February 2019 SSD benefits statistics report

February 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Report Update

Let’s review the February 2019 SSD benefits statistics report from the Social Security Administration (SSA). This monthly update shows how beneficiary numbers and average payment amounts changed over the last 30 days. Anyone getting SSD can then compare monthly payments against the national average. We’ll explain how these numbers changed in our analysis below.



February 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Update

Total Number of Social Security Disability Beneficiaries: 10,137,000

Disabled Workers: 8,511,000

Spouses of Disabled Workers: 117,000

Children of Disabled Workers: 1,510,000

Average Monthly Social Security Disability Benefit Amount: $1,097.10

Disabled Workers: $1,234.13

Spouses of Disabled Workers: $350.72

Children of Disabled Workers: $382.39

How the February 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics Report Affects Beneficiaries

The February 2019 SSD benefits statistics report shows yet another big drop in total beneficiaries. About 10,000 fewer disabled workers received SSD payments. However, the spouse category stayed flat. Children added another 2,000 claimants this month (twice as much as January 2019).

February 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics - Total Monthly Beneficiaries

The SSA also removes fraudulent, disqualified and dead beneficiaries from the rolls between these monthly reports.

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

The February 2019 SSD benefits statistics report shows average total payments fell $.04 this month. However, every individual category saw their checks go up since January. Disabled workers got the smallest bump in pay at just $.14 this month, followed by spouses at $.17 more. Children got a decent raise for February, with another $.47 added to this month’s average benefit payment.

February 2019 SSD Benefits Statistics - Monthly Monetary Average

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Numbers in the February 2019 Report

We haven’t covered SSI beneficiary numbers before, but will start with the February 2019 SSD benefits statistics report. It showed 8,112,000 total SSI beneficiaries receiving $566.40/month, on average. See the number of beneficiaries and average payment amounts for each age range in our chart below:

These eligibility characteristics make SSI beneficiaries different than others listed in the 2019 SSD benefits statistics report:

  • Must own less than $2,000 in assets per claimant (or $3,000 for couples)
  • Is over age 65, blind or has a disability expected to last at least 12 months or result in death
  • Receives less than $1,220/month from all income sources combined (SNAP, TANF, child support/alimony payments, etc.)

In addition, SSI payments come from the U.S. Treasury’s general funds, not the Social Security trust fund. The SSA manages both disability benefit programs for the U.S. federal government. The maximum SSI payment in 2019 is $771/month for each person. For couples, the max SSI benefit is $1,157/month.

Your best chance for winning benefits the first time you apply is with legal assistance from a Social Security attorney. These lawyers always work on contingency, so you’ll never pay for a consultation to get answers for your claim questions. If the SSA already denied your claim, know that lawyers represent 4 out of 5 winning disability appeals cases. Plus, our attorneys will only accept cases they think qualify for benefits and charge nothing upfront. So if you do win, 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.