What Have We Learned About SSI Receipt Among Children?

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program is an important, means-tested source of income for the families of children with disabilities. Although some research has shown that SSI improves outcomes for these families, policymakers have been concerned about the program’s growth and the poor outcomes that many former child SSI recipients experience in adulthood. In this brief, we summarize research funded by SSA’s Disability Resource Consortium (DRC) on the program’s recent growth and the factors related to receipt of SSI by children. This research reveals dramatic variation in the rate of child SSI receipt at the state and county level, which is partly due to geographic differences in both the population and the economic circumstances that influence program eligibility. Changes in these two factors can explain a substantial share of the growth in caseloads since 2000. When children who receive SSI become adults, their employment rates and SSI receipt rates also vary from one state to another. The findings from these studies suggest that the SSI program is generally, if imperfectly, successful in delivering cash support to children with disabilities living in low-income households in a uniform manner. However, this cash support is not sufficient to lead to uniform outcomes throughout the country. Outcomes for such children with significant disabilities in low-income families depend on where they live, not just their disability or their family’s financial circumstances. Lessons about how policies and programs have contributed to substantially better outcomes for SSI children in some areas can help policymakers and program administrators improve outcomes in areas where outcomes are poor.