Old-age, survivors, and disability insurance and supplemental security income for the aged, blind, and disabled; substantial gainful activity amounts. Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are revising the rules for determining when earnings demonstrate the ability to engage in substantial gainful activity (SGA). This rule change applies to Social Security disability benefits provided under title II of the Social Security Act (the Act) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits based on disability under title XVI of the Act. (Eligibility for benefits under titles II and XVI also confers eligibility for related Medicare and Medicaid benefits under titles XVIII and XIX of the Act.) Specifically, we are raising from $500 to $700 the average monthly earning guidelines used to determine whether work done by persons with impairments other than blindness is SGA. We are raising this level as part of efforts to encourage individuals with disabilities to attempt to work, and to provide an updated indicator of when earnings demonstrate the ability to engage in SGA. This increase reflects our assessment of the amount that roughly corresponds to wage growth since the last increase in 1990.     

Old-age, survivors, and disability insurance and Supplemental Security Income for the aged, blind, and disabled; substantial gainful activity amounts; "services" for trial work period purposes--monthly amounts; student child earned income exclusion. Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are revising the rules to automatically adjust each year, based on any increases in the national average wage index, the average monthly earnings guideline we use to determine whether work done by persons with impairments other than blindness is substantial gainful activity; provide that we will ordinarily find that an employee whose average monthly earnings are not greater than the "primary substantial gainful activity amount," has not engaged in substantial gainful activity without considering other information beyond the employee's earnings; increase the minimum amount of monthly earnings and the minimum number of self-employed work hours in month that we consider shows that a person receiving title II Social Security benefits based on disability is performing or has performed "services" during a trial work period, and automatically adjust the earnings amount each year thereafter; increase the maximum monthly and yearly Student Earned Income Exclusion amounts we use in determining Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Program eligibility and payment amounts for student children, and automatically adjust the monthly and yearly exclusion amounts each year thereafter. We are revising these rules as part of our efforts to encourage individuals with disabilities to test their ability to work and keep working. We expect that these changes will provide greater incentives for many beneficiaries to attempt to work or, if already working, to continue to work or increase their work effort.     

Medicare program; continuation of Medicare entitlement when disability benefit entitlement ends because of substantial gainful activity. Final rule

This final rule will conform the existing Medicare eligibility regulations to reflect a change made by the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act (TWWIIA) of 1999. That statutory change that was implemented effective October 1, 2000, provides working disabled individuals with continued Medicare entitlement for an additional 54 months beyond the previous limit of 24 months, for a total of 78 months of Medicare coverage following the 15th month of the reentitlement period.     

Supplemental Security Income: determining disability for a child under age 18. Social Security Administration. Final rules

On February 11, 1997, we published interim final rules with a request for comments to implement the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) childhood disability provisions of sections 211 and 212 of Public Law (Pub. L.) 104-193, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. We are now publishing revised final rules in response to public comments. We are also conforming our rules to amendments to Public Law 104-193 made by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, Public Law 105-33. Finally, we are simplifying and clarifying some rules in keeping with the President's goal of using plain language in regulations.     

Federal old-age, survivors and disability insurance; determining disability and blindness; extension of expiration dates for several body system listings. Social Security Administration (SSA). Final rule

SSA adjudicates claims at the third step of its sequential evaluation process for evaluating disability using the Listing of Impairments (the Listings) under the Social Security and supplemental security income (SSI) programs. This final rule extends the dates on which several body system listings will no longer be effective. We have made no revisions to the medical criteria in these listings; they remain the same as they now appear in the Code of Federal Regulations. These extensions will ensure that we continue to have medical evaluation criteria in these listings to adjudicate claims for disability based on impairments in these body systems at step three of our sequential evaluation process.     

Blood Donor Locator Service--Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are issuing these final regulations to govern the Blood Donor Locator Service, which we will establish and conduct, as required by section 8008 of the Technical and Miscellaneous Revenue Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-647). Under these regulations, we will furnish to participating States at their request the last known personal mailing address (residence or post office box) of blood donors whose blood donation shows that they are or may be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) which causes acquired immune deficiency syndrome, if the State or an authorized blood donation facility has been unable to locate the donors. If our records or those of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) contain an adequate personal mailing address for the donor, we will provide it to the State so that the State or the blood donation facility can inform the donor that he or she may need medical care and treatment.     

Social Security benefits; disability insurance benefits; deductions, reductions, and nonpayments of benefits--SSA. Final rules with comment period

These regulations amend the existing regulations under which Social Security benefits payable to a disabled worker and his or her family may be reduced because of the worker's concurrent entitlement to workers' compensation benefits. They provide that entitlement to certain other public disability benefits may reduce the disability benefits paid by Social Security; that the reduction applies to the first month of concurrent entitlement regardless of the month in which we are notified of entitlement to the public disability benefit; and that the reduction applies to all months of concurrent entitlement until the disabled worker attains age 65. These regulations also provide that where a public disability law or plan provides for reduction of the public disability benefit on the basis of entitlement to Social Security disability insurance benefits that provision will preclude reduction of the Social Security benefits but only if it was in effect on February 18, 1981. These regulations implement section 2208 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 (Pub. L. 97-35).     

Revised medical criteria for evaluating mental disorders and traumatic brain injury. Social Security Administration. Final rules

These rules revise our regulations for evaluating mental impairments. They also change some of the provisions of our Listing of Impairments (the Listings) that we use to evaluate mental disorders in adults. We also are adding guidance to the adult neurological listings regarding the evaluation of traumatic brain injury. In addition, the rules make technical changes to the adult digestive listings and the childhood mental disorders listings. We expect that these rules will clarify the intent and purpose of the listings for evaluating mental disorders, and will simplify our adjudication of claims involving mental impairments. These rules also recognize the sometimes unpredictable course of traumatic brain injury, and will improve our adjudication of claims involving traumatic brain injuries.     

Supplemental Security Income for the aged, blind, and disabled; eligibility; amount of benefits; residence and citizenship. Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are revising and reorganizing our general rules on eligibility (Subpart B) under the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. These rules describe who may get SSI benefits, how long a person's eligibility lasts, and the reasons why a person who would otherwise be eligible for SSI benefits might not get them. We have also established a new Subpart P in which we state our rules on residence and citizenship. We have determined that these regulations do not meet the criteria for a major regulation specified in Executive Order 12291.     

Federal old-age, survivors and disability insurance (1950- ); determining disability and blindness; extension of expiration date for cardiovascular system listing--Social Security Administration. Final rule

We are extending the expiration date of the cardiovascular system listing found in appendix 1 of part 404, subpart P, from June 6, 1991, to June 6, 1992. We have made no revisions in the medical criteria in the cardiovascular listings; they remain the same as they now appear in the Code of Federal Regulations. We are presently considering revisions to update the medical criteria contained in part A and part B of the listing, and any revised criteria will be published as a proposed rule when we have completed our review. Insofar as Medicare eligibility is based on entitlement to disability insurance benefits under title II of the Act, this proposed regulation affects the Medicare program. To the extent that Medicaid eligibility is based on title XVI eligibility, this proposed regulation affects the Medicaid program.     

Federal old-age, survivors, and disability insurance and supplemental security income for the aged, blind, and disabled; evaluating opinion evidence. Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are revising the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) regulations concerning the evaluation of medical opinions to clarify how administrative law judges and the Appeals Council are to consider opinion evidence from State agency medical and psychological consultants, other program physicians and psychologists, and medical experts we consult in claims for disability benefits under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (the Act). We are also defining and clarifying several terms used in our regulations and deleting other terms.     

Determining disability. Railroad Retirement Board. Final rule

The Railroad Retirement Board (Board) hereby amends its disability regulations to discontinue the current policy of conducting continuing disability reviews (CDR's) for medical recovery of disability annuitants in medical improvement not expected (MINE) cases. The Board has found that these reviews have not been cost effective and impose an unnecessary burden on the annuitant.     

Reinstatement of entitlement to disability benefits. Final rules

We are publishing final rules regarding the Reinstatement of Entitlement (Expedited Reinstatement) provision in section 112 of the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999. This provision allows former Social Security disability and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability or blindness beneficiaries, whose entitlement or eligibility had been terminated due to their work activity, to have their entitlement or eligibility reinstated in a timely fashion if they become unable to do substantial gainful work. These rules provide beneficiaries an additional incentive to return to work.     

Revised medical criteria for determination of disability, endocrine system and related criteria. Social Security Administration (SSA). Final rule

We are deleting listing 9.09, "Obesity," from appendix 1, subpart P of part 404, the "Listing of Impairments" (the listings). Although many individuals with obesity are appropriately found "disabled" within the meaning of the Social Security Act (the Act), we have determined that the criteria in listing 9.09 were not appropriate indicators of listing-level severity because they did not represent a degree of functional limitation that would prevent an individual from engaging in any gainful activity. However, in response to public comments, we are adding guidance about evaluating claims for benefits involving obesity to the prefaces of the musculoskeletal, respiratory, and cardiovascular body system listings.     

Aid to Families with Dependent Children: Social Security Administration. Final rule

These final regulations implement changes made in the Aid to Families With Dependent Children [AFDC] program by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981 [Pub. L. 97-35]. The statutory changes are generally effective October 1, 1981.     

Disability determinations by state agency disability examiners. Final rules

We are revising our rules on a temporary basis to permit State agency disability examiners to make fully favorable determinations in certain claims for disability benefits under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act) without the approval of a State agency medical or psychological consultant. These changes apply only to claims we consider under our rules for quick disability determinations (QDD) or under our compassionate allowance initiative.     

Continuing disability review failure to cooperate process. Final rules

We are amending our regulations to provide that we will suspend your disability benefits before we make a determination during a continuing disability review (CDR) under title II and title XVI of the Social Security Act (the Act) when you fail to comply with our request for necessary information. Should you remain non-compliant for a period of one year following your suspension, we will then terminate your disability benefits. Although our current title XVI regulations generally provide for the termination of payments after 12 months of suspension, we are amending our regulations by adding this policy to our title II regulations and by restating it in the title XVI CDR regulatory provisions.     

Exemption of work activity as a basis for a continuing disability review. Final rules

We are publishing these final rules to amend our regulations to carry out section 221(m) of the Social Security Act (the Act). Section 221(m) affects our rules for when we will conduct a continuing disability review if you work and receive benefits under title II of the Act based on disability. (We interpret this section to include you if you receive both title II disability benefits and title XVI (Supplemental Security Income (SSI)) payments based on disability.) It also affects our rules on how we evaluate work activity when we decide if you have engaged in substantial gainful activity for purposes of determining whether your disability has ended. In addition, section 221(m) of the Act affects certain other standards we use when we determine whether your disability continues or ends. We are also amending our regulations concerning how we determine whether your disability continues or ends. These revisions will codify our existing operating instructions for how we consider certain work at the last two steps of our continuing disability review process. We are also revising our disability regulations to incorporate some rules which are contained in another part of our regulations and which apply if you are using a ticket under the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program (the Ticket to Work program). In addition, we are amending our regulations to eliminate the secondary substantial gainful activity amount that we currently use to evaluate work you did as an employee before January 2001.     

Federal old-age, survivors and disability insurance and Supplemental Security Income for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled; medical and other evidence of your impairment(s) and definition of medical consultant. Social Security Administration. Final rules

We are revising the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability regulations regarding sources of evidence for establishing the existence of a medically determinable impairment under title II and title XVI of the Social Security Act (the Act). We are doing this to clarify and expand the list of acceptable medical sources and to revise the definition of the term "medical consultant" to include additional acceptable medical sources.     

Federal old-age, survivors, and disability insurance; earnings test: Social Security Administration. Interim regulations

The Social Security Administration is issuing interim regulations to implement sections 1, 3, and 4 of Pub. L. 96-473 (enacted October 19, 1980) that make a number of changes in the application of the earnings test for retirement purposes. The provisions are designed to eliminate some unintended and harsh effects of the limitations on the use of the monthly earnings test imposed by the Social Security Amendments of 1977. Section 1 permits the use of the monthly earnings test by those beneficiaries entitled to child's benefits, young wife's and young husband's benefits (entitled only by reason of having an entitled child in their care) or mother's and father's benefits, in the year that entitlement terminates, if termination is for a reason other than death and the beneficiary is not entitled to another type of Social Security benefit for the month following the month of termination. Section 3 excludes from gross income, for purposes of the annual earnings test, self-employment income which is received in a year after the initial year of entitlement to insurance benefits under title II (other than disability benefits and childhood disability benefits) and is not attributable to services performed after the month of entitlement. Section 4 provides for all beneficiaries the use of the monthly earnings test in the first taxable year after 1977 in which a beneficiary has a non-service month in or after the month of entitlement to benefits.