I can't work because of a disability
Steps to apply for SSI or SSDI. This page does not decide whether you can get them. It is not legal advice or medical advice.
Apply
USAGov says you can apply online, by phone, or in person.
- Open the SSI application USAGov links.
- Open the disability application USAGov links.
- Call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213.
- Find a Social Security office near you.
USAGov says SSDI is tied to your work history.
USAGov says SSDI pays benefits to you and certain family members if you have a disability, and if you worked enough years and paid Social Security taxes.
USAGov says SSI does not require a work history. It provides money for food, clothing, and housing if you are 65 or older or have a disability.
USAGov also says you must either have a disability, or be 65 or older, for SSI.
USAGov lists the other SSI condition as being 65 or older.
USAGov says that, depending on eligibility, you may be able to collect SSDI and SSI at the same time. After you apply, SSA tells you if you qualify for one or both.
USAGov says that if an SSDI application is approved, benefits start after a five-month waiting period.
- For a child, USAGov says you can start SSI online. You finish the application in person or by phone.
Indiana says to call Social Security or contact your local office. The page says local office addresses and phone numbers are in your local telephone directory.
Indiana says you can also contact Social Security for information or to file a disability claim on the Social Security website.
Hours for the Social Security phone line are not confirmed yet.
Documents
Not confirmed yet. A document list from Social Security is not on this card.
Who decides
Indiana says Title II covers workers who have established eligibility through prior work, and Title XVI has a needs-based income and resource requirement.
Indiana's Disability Determination Bureau works with 26 local Social Security field offices in Indiana.
The bureau says it must follow the statutory definition of disability when it makes a medical determination.
The words of that statutory definition are not copied here. Whether a person meets it is not confirmed yet.
- If you already have a letter from the Indiana Disability Determination Bureau, call 800-622-4968 and ask for the examiner assigned to your claim.
The bureau says the examiner's name and phone number are on the last page of the letter you received.
If the answer is no
- USAGov says to learn how you can appeal if your SSDI application is denied.
- USAGov says to appeal a decision if your SSI application is denied.
A number of days for an appeal is not confirmed yet.
SOAR help
Indiana's slide titles this work SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR).
The slide says SOAR assists adults and children who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and who have an SMI, a medical impairment, and/or a co-occurring SUD, with social security benefits.
The slide says PATH-funded agencies are the designated SOAR regional leads.
SOAR regional lead: Adult and Child, regions 7 and 10.
SOAR regional lead: Horizon House, region 6.
SOAR regional lead: Lifespring, regions 8 and 9.
SOAR regional lead: Oak Park Church, region 5.
SOAR regional lead: Oaklawn, region 2, not including Starke county.
SOAR regional lead: Porter-Starke, region 1, including Starke county.
A SOAR regional lead for every Indiana region is not confirmed yet.
A date on the Indiana SOAR slide is not confirmed yet.
The state PATH contact on the slide is Melissa Gholston, Program Director of Housing Initiatives.
- Email Melissa.Gholston@fssa.in.gov.
- Call 317.232.7812.
Call 211
- Dial 211.
Indiana 211 connects you with essential community resources, including food, housing, utilities, health care, and transportation.
Indiana 211 is a free service that connects you with local health and human service agencies.
Indiana 211 says: if you live in Indiana, we serve you.
Indiana 211 says it serves people in Indiana's 92 counties.
Indiana 211 says its services are available 24 hours and are free.
Whether 211 files an SSI or SSDI claim is not confirmed yet.