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One of the biggest concerns SSI beneficiaries have about going to work is the possibility of losing Medicaid coverage. Section 1619(b) of the Social Security Act provides some protection for these beneficiaries. To qualify for continuing Medicaid coverage, a person must:

  • Have been eligible for an SSI cash payment for at least 1 month;
  • Still meet the disability requirement; and
  • Still meet all other non-disability SSI requirements; and
  • Need Medicaid benefits to continue to work; and
  • Have gross earnings that are insufficient to replace SSI, Medicaid and publicly funded attendant care services.

This means that SSI beneficiaries who have earnings too high for a SSI cash payment may be eligible for Medicaid if they meet the above requirements. SSA uses a threshold amount to measure whether a person’s earnings are high enough to replace his/her SSI and Medicaid benefits. This threshold is based on the:

  • amount of earnings which would cause SSI cash payments to stop in the person’s State; and
  • average Medicaid expenses in that State.

If a SSI beneficiary has gross earnings higher than the threshold amount for his/her State, SSA can figure an individual threshold amount if that person has:

We’ve shown the 2008 and 2009 threshold amounts for each State below for disabled and blind beneficiaries. (Please note that five states have separate threshold amounts for blind beneficiaries.) We usually update these amounts annually for the prior calendar year. These amounts continue in effect until replaced with the next year’s amounts when they become available.


2009 1619(b) THRESHOLD AMOUNTS FOR DISABLED SSI BENEFICIARIES


STATE

THRESHOLD ($)

ALABAMA

24,293

ALASKA

53,808

ARIZONA

28,114

ARKANSAS

27,623

CALIFORNIA

34,788

COLORADO

30,201

CONNECTICUT

53,537

DELAWARE

34,945

D.C.

40,459

FLORIDA

28,075

GEORGIA

26,816

HAWAII

32,927

IDAHO

36,226

ILLINOIS

26,852

INDIANA

32,615

IOWA

29,680

KANSAS

34,133

KENTUCKY

26,190

LOUISIANA

27,654

MAINE

42,287

MARYLAND

37,517

MASSACHUSETTS

37,757

MICHIGAN

27,653

MINNESSOTA

46,694

MISSISSIPPI

25,634

MISSOURI

30,877

MONTANA

28,682

NEBRASKA

35,430

NEVADA

32,448

NEW HAMPSHIRE

39,882

NEW JERSEY

34,284

NEW MEXICO

33,533

NEW YORK

43,421

NORTH CAROLINA

33,226

NORTH DAKOTA

38,040

OHIO

33,194

OKLAHOMA

26,031

OREGON

29,050

PENNSYLVANIA

28,699

RHODE ISLAND

36,604

SOUTH CAROLINA

26,267

SOUTH DAKOTA

30,806

TENNESSEE

25,146

TEXAS

29,152

UTAH

28,860

VERMONT

37,006

VIRGINIA

30,478

WASHINGTON

28,080

WEST VIRGINIA

26,980

WISCONSIN

32,156

WYOMING

30,492

NO.MARIANA ISL.

17,196

 

2009 1619(b) THRESHOLD AMOUNTS FOR BLIND SSI BENEFICIARIES

STATE

THRESHOLD ($)

CALIFORNIA

36,348

IOWA

30,208

MASSACHUSETTS

38,260

NEVADA

35,071

OREGON

29,650

 

2008 1619(b) THRESHOLD AMOUNTS FOR DISABLED SSI BENEFICIARIES


State

Threshold ($)

ALABAMA

23,363

ALASKA

53,821

ARIZONA

28,171

ARKANSAS

26,388

CALIFORNIA

34,346

COLORADO

29,409

CONNECTICUT

53,631

DELAWARE

33,317

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

39,311

FLORIDA

27,655

GEORGIA

27,646

HAWAII

30,540

IDAHO

36,562

ILLINOIS

31,200

INDIANA

32,148

IOWA

30,688

KANSAS

31,870

KENTUCKY

25,386

LOUISIANA

27,166

MAINE

41,139

MARYLAND

35,962

MASSACHUSETTS

36.056

MICHIGAN

26,318

MINNESOTA

44,799

MISSISSIPPI

24,963

MISSOURI

30,454

MONTANA

28,212

NEBRASKA

33,015

NEVADA

29,850

NEW HAMPSHIRE

38,727

NEW JERSEY

33,022

NEW MEXICO

32,574

NEW YORK

43,636

NORTH CAROLINA

31,474

NORTH DAKOTA

37,917

OHIO

32,983

OKLAHOMA

24,360

OREGON

29,638

PENNSYLVANIA

28,554

RHODE ISLAND

36,148

SOUTH CAROLINA

27,108

SOUTH DAKOTA

31,835

TENNESSEE

27,811

TEXAS

28,358

UTAH

28,235

VERMONT

36,706

VIRGINIA

29,348

WASHINGTON

27,143

WEST VIRGINIA

27,154

WISCONSIN

32,991

WYOMING

27,233

NORTHERN MARIANA IS.

16,308

 

2008 1619(b) THRESHOLD AMOUNTS FOR BLIND SSI BENEFICIARIES


State

Threshold ($)

CALIFORNIA

35,906

IOWA

31,216

MASSACHUSETTS

36,905

NEVADA

32,473

OREGON

30,238

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Last reviewed or modified Wednesday Apr 01, 2009
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