When Your Benefits Start
If your application is approved, your first Social Security benefit will be paid for the sixth full month after the date we find that your disability began.
For example, if your disability began on June 15, 2018, your first benefit would be paid for the month of December 2018, the sixth full month of disability.
Social Security benefits are paid in the month following the month for which they're due. This means that the benefit due for December would be paid to you in January 2019, and so on.
How Much You Will Receive
The amount of your monthly disability benefit is based on your lifetime average earnings covered by Social Security.
If you don't already have an estimate, you can get your Social Security Statement online with your personal my Social Security account or use our Benefit Calculators to determine how much you would get if you became disabled right now.
Other Payments May Affect Your Disability Benefits
If you receive certain other government benefits, such as workers' compensation, public disability benefits, or pensions based on work not covered by Social Security (for example, some government or foreign employment), the Social Security benefits payable to you and your family may be reduced.
For more information about how these benefits can affect your Social Security payments, refer to the following publications:
- How Workers' Compensation And Other Disability Payments May Affect Your Benefit;
- Windfall Elimination Provision; or
- Government Pension Offset.
Related Information
Medicare Coverage If You're Disabled
We automatically enroll you in Medicare after you get disability benefits for two years. The two parts of Medicare we enroll you in are hospital insurance and medical insurance.
- Hospital insurance (Part A) helps pay for inpatient hospital bills and some follow-up care. The taxes you paid while you were working financed this coverage, so it is provided at no cost to you.
- Medical insurance (Part B) helps pay doctors' bills, outpatient hospital care, and other medical services. You will need to pay a monthly premium for this coverage if you want it.
Most people have both parts of Medicare. If you have questions about this coverage, you can contact Medicare toll-free at
The Other Parts of Medicare
Medicare Advantage (Part C). People with Medicare Parts A and Part B can choose to receive all of their health care services through plans that are offered by private companies and approved by Medicare. For more information, we recommend you read Medicare's How do Medicare Advantage Plans work?
Prescription Drug Coverage (Part D) helps pay for medications doctors prescribe for treatment. For more information on the enrollment periods for Part D, we recommend you read Medicare's How to get drug coverage page.
If you receive Medicare and have limited resources and income, you may be eligible for Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Costs.
Help For Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries
If you get Medicare and have low-income and few resources, your state may pay your Medicare premiums and, in some cases, other Medicare costs for which you are normally responsible such as deductibles and coinsurance.
Only your state can decide if you qualify for this assistance. To find out if you do, contact your state or local welfare office or Medicaid agency.
For additional information about the program, please go to the Medicare's Get help paying costs page.
If you need additional information about the other parts of Medicare, please read the "Who Can Get Medicare?" section of our Medicare booklet or visit Medicare.gov.