Annual Statistical Report on the Social Security Disability Insurance Program, 2017

Benefits Awarded, Withheld, and Terminated

Chart 8. Social Security disability awards, 1980–2017

Overall, the number of disability awards has risen from 446,083 in 1980 to 812,019 in 2017. Fluctuations during that period were predominately driven by changes in the number of awards to disabled workers. In 2017, there were 715,921 awards to disabled workers; 67,648 awards to disabled adult children; and 28,450 awards to disabled widow(er)s.

Line chart with tabular version below.
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Table equivalent for Chart 8. Social Security disability awards, 1980–2017 (thousands)
Year Total Disabled workers Disabled widow(er)s Disabled adult children
1980 446.08 396.56 16.05 33.47
1981 396.55 351.85 14.15 30.55
1982 338.28 297.13 12.44 28.71
1983 359.60 311.55 14.41 33.64
1984 415.59 362.00 17.17 36.43
1985 433.54 377.37 17.09 39.08
1986 475.81 416.87 18.42 40.53
1987 471.91 415.85 16.40 39.67
1988 463.52 409.49 15.33 38.70
1989 477.75 425.58 15.17 37.00
1990 522.17 467.98 15.42 38.77
1991 607.11 536.43 29.59 41.09
1992 716.88 636.64 33.24 47.01
1993 714.32 635.24 31.84 47.25
1994 706.26 631.87 29.90 44.48
1995 718.70 645.83 29.60 43.28
1996 693.53 624.34 28.61 40.58
1997 654.66 587.42 28.55 38.70
1998 677.47 608.13 29.40 39.94
1999 691.89 620.49 29.65 41.75
2000 675.60 610.70 27.60 37.30
2001 732.70 661.90 26.50 44.30
2002 805.31 730.38 28.34 46.59
2003 829.83 755.71 27.32 46.80
2004 854.87 775.24 27.74 51.88
2005 909.68 821.21 29.58 58.90
2006 885.88 798.68 28.68 58.52
2007 901.11 804.79 28.81 67.52
2008 987.53 877.23 30.61 79.69
2009 1,081.98 970.70 31.52 79.77
2010 1,141.93 1,026.99 33.26 81.68
2011 1,114.06 998.98 33.18 81.90
2012 1,063.05 960.21 33.20 69.64
2013 965.19 868.97 31.60 64.63
2014 869.37 778.80 29.67 60.90
2015 839.43 741.48 30.40 67.55
2016 799.33 706.45 28.51 64.37
2017 812.02 715.92 28.45 67.65
 
SOURCE: Table 35.
Chart 9. Average monthly benefit awards, by sex, 2017

The average monthly benefit awarded to disabled workers is higher than that awarded to disabled widow(er)s or disabled adult children. The reason for the difference is that disabled workers receive 100 percent of the primary insurance amount, compared with 71.5 percent for disabled widow(er)s and 50 percent for disabled adult children (if the worker is disabled or retired) or 75 percent (if the worker is deceased).

Because men have traditionally had higher earnings than women, their monthly benefit is higher. This is most obvious in the disabled-worker group. Benefits for disabled widow(er)s and disabled adult children are dependents' benefits, so their monthly benefit is a function of the worker's earnings. Therefore, a disabled widow's average benefit tends to be higher than that of a disabled widower because a male worker's earnings are higher than a female worker's. Benefit amounts are about the same for men and women in the disabled adult children group.

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Table equivalent for Chart 9. Average monthly benefit awards, by sex, 2017 (dollars)
Beneficiary Men Women
Disabled workers 1,472.02 1,168.93
Disabled widow(er)s 548.53 747.78
Disabled adult children 578.06 583.78
 
SOURCE: Table 36.
Chart 10. Disabled-worker awards, by selected diagnostic group, 2017

In 2017, benefits were awarded to 715,921 disabled workers. Among those awardees, the most common impairment was diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (36.7 percent), followed by mental disorders (15.2 percent), neoplasms (11.2 percent), diseases of the circulatory system (10.3 percent), and diseases of the nervous system and sense organs (8.9 percent). The remaining 17.8 percent of awardees had other impairments.

Two pie charts. The first pie has 6 slices described in the previous paragraph. The second pie breaks out the mental disorders category and these values are provided in the table below.
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Table equivalent for second pie illustrated in Chart 10. Disabled-worker awards, by selected diagnostic group, 2017: Mental disorders category only
Diagnostic group Percent
Mood disorders 6.1
Organic mental disorders 2.3
Schizophrenic and other psychotic disorders 1.8
Other 2.9
Autistic disorders 0.4
Developmental disorders 0.1
Childhood and adolescent disorders not elsewhere classified 0.1
Intellectual disability 1.4
 
SOURCE: Table 37.
NOTE: Totals do not necessarily equal the sum of the rounded components.