December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report

December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Report Update

The December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report from the Social Security Administration is here, along with our analysis. Below, we’ll show how federal disability beneficiary numbers and payment amounts changed since last month. We analyze these reports so disability recipients can compare their benefits against the national average. To do this, we’ll include data for both programs: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).



December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Update

Total Number of Social Security Disability Beneficiaries: 9,925,000

Disabled Workers: 8,378,000

Spouses of Disabled Workers: 113,000

Children of Disabled Workers: 1,434,000

Average Monthly Social Security Disability Benefit Amount: $1,122.23

Disabled Workers: $1,257.65

Spouses of Disabled Workers: $362.14

Children of Disabled Workers: $390.92

How the December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Report Affects Beneficiaries

The December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report shows the second-biggest drop in total beneficiaries we saw this year. Overall, 31,000 fewer people received Social Security disability in December than November 2019. Disabled workers lost the most recipients month-over-month (27,000 beneficiaries). Children of disabled workers lost 3,000 beneficiaries between November and December. Another surprise? December’s report shows 1,000 fewer spousal beneficiaries getting paid SSD benefits each month. In fact, this is the lowest number of spousal beneficiaries ever recorded!

December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics - Total Monthly Beneficiaries

But let’s take a closer look at spousal category changes in the December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report. Surprisingly, about 9% of spousal beneficiaries are husbands; their average monthly SSD payment is $396.23. Wives make up the remaining 91%, averaging $358.73 in SSD payments every month.

December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics: Looking Deeper at the Monetary Stats

The December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report shows plenty of raises, thanks to this month’s 1.6% COLA increase. SSD payments for all beneficiaries nationwide rose $17.63 this month, on average. Disabled workers got the biggest pay boost, receiving $19.69 more this month compared to November. Spousal beneficiaries got $5.93 added to December’s checks, while the SSA paid children $6.80 more compared to last month:

December 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics - Monthly Monetary Average

Men in the disabled workers group received $1,384.35 in monthly SSD benefits for December. Contrast that with women in the same category, whose Social Security disability payments averaged $1,128.39/month nationwide.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Data in the December 2019 Report

Now, let’s review Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program changes in the December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report. Unlike the last few months, most SSI age groups added new beneficiaries in December. Nationwide, 6,000 more people received SSI benefits in December than November. Children saw the biggest jump in new SSI recipients, added 7,000 beneficiaries since November. However, losses in the 18-64 category completely offset those gains. Another 3,000 new SSI recipients joined the 65+ category based on age alone this month:

Total SSI beneficiaries: 8,077,000 (+6,000)

Children under 18 receiving SSI: 1,132,000 (+7,000)

SSI recipients aged 18-64: 4,647,000 (-4,000)

SSI recipients aged 65+: 2,298,000 (+3,000)

The December 2019 SSD benefits statistics report doesn’t show any pay increases for SSI recipients just yet. (We expect to see those COLA-driven benefit raises in next month’s report.) Children in the under-18 category had the biggest SSI benefits cut, losing $6.53 this month. The remaining groups that depend on SSI each month each showed modest pay cuts compared to November. Total SSI beneficiary payments fell $1.70 month-over-month, on average. Working-age SSI beneficiaries got paid $1.19 less in December, and seniors aged 65+ received $.65 less this month.

Legal assistance from a Social Security attorney makes you 3x more likely to get benefits on your very first try. All disability lawyers work on contingency and offer free, no-obligation consultations to answer all your claim questions. Plus, an attorney knows if there’s any way to speed up your claim and get your first payment faster!

Contingency-based help means a lawyer can’t charge you for legal assistance unless your claim’s approved. If your case doesn’t win, you’ll owe $0 in legal fees. And if you win, then you’ll only pay a small, one-time fee.

Ready to see if you may qualify? Click the button below to start your free disability benefits evaluation now:

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Lori Polemenakos is Director of Consumer Content and SEO strategist for LeadingResponse, a legal marketing company. An award-winning journalist, writer and editor based in Dallas, Texas, she's produced articles for major brands such as Match.com, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL, Xfinity, Mail.com, and edited several published books. Since 2016, she's published hundreds of articles about Social Security disability, workers' compensation, veterans' benefits, personal injury, mass tort, auto accident claims, bankruptcy, employment law and other related legal issues.