If you receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), you may want to return to work—but you may also be worried about what working could mean for your disability benefits and health insurance.

Will your benefits stop as soon as you start earning money? What happens if you try working but your disability prevents you from continuing? Could returning to work cause Social Security to review your disability claim?

These are important questions. Fortunately, Social Security offers the Ticket to Work Program, a free and voluntary program designed to help eligible disability beneficiaries explore employment while receiving support along the way.

Understanding how Ticket to Work and Social Security's other work incentives operate can help you make a more informed decision before returning to the workforce.

What Is the Ticket to Work Program?

The Ticket to Work Program is available to adults ages 18 through 64 who receive SSDI or SSI and want assistance pursuing employment.

Participation is free and voluntary.

Through the program, Social Security connects beneficiaries with approved service providers that can provide services such as:

• Career counseling
• Vocational rehabilitation
• Resume development
• Job training
• Job placement assistance
• Ongoing employment support

The service providers you select effectively become your employment team, helping you develop skills and work toward greater financial independence.

How Does Ticket to Work Help You Find Employment?

Returning to work after being out of the workforce because of a disability can be difficult. You may need to update your resume, learn new skills, find a position compatible with your limitations, or simply determine what kind of work is realistic.

According to Social Security, your Ticket to Work employment team can help you:

• Clarify your employment goals
• Build or update your resume
• Identify employment opportunities
• Receive continued support after you begin working

You also have the ability to choose the service provider you work with, and the assistance you receive can change as your needs change.

Will I Immediately Lose My SSDI Benefits If I Go Back to Work?

Not necessarily.

This is one of the most important things for SSDI beneficiaries to understand. Social Security has work incentives that may allow you to test your ability to work without immediately losing all of your benefits.

One of those protections is the Trial Work Period (TWP).

The Trial Work Period

The Trial Work Period allows an SSDI beneficiary to test his or her ability to work for at least nine months while continuing to receive full SSDI benefits, regardless of the amount earned during those trial work months.

Social Security's work rules are detailed, however, and what happens after the Trial Work Period can depend on your earnings and individual circumstances.

For that reason, you should understand how the work incentives apply to your particular case before making major financial or employment decisions.

What Is the Extended Period of Eligibility?

Another important SSDI work incentive is the Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE).

After the Trial Work Period, an SSDI beneficiary generally enters a 36-month Extended Period of Eligibility. During this period, disability benefits may be able to restart if earnings fall below the applicable level.

This can provide an important safety net for someone whose disability makes sustained employment uncertain.

For example, a person may successfully return to work for a period of time but later experience worsening symptoms that reduce the number of hours he or she can work. Social Security's work incentives are designed, in part, to make attempting work less of an all-or-nothing decision.

What Happens to Medicare or Medicaid If You Return to Work?

Fear of losing health insurance can be just as significant as fear of losing the monthly disability payment.

Social Security explains that Medicare or Medicaid coverage may continue even after cash disability benefits stop because of work, potentially for several years depending on the circumstances.

The exact rules depend on the type of benefits you receive and your individual circumstances, so beneficiaries should verify how returning to work will affect their health coverage before assuming that Medicare or Medicaid will immediately end.

Can Ticket to Work Protect You From a Continuing Disability Review?

Potentially.

Social Security periodically conducts Continuing Disability Reviews (CDRs) to determine whether beneficiaries continue to meet its medical requirements for disability.

According to Social Security, when an individual participating in Ticket to Work is making timely progress in the program, medical Continuing Disability Reviews may be postponed.

This protection can be particularly important for disability beneficiaries who are interested in attempting employment but are concerned that doing so will automatically trigger a medical review.

However, participation in Ticket to Work does not mean that every Social Security requirement disappears. Beneficiaries must continue to understand and comply with the rules applicable to their claims.

Who Should Consider Ticket to Work?

Ticket to Work may be worth exploring if you:

• Want to return to work but are concerned about how earnings will affect SSDI or SSI
• Need help finding employment
• Need additional job skills or vocational training
• Have been out of the workforce and need help preparing a resume
• Would benefit from ongoing employment support
• Want to explore whether greater financial independence through employment is realistic

Social Security specifically identifies people who want to work but are unsure how employment will affect their benefits, people who need assistance finding work or developing skills, and people who prefer ongoing guidance as potential candidates for the program.

Returning to Work? Keep Good Records

One of the biggest mistakes a disability beneficiary can make is assuming that Social Security will automatically know how much he or she is earning.

If you return to work, keep detailed records.

Social Security recommends that beneficiaries:

• Keep records of their earnings
• Report earnings and income changes to Social Security
• Remain in contact with their Ticket to Work service provider
• Ask questions when something is unclear

It is also wise to keep copies of your pay stubs and communications with Social Security. Good documentation can become extremely important if questions later arise concerning your earnings, benefits, or an alleged overpayment.

Ticket to Work Does Not Mean Everyone Should Immediately Return to Work

Ticket to Work creates an opportunity—it does not require you to work.

The program is voluntary, and the decision to attempt employment should be based on your health, functional abilities, financial situation, and personal goals.

Social Security itself cautions that its work incentives can be complicated and that the rules may differ depending on the benefits you receive and your particular circumstances. It recommends learning how the rules apply personally before making decisions concerning work and disability benefits.

That distinction is important. General information about Social Security's work incentives should not be treated as a calculation of how a particular amount of earnings will affect your individual SSDI or SSI benefits.

The Bottom Line

Receiving Social Security disability benefits does not necessarily mean that you can never attempt to work again.

The Ticket to Work Program can provide vocational assistance and ongoing employment support, while Social Security's work incentives may provide important protections as you test your ability to return to employment.

For some beneficiaries, that may mean returning to the workforce permanently. For others, a work attempt may demonstrate that their medical condition still prevents them from sustaining employment.

Either way, understanding the rules before you begin working can help you avoid surprises.

If you are receiving SSDI or SSI and are considering returning to work, take the time to understand:

• How your earnings must be reported
• Whether the Trial Work Period applies to you
• What happens after your Trial Work Period
• How working could affect your Medicare or Medicaid
• Whether Ticket to Work's CDR protections apply
• How your particular earnings could affect your monthly benefits

Social Security also offers free Ticket to Work resources, including WISE webinars, a service-provider search tool, and the Ticket to Work Help Line.

Questions About Your Social Security Disability Benefits?

Social Security's work rules can become complicated quickly, particularly when issues involving work activity, benefit termination, Continuing Disability Reviews, or overpayments arise.

If you have questions about how working may affect your Social Security disability claim or you are facing a dispute with Social Security concerning your benefits, contact Kalishlaw to discuss your situation.

This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Social Security rules and applicable earnings amounts can change, and the effect of work activity depends on the facts of each individual case.