	4.6
California	841,885	43,491	5.2
Colorado	46,569	3,875	8.3
Connecticut	45,825	3,828	8.4
Delaware	12,405	834	6.7
District of Columbia	19,047	653	3.4
Florida	321,530	11,435	3.6
Georgia	173,247	7,010	4.0
Hawaii	15,944	799	5.0
Idaho	19,740	1,715	8.7
Illinois	227,977	13,370	5.9
Indiana	91,519	5,721	6.3
Iowa	40,343	6,614	16.4
Kansas	36,013	4,017	11.2
Kentucky	165,707	4,681	2.8
Louisiana	151,409	5,505	3.6
Maine	29,714	2,210	7.4
Maryland	78,638	5,689	7.2
Massachusetts	127,912	9,610	7.5
Michigan	205,330	13,992	6.8
Minnesota	63,030	9,679	15.4
Mississippi	109,624	3,081	2.8
Missouri	107,842	7,157	6.6
Montana	13,768	1,738	12.6
Nebraska	20,589	2,981	14.5
Nevada	24,362	1,498	6.1
New Hampshire	12,465	1,257	10.1
New Jersey	118,456	7,594	6.4
New Mexico	43,619	2,110	4.8
New York	501,231	30,114	6.0
North Carolina	170,726	7,772	4.6
North Dakota	7,237	1,358	18.8
Ohio	233,052	16,741	7.2
Oklahoma	69,345	3,731	5.4
Oregon	52,222	3,885	7.4
Pennsylvania	288,759	15,083	5.2
Rhode Island	26,055	1,623	6.2
South Carolina	93,201	4,734	5.1
South Dakota	11,200	2,096	18.7
Tennessee	144,217	5,216	3.6
Texas	366,570	13,583	3.7
Utah	19,970	2,137	10.7
Vermont	12,074	1,183	9.8
Virginia	114,810	6,451	5.6
Washington	99,341	5,721	5.8
West Virginia	72,026	2,069	2.9
Wisconsin	83,813	10,167	12.1
Wyoming	5,428	763	14.1
Outlying area
Northern Mariana Islands	606	16	2.6
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Supplemental Security Record (Characteristic Extract Record format), 100 percent data.
NOTE: Includes section 1619(b) participants.
CONTACT: Clark Pickett (410) 965-9016 or ssi.workers@ssa.gov.

Table 3. Percentage distribution of recipients and those who work aged 18–64, by diagnostic group, December 2004
Diagnostic group	All blind and disabled recipients	Recipients who work ^a
Total
Number	4,017,108	313,004
Percent	100.0	100.0
Congenital anomalies	0.6	1.3
Endocrine, nutritional, and metabolic diseases	3.7	1.3
Infectious and parasitic diseases	1.7	1.0
Injuries	2.6	1.4
Mental disorders
Retardation	21.9	42.0
Schizophrenia	9.9	7.2
Other	25.3	16.3
Neoplasms	1.1	0.6
Diseases of the—
Blood and blood-forming organs	0.4	0.3
Circulatory system	4.5	1.2
Digestive system	0.9	0.3
Genitourinary system	1.0	0.6
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	9.9	3.3
Nervous system and sense organs ^b	7.8	8.8
Respiratory system	2.1	0.7
Skin and subcutaneous tissue	0.2	0.1
Other	0.2	0.3
Unknown	6.2	13.4
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Supplemental Security Record (Characteristic Extract Record format), 100 percent data.
NOTE: Effective with the December 2002 edition, all recipients in each recipient category are included when computing percentages for each diagnostic category. Previously, only recipients with identified diagnoses were included in this computation.
a. Includes section 1619(b) participants.
b. Most disabled recipients classified as blind are included in this category. A few blind recipients with a primary impairment other than diseases of the eye are coded in other categories. Also, a few recipients are classified with diseases of the eye, but their impairment does not meet the definition of blindness.
CONTACT: Clark Pickett (410) 965-9016 or ssi.workers@ssa.gov.

Table 4. Number and percentage of recipients, those who work, and section 1619(b) participants aged 18–64, by age, December 2004
Age	All blind and disabled recipients ^a		Recipients who work		Section 1619(b) participants
Age	Number	Percent	Number	Percentage of all blind and disabled recipients	Number	Percentage of all blind and disabled recipients
Total	4,088,304	100.0	313,005	7.7	71,195	1.7
18–21	272,114	6.7	30,392	11.2	2,867	1.1
22–29	504,572	12.3	75,465	15.0	17,801	3.5
30–39	696,602	17.0	77,329	11.1	20,246	2.9
40–49	1,056,428	25.8	72,536	6.9	18,175	1.7
50–59	1,074,642	26.3	44,483	4.1	9,431	0.9
60–64	483,946	11.8	12,800	2.6	2,675	0.6
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Supplemental Security Record (Characteristic Extract Record format), 100 percent data.
a. Includes section 1619(b) participants.
CONTACT: Clark Pickett (410) 965-9016 or ssi.workers@ssa.gov.

Table 5. Number in December 2003, by program status and earnings in December 2004
Program status in December 2003	Total	Receiving payments in December 2004			Not receiving payments in December 2004
		Section 1619(a)	Have earnings	No earnings	Ineligible because of earned income				Other excess income	Other non-pay
					Section 1619(b)	Reasons no longer eligible
					Section 1619(b)	Does not need or use Medicaid	Can pay for equivalent coverage	Both
All blind and disabled recipients	5,676,848	16,242	223,887	4,909,518	69,256	683	161	340	119,846	336,915
Receiving payments
Section 1619(a)	17,643	6,216	3,017	3,842	2,260	40	10	13	626	1,619
Have earnings	237,204	2,694	171,618	38,214	7,787	74	5	25	6,224	10,563
No earnings	5,350,729	5,294	44,669	4,856,578	17,591	198	32	92	107,121	319,154
Not receiving payments
Section 1619(b)	71,272	2,038	4,583	10,884	41,618	371	114	210	5,875	5,579
SOURCE: Social Security Administration, Supplemental Security Record (Characteristic Extract Record format), 100 percent data.
CONTACT: Clark Pickett (410) 965-9016 or ssi.workers@ssa.gov.