SSDI Stimulus Check Update 2023: What SSDI Recipients Need to Know

If you're searching for an "SSDI stimulus check update today 2023," you're likely wondering whether people receiving Social Security Disability Insurance are getting any new stimulus payments this year. The short answer: there is no new federal stimulus check program in 2023. But there's more to understand about what SSDI recipients did receive in prior years, how those payments interacted with SSDI, and what ongoing adjustments are affecting disability benefits right now.

No New Stimulus Checks in 2023

The federal stimulus checks most people remember — officially called Economic Impact Payments (EIPs) — were issued during 2020 and 2021 under pandemic-era legislation. There were three rounds:

As of 2023, Congress has not authorized a new round of federal stimulus payments. Searches for "stimulus check 2023" are common, but there is no active federal program distributing new EIPs to SSDI recipients or anyone else.

If you did not receive one or more of the original payments you were eligible for, you may still be able to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit on a past federal tax return. The IRS sets deadlines for amended returns, so this option becomes more limited over time.

What SSDI Recipients Did Receive

SSDI recipients were eligible for all three rounds of Economic Impact Payments — automatically, in most cases. The SSA coordinated with the IRS so that people receiving disability benefits who don't typically file tax returns still received their payments.

Payments were generally issued to the same account or address on file with the SSA. People with representative payees — a third party who manages benefits on behalf of someone — had their payments directed accordingly.

Importantly, stimulus payments did not count as income for SSDI purposes and did not affect benefit amounts or eligibility. For people receiving SSI (Supplemental Security Income) alongside or instead of SSDI, stimulus payments were also excluded from SSI income calculations and did not count as a resource for 12 months after receipt.

What's Actually Changing for SSDI in 2023 💡

While there's no stimulus check, SSDI recipients saw a meaningful benefit increase that took effect in January 2023.

Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA): The SSA announced an 8.7% COLA for 2023 — the largest increase in about 40 years, driven by inflation data. This adjustment applied automatically to SSDI monthly payments starting with the January 2023 payment cycle.

For context, the average SSDI benefit before the adjustment was roughly $1,358/month. After the 8.7% increase, average payments rose to approximately $1,483/month. Actual amounts vary significantly by individual work history — SSDI is based on lifetime earnings, so no two recipients receive exactly the same benefit.

Other 2023 changes relevant to SSDI recipients:

• Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) threshold increased to $1,470/month for non-blind individuals ($2,460 for blind). This is the earnings limit that determines whether someone is engaging in work activity that could affect their disability status.
• Trial Work Period threshold rose to $1,050/month, meaning work activity is flagged for review when monthly earnings exceed this amount during the trial period.
• Medicare Part B premiums decreased slightly in 2023, which matters because most SSDI recipients qualify for Medicare after a 24-month waiting period from their established disability onset date.

Why People Confuse COLA Increases With Stimulus Payments

The 8.7% COLA was unusually large, and some coverage framed it in ways that resembled stimulus news. Additionally, a number of states issued their own one-time relief payments in 2022 and 2023 — things like state tax rebates or inflation relief checks — which varied by location and often caused confusion about whether a new "stimulus" was coming federally.

State-level payments are separate from federal SSDI benefits. Whether a state payment affects SSI eligibility or counts as income depends on how the SSA and state classify it. State-specific rules apply, and SSI recipients in particular should understand how any outside payment is categorized before assuming it's exempt.

SSDI vs. SSI: A Critical Distinction 📋

These two programs are often conflated in stimulus-related searches:

Someone can receive both SSDI and SSI simultaneously — called concurrent benefits — if their SSDI payment is low enough that they fall below SSI's income threshold. The rules governing stimulus payments and state relief payments applied somewhat differently to each program.

The Missing Piece

Whether any past stimulus payment was correctly issued to you, whether a state relief payment affects your benefits, and how the 2023 COLA interacted with your specific monthly amount all depend on details that are specific to your case — your benefit record, your payment history, whether you have a representative payee, and what other income sources you may have. The program landscape is clear. How it maps onto your situation is not something that can be read from the outside.