1. Public Benefits Not Affected by Alimony or Support:
Social Security Insurance Benefits (OASDI)
Medicare
Affected by Alimony and Support:
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
Medicaid
TANF and State General Relief

2. Social Security Insurance
Social Security Retirement (SSRI)
Social Security Disability (SSDI)
Social Security Dependents and Survivors Benefits

3. Social Security Insurance
Must Have Insured Status as Worker
Gained by working and paying FICA taxes and earning quarters of coverage.
40 quarters of credit for full coverage
Retirement Age 62 and over
Disability must begin within proximity to work coverage
Medicare Health Insurance Coverage

4. Social Security Insurance Dependent’s and Survivors Benefits
Child’s and Disabled Adult Child’s (DAC) Benefits
Disabled Widow or Widower Age Benefits
Wife’s, Husband’s, Widow’s, Widower’s, Surviving Divorced Wife and Husband, Parent’s Benefits

5. Social Security Dependents’ and Survivors’ Benefits
Child’s Benefits
Child can be stepchild, adopted, or grandchild under certain circumstances
Child must be dependent upon parent
Unmarried
Under age 19, in elementary or secondary school
Parent must be currently receiving benefits or insured at time of death

6. Social Security Dependents’ and Survivors’ Benefits
Disabled Adult Child’s (DAC) Benefits
Same requirements as “child” except that child must have become disabled prior to age 22 and disability not have ended prior to receiving benefits
Unmarried, or married to SS Dependent or Survivor Beneficiary
If disability ends after benefits begin, child can become re-entitled to benefits if child becomes disabled again

7. Social Security Dependents’ and Survivors’ Benefits
Disabled Widow or Widower
Age Benefits
Survivor benefits for disabled surviving spouse of deceased worker
Individual must meet standard adult definition of disability
Individual must not be remarried prior to eligibility

8. SSDI, DAC, Widow(er) or SSI Disability
Inability to do any work based on physical and mental impairments
Must last 1 year or longer or result in death
Age, education, and prior work experience are factors
Five part analysis for disability

9. Medicare Health Insurance
Federal Health Insurance Program
Social Security Retirement age 65 and over
Social Security Disability 24 months and more
No waiting period for ALS and renal dialysis with disability
Part A, Part B, Part D
Monthly Premium for Part B ($93.50 in 2007)
Limited Coverage of Medical Services
Secondary To Private Health Insurance, but primary to Medicaid

10. Supplemental Security Income
Aged, blind, disabled
No prior work record required
Can be eligible for SS Insurance also
Resource and income test
Resources and income deemed to spouse or children under 18 living in household
Automatic Medicaid eligibility

11. SSI Difference Between Resources and Income
Income is anything received from any source in the month being considered
A resource is anything that the individual owns or retains from one month to the next after the month of receipt

12. SSI Resource Limits Resource limits: $2,000.00 for an individual
$3, for a couple
Many resources are excluded from being countable.

13. Excluded Resources for SSI
Examples of excluded resources include a personal residence, a vehicle, special items or devices needed due to medical condition, clothing, household items and personal affects of ordinary value, burial plot and burial contract, $1,500. in life insurance, retained retroactive SS benefits, and many more

14. SSI Definition of Income
Income is any item an individual receives each month in cash or on his or her behalf that could be used to meet needs for food or shelter
Countable income reduces the monthly benefit dollar for dollar unless it is specifically excluded

15. SSI Countable Income Examples
Wages or Royalties
Social Security Insurance
Annuity and Pension
Alimony
Two-thirds of Child Support
Dividends or interest
Prizes and gifts
Trust distributions
In-kind shelter or food
Income deemed from a parent or spouse

16. SSI Deemed Income
Income of parent living in household countable for eligibility until:
As soon as a child reaches age 18, parental deeming no longer occurs.
One-third of child support disregarded until age 18, or if the child remains a full time student in school up to age 22

17. PARENTS’ INCOME TREATMENT:
Parent-to-Child Deeming – 2007
PARENTS’ INCOME TREATMENT:
Allocation for non–SSI-eligible children living in the same household as the SSI-eligible child is $311. for calendar year Allocations are reduced by the non–SSI eligible child’s own income and the allocation is not available to a child who receives public maintenance assistance payments.
In calendar year 2007, the federal benefit rate (FBR) for an individual is $623.

18. Alimony for Donna
Child support for Sarah
Child support for Tim
Total
$1000.
200.
$1400.
1/3 child support deduction
for Sarah
$ 66.
Parent allocation for Donna
$623.
Dependent allocation for Tim
$311.
General exclusion
Total allocation amount
-1000.
Deemed income to Sarah
   380.
Sarah’s full benefit rate
Sarah’s SSI Benefit payable
$ 243.

19. SSI In-Kind Income
“In-kind” income is the provision of goods or services by a third party
In-kind income providing food or shelter reduces the benefit up to a maximum limit of $ (in 2007) each month

20. Court Process and Public Benefits
Court ordered divisions of property do not create benefit eligibility transfer penalties
Court separation or child support order, or divorce decree, not required to create division of households for benefit eligibility purposes
SSI follows state law in interpreting judicial orders for lawful division of property and countability
Court order putting income and resources into a SNT for benefit of recipient creates exclusion of countability until distributed

21. Effect of Child Support and Alimony on SSI Benefits
100% of alimony is countable as income to spouse, and can also be deemed to eligible child
2/3 of child support provided by an absent parent to child is countable until age 18, and 100% thereafter
In-kind alimony and child support for food and shelter reduces benefits up to $ max.
Child support to ineligible sibling is not countable
If child relocates with other parent, benefits must be recalculated

22. Strategies for Benefit Eligibility with Child Support and Alimony
Facts are important! Each case is different
Only income and resources of recipient’s household are counted
All needs based benefit programs use income made directly to the recipient as an eligibility factor
Consider “in-kind” income distributions as generally being more favorable to program eligibility
Supplemental needs trusts can convert countable income and resources to a more favorable use
Medicaid and SSA could have different interpretations even though both use the same law

23. Additional Strategies
Home, vehicle, and household goods are not countable resources for any program
SSI rules allow transfers without penalty to spouse not living in household even though spouses income and resources not deemed to recipient
“In-kind” payments only cause limited reduction
Payment of loans reduce countable assets
Gifts only cause max. SSI 3 year disqualification

24. CASE EXAMPLE 1
Robert, a 17 year-old child on SSI, recently became a child of divorce. The parents’ divorce decree orders the father to pay $726/month child support, but stipulates a dollar-for-dollar offset between SSI and child support. (We think the lawyers and court didn’t know that SSI was means-tested). So Dad intends to pay $103 per month ($726 - $623).
When mom reported the child support last August to SSI, SSI was initially reduced by $49. Reducing the SSI, of course, increased the dad’s support obligation by $49 which reduced SSI by another $32. In January, the caseworker asked to see the court order and counted the entire amount ordered and reduced the SSI by $464. ($726 – $242(one third) - $20 (disregard) = $464 countable income). Robert was assessed an overpayment of $2,400.
Robert’s mother wants the most money she can get to help raise her disabled child, regardless of the source. She wants her ex-husband to be assessed an arrearage for the full amount of $726/month back to August, and to pay the full amount of $726 going forward.
What alternatives do you present to her? Would you present different alternatives if Robert were 23 years old?