📋 Social Security Considers Disability Insurance Changes (AARP Article)

[Fall2025VA]

FROM THE ARTICLE.

Social Security Weighs Major Changes to Disability Rules.

Advocates say regulations could affect hundreds of thousands of older adults sidelined from work by illness or injury.

By Sharon Jayson, AARP. Published October 30, 2025.

Potential changes in how the Social Security Administration (SSA) evaluates disability claims could deny benefits to hundreds of thousands of people and disproportionately affect older adults, according to a new study.

The September analysis by the Urban Institute, a Washington, D.C.–based think tank, reports that the SSA is drafting rule changes that could lessen the weight the agency gives to age in considering applications for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Those are the two Social Security–administered benefits for people whose ability to work is limited by a severe medical condition.

USE LINK BELOW TO READ THE ARTICLE.

https://www.aarp.org/social-security/ssa-weighs-disability-insurance-changes/ 

[GailL1]

This AARP article seems to be jumping the gun and is addressing things that may or may not be done at all.  Personally, I think we have better things to contemplate than what hasn’t even been proposed formally.  

I don’t think that I have to tell the organization of AARP that much comes from the development of ideas but until that development is finalized, any reforms could go in a lot of different directions.  So, yes, AARP, you are jumping the gun here.

With that in mind, how about looking at the age/benefits conflict in the SSDI program that makes people of a certain age get into this situation  and perhaps just remove this incentive and see how that affects their decision for an SSDI filing.

For those nearing retirement age (early), there is an incentive to file for SSDI rather than Social Security Retirement because of the amount rewarded - one gets their WHOLE retirement benefit amount if they file for and receive SSDI whereas filing for Social Security Retirement benefits EARLY reaps a reduction for this early filing.  So if we have brownie points given for an SSDI claim based on age, perhaps we need to get rid of this financial incentive and award them exactly what early retirement would give them under either of the programs - SSDI or Social Security Retirement.  That way, at least the financial incentive to file for SSDI instead of SS Retirement is more equalized.

[Josna136136 · Accepted solution]

It's a sad time in America when society believes those on ssdi just did it for monetary gain. I gather that's why considerations to make it even harder for those to receive benefits. Nor should ssdi pay same as ssi. 

[GailL1]

This is only a discussion about those external conditions aside from any disability that affects the choice of the individual in how they might file for specific benefits and how those external conditions are used in any disability assessment.  IOW, it is a filing strategy - like many other filing strategies within the Social Security System - not so much for Supplemental Security Income.

It is a fact that if one does it one way rather than another - their benefit is larger - so yes, making a decision as to how to apply for the larger SSDI benefit is a consideration in this process for many - especially those at age 62.

Those that are deemed terminal or have any one of the many conditions listed on the SSA.gov Compassionate Allowance List - don’t really have anything else considered for approval.  They are approved pretty much instantaneous but still have to wait the 5-months to get benefits unless they have the diagnosis of ALS.

But for those outside of this realm - do you think that age and/or education should be used in the determination of disability?  Or are these measures rather discriminatory?  

No SSI and SSDI do not pay the same - completely different disability programs - one is an earned benefit and the other is welfare benefit - the only discussion I have heard about this is that the SSI benefit needs to be somewhat higher especially since SSI is also offset by in-kind payments.  However, the disability determination is pretty much the same - same with the appeals process, I believe too.

Perhaps we should make it so that most everybody that is age 62 just file for BOTH SSDI and early Social Security retirement and see if they can get the one with the higher benefit computation (SSDI) - that is what many people do now - They get their SS early (reduced) retirement benefits pretty readily and then IF they are sometimes down the road approved, via appeals and adjudication, for the SSDI benefits, they are switched to the SSDI (full) benefits with backpay back to the date of disability.  

Doing it this way still puts them at an advantage since the CDR (Continuing Disability Review) process is pretty much eliminated at the higher ages - especially at 62 and higher.

I just think that for these higher aged claimants of SSDI, we could save a lot of time and money if we would just grant them a disability benefit that is perhaps based on a different calculation - more than early retirement but perhaps less than full SSDI calculation - with the offset being that they can get it pretty much right away, without all the law needs, without the need of many CDR’s, but it would still have a higher earnings test built into it - since not being able to work would still be a standard.  At least up to the SGA limit.   

For SSI - it is what it is - don’t see how it can be changed much -