The year is almost over and you know what that means… New changes to Social Security Disability are about to roll out! So, do you know what changes you can expect for your 2017 disability benefits? Your Tulsa disability attorneys might know have a clue…
2017 Disability Benefits Changes
- COLA– Every year, lawmakers look at the rate of inflation and they increase the amount of benefits given to disability claimants. However, that didn’t happen last year. If inflation lowers over the course of a year, then there is no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) the next year. This is what happened last year, and it kept the 2016 COLA flat. Luckily, this year has been a different story. 2017 will see a 0.3 percent COLA increase. This means beneficiaries will receive $1,360 a month instead of $1,355.
- Work Credits– To qualify for Social Security Disability, you must have the required work credits to qualify. To earn these credits, you must earn $1,260 for every credit, but you can only earn a maximum of four credits a year. That will change in 2017. After January 1st, you will have to earn $1,300 to get a work credit. However, the maximum number of yearly work credits you can earn will still add up to four.
- Significant Gainful Activity– The last change to Social Security Disability for 2017 has to do with the amount money you can earn and still qualify for benefits. This threshold is known as substantial gainful activity (SGA) and it’s rising next year. Non-blind individuals can earn up to $1,170 and still qualify for benefits. Blind claimants can earn up to $1,950.
There are bound to be more changes to our system of determining disability benefits as the years go by, but we’ll follow these changes. Read our blog to find out what these changes are, and tell us what you think about these changes on Facebook and Twitter.
