The Time Between Disability Onset and Application for Benefits: How Variation Among Disabled Workers May Inform Early Intervention Policies
by Matt Messel and Alexander Strand
Social Security Bulletin, Vol. 79 No. 3, 2019
Social Security Bulletin, Vol. 79 No. 3, 2019
Months after onset | Percent in month | Cumulative percentage |
---|---|---|
0 | 14.20 | 14.20 |
1 | 8.35 | 22.55 |
2 | 6.51 | 29.06 |
3 | 5.22 | 34.28 |
4 | 4.75 | 39.03 |
5 | 4.38 | 43.42 |
6 | 4.29 | 47.71 |
7 | 3.63 | 51.33 |
8 | 3.18 | 54.51 |
9 | 2.89 | 57.39 |
10 | 2.58 | 59.97 |
11 | 2.56 | 62.53 |
12 | 2.59 | 65.12 |
13 | 2.28 | 67.40 |
14 | 1.95 | 69.36 |
15 | 1.76 | 71.12 |
16 | 1.65 | 72.77 |
17 | 1.52 | 74.29 |
18 | 1.39 | 75.68 |
19 | 1.24 | 76.92 |
20 | 1.16 | 78.07 |
21 | 1.03 | 79.11 |
22 | 0.99 | 80.10 |
23 | 0.93 | 81.03 |
24 | 0.99 | 82.02 |
25 | 0.87 | 82.88 |
26 | 0.78 | 83.66 |
27 | 0.76 | 84.42 |
28 | 0.69 | 85.11 |
29 | 0.67 | 85.78 |
30 | 0.62 | 86.40 |
31 | 0.59 | 86.99 |
32 | 0.58 | 87.57 |
33 | 0.52 | 88.09 |
34 | 0.53 | 88.62 |
35 | 0.49 | 89.11 |
36 | 0.53 | 89.64 |
37 | 0.47 | 90.11 |
38 | 0.45 | 90.56 |
39 | 0.42 | 90.98 |
40 | 0.39 | 91.37 |
41 | 0.38 | 91.75 |
42 | 0.36 | 92.11 |
43 | 0.35 | 92.46 |
44 | 0.33 | 92.80 |
45 | 0.33 | 93.12 |
46 | 0.30 | 93.43 |
47 | 0.30 | 93.72 |
48 | 0.34 | 94.06 |
49 | 0.29 | 94.35 |
50 | 0.28 | 94.64 |
51 | 0.26 | 94.90 |
52 | 0.25 | 95.15 |
53 | 0.23 | 95.38 |
54 | 0.23 | 95.62 |
55 | 0.21 | 95.83 |
56 | 0.20 | 96.03 |
57 | 0.20 | 96.23 |
58 | 0.19 | 96.42 |
59 | 0.19 | 96.61 |
60 | 0.18 | 96.79 |
SOURCE: Authors' calculations using Adult Disability Report data. |
Age at onset | 25th Percentile | Median | 75th Percentile |
---|---|---|---|
25 | 3.420 | 11.304 | 27.000 |
26 | 3.552 | 11.592 | 27.360 |
27 | 3.516 | 11.508 | 27.240 |
28 | 3.552 | 11.400 | 26.160 |
29 | 3.552 | 11.436 | 26.400 |
30 | 3.324 | 10.908 | 25.080 |
31 | 3.348 | 10.896 | 24.480 |
32 | 3.420 | 10.680 | 24.240 |
33 | 3.216 | 10.392 | 24.120 |
34 | 3.384 | 10.416 | 23.880 |
35 | 3.252 | 10.380 | 24.000 |
36 | 3.120 | 10.320 | 24.060 |
37 | 3.384 | 10.740 | 25.440 |
38 | 3.444 | 10.836 | 25.440 |
39 | 3.552 | 11.076 | 25.680 |
40 | 3.552 | 11.004 | 25.440 |
41 | 3.324 | 10.344 | 24.240 |
42 | 3.252 | 10.020 | 23.520 |
43 | 3.084 | 9.852 | 23.760 |
44 | 3.156 | 10.056 | 24.360 |
45 | 3.252 | 10.560 | 25.320 |
46 | 3.288 | 10.512 | 25.080 |
47 | 3.288 | 10.344 | 24.240 |
48 | 2.988 | 9.624 | 22.320 |
49 | 2.820 | 8.940 | 21.240 |
50 | 2.592 | 8.316 | 19.920 |
51 | 2.532 | 8.052 | 19.440 |
52 | 2.460 | 7.848 | 18.720 |
53 | 2.328 | 7.524 | 17.880 |
54 | 2.196 | 7.032 | 16.920 |
55 | 2.136 | 6.864 | 16.680 |
56 | 2.040 | 6.600 | 15.840 |
57 | 1.944 | 6.312 | 15.120 |
58 | 1.872 | 6.048 | 14.160 |
59 | 1.704 | 5.484 | 12.600 |
60 | 1.548 | 4.956 | 11.304 |
61 | 1.248 | 3.972 | 8.940 |
62 | 1.212 | 4.308 | 10.320 |
63 | 1.152 | 3.780 | 8.448 |
64 | 0.924 | 2.928 | 6.540 |
SOURCE: Authors' calculations using Adult Disability Report data. |
Characteristic | Less than 6 months | 6–11 months | 12–23 months | 24 months or more |
---|---|---|---|---|
EAO beneficiaries | ||||
All | 36 | 18 | 20 | 26 |
Men | 37 | 17 | 20 | 26 |
Women | 36 | 18 | 20 | 26 |
Less than high school | 32 | 17 | 21 | 30 |
High school | 34 | 18 | 21 | 27 |
Less than 4 years of college | 35 | 19 | 21 | 25 |
At least 4 years of college | 37 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
Intellectual disability | 34 | 15 | 19 | 32 |
Mental disorders | 32 | 18 | 22 | 28 |
Back impairments | 28 | 19 | 23 | 30 |
Arthritis | 28 | 18 | 23 | 31 |
Metabolic or endocrine disorders | 37 | 16 | 18 | 29 |
Respiratory impairments | 35 | 17 | 20 | 28 |
Injuries | 41 | 19 | 20 | 20 |
Cardiovascular impairments | 50 | 15 | 15 | 20 |
Neoplasms | 60 | 19 | 12 | 9 |
Sensory impairments | 45 | 16 | 16 | 23 |
Other impairments | 40 | 18 | 19 | 23 |
Worked after onset | 22 | 15 | 22 | 41 |
LAO beneficiaries | ||||
All | 48 | 20 | 17 | 15 |
Men | 49 | 20 | 17 | 14 |
Women | 47 | 20 | 18 | 15 |
Less than high school | 48 | 18 | 18 | 16 |
High school | 48 | 20 | 17 | 15 |
Less than 4 years of college | 46 | 21 | 18 | 15 |
At least 4 years of college | 45 | 22 | 18 | 15 |
Intellectual disability | 44 | 16 | 18 | 22 |
Mental disorders | 39 | 21 | 21 | 19 |
Back impairments | 41 | 22 | 20 | 17 |
Arthritis | 41 | 21 | 20 | 18 |
Metabolic or endocrine disorders | 53 | 17 | 16 | 14 |
Respiratory impairments | 44 | 19 | 19 | 18 |
Injuries | 49 | 22 | 17 | 12 |
Cardiovascular impairments | 59 | 17 | 13 | 11 |
Neoplasms | 66 | 19 | 10 | 5 |
Sensory impairments | 50 | 18 | 16 | 16 |
Other impairments | 50 | 19 | 17 | 14 |
Worked after onset | 34 | 19 | 22 | 25 |
SOURCE: Authors' calculations using Adult Disability Report data. |
Characteristic | Percentage working after onset— | Average months worked | |
---|---|---|---|
Without modified hours or responsibilities | With modifications | ||
EAO beneficiaries | |||
All | 9 | 15 | 11.0 |
Men | 9 | 14 | 11.5 |
Women | 10 | 17 | 10.7 |
Less than high school | 11 | 13 | 12.0 |
High school | 10 | 15 | 11.3 |
Less than 4 years of college | 9 | 17 | 10.2 |
At least 4 years of college | 7 | 17 | 10.2 |
Intellectual disability | 21 | 15 | 17.1 |
Mental disorders | 11 | 17 | 12.0 |
Back impairments | 9 | 16 | 11.8 |
Arthritis | 9 | 16 | 12.0 |
Metabolic or endocrine disorders | 11 | 16 | 11.9 |
Respiratory impairments | 10 | 16 | 11.0 |
Injuries | 7 | 11 | 11.0 |
Cardiovascular impairments | 8 | 12 | 9.1 |
Neoplasms | 7 | 12 | 4.3 |
Sensory impairments | 12 | 14 | 10.3 |
Other impairments | 10 | 16 | 10.0 |
LAO beneficiaries | |||
All | 6 | 11 | 6.2 |
Men | 6 | 10 | 6.0 |
Women | 7 | 13 | 6.4 |
Less than high school | 7 | 10 | 6.5 |
High school | 6 | 11 | 6.3 |
Less than 4 years of college | 6 | 12 | 6.6 |
At least 4 years of college | 6 | 12 | 6.9 |
Intellectual disability | 15 | 17 | 10.2 |
Mental disorders | 7 | 11 | 8.2 |
Back impairments | 6 | 11 | 7.0 |
Arthritis | 7 | 12 | 7.7 |
Metabolic or endocrine disorders | 7 | 12 | 5.9 |
Respiratory impairments | 7 | 11 | 7.3 |
Injuries | 5 | 8 | 6.5 |
Cardiovascular impairments | 6 | 9 | 5.3 |
Neoplasms | 6 | 11 | 2.9 |
Sensory impairments | 6 | 12 | 6.1 |
Other impairments | 6 | 12 | 6.1 |
SOURCE: Authors' calculations using Adult Disability Report data. |
Subgroup | Work after onset | No work after onset |
---|---|---|
Intellectual disability | 1,438 | 2,503 |
Mental disorders | 47,712 | 124,138 |
Back impairments | 44,319 | 138,219 |
Arthritis | 22,292 | 65,499 |
Less than high school education | 36,304 | 114,544 |
SOURCE: Authors' calculations using Adult Disability Report data. |