Social Security Payments increasing: Government policy changes will enhance payouts to certain current Social Security recipients and help additional Americans become eligible for benefits.
On Thursday, the Social Security Administration declared the publication of a final rule impacting its Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, which provides monthly payments to approximately 7.4 million handicapped, blind, or older than 65 Americans with inadequate resources. The rule enlarges the agency’s definition of a “public assistance household,” including households that get food stamps or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments.
Resources and income determine SSI payments; generally speaking, a person with more resources receives less. This modification is important because, going forward, the government will presume that an SSI applicant living in a SNAP home isn’t receiving money from other household members, which could qualify them for larger checks or benefits.
After the Social Security Administration changed the rules about who needs Supplemental Security Income, some Social Security earnings will go up.
The new change
A PA household is no longer defined, as it was in the past, as one in which every member receives a public income-maintenance (PIM) benefit such as Social Security, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, or Aid to Families with Dependent Children.
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Rather, a PA household can now include both homes where not every member of the household receives government benefits and those who do. According to Newsweek, As of right now, American homes with one member receiving SSI and another receiving any other form of PIM payment are considered PA households and may be eligible for larger payouts.
Since it’s presumed that people living in PA households aren’t receiving any financial support from anyone else in the household, the SSA raises SSI payments to them.
Commissioner Martin O’Malley of Social Security stated, “I’m committed to making systemic changes to help people access the critical benefits they need, including SSI,”
Millions of low-income Americans who are 65 years of age or older or have a disability rely on SSI funds to cover their monthly expenses. Generally speaking, beneficiaries have to earn less than $1,971 a month and own less than $2,000 (or $3,000 for couples).
SSI benefits for single Americans in 2024 could be as high as $943 and for couples, $1,415.
O’Malley claimed that the revision of the rules would eliminate major obstacles that Americans now have while trying to get SSI.
O’Malley stated, “These changes promote greater equity in our programs,”
The SSA originally defined a PA household in 1980; this is the first time SNAP has been added to the criteria. Millions of Americans receive monthly dietary assistance; the Social Security Administration estimates that 41.9 million people used SNAP in April. That equates to about 12.5% of the American population overall.
What is the average social security payment per person in 2024?
In January, 7.5 million people received SSI checks, with an average payment of $654.
“The rule change is a big boost to individuals who live in households and were originally disqualified from receiving benefits through SSI, as well as those who need an increase in the assistance they’re receiving to manage the higher cost of living everyone is facing today,” Alex Beene, financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek. “We speak so often about the barriers potential applicants encounter, yet rarely is something done to attempt to remedy the problem.”
