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The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

  • The Basics
  • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
  • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
  • 3) Your Child Can Save More
  • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
  • Resources

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    updated March 28, 2025
    Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

    The Basics

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    Your child can work, even if he or she has a disability and gets benefits from Medi-Cal or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). In fact, Medi-Cal and SSI are designed so that people who work end up better off.

    With a job, your child can:

    1. Keep Medi-Cal health coverage even while making as much as $79,270 per year
    2. Have more total income and keep getting SSI
    3. Save up some money and keep getting SSI
    4. Get back on SSI if it stops and is needed later

    You can help your son or daughter plan for work. Get started by understanding these four ways benefits programs and a job can work together.

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    • Next

    Learn more

    Benefits for Young People

    Find out how benefits support young people who work.

    Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

    SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

    Building Your Assets and Wealth

    Discover ways to save up money while working.

    Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
    OpenClose
    The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

    Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

    • The Basics
    • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
    • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
    • 3) Your Child Can Save More
    • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
    • Resources

    Try It

      Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

      Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work

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      These rules mean your child can keep Medi-Cal even while making a lot of money at work:

      • If your child gets SSI benefits while working, Medi-Cal will continue automatically.
      • If your child used to get SSI benefits, but now makes enough money that SSI benefits ended, SSI's 1619(b) rule means Medi-Cal will continue automatically even if your child makes up to $64,517 per year.
      • If your child doesn't get SSI, but is under 22, gets Medi-Cal based on a disability, and is also regularly attending school, the Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE) means that if your child gets a job, Medi-Cal coverage will probably continue.
      • Medi-Cal's Working Disabled Program (WDP) lets your child get Medi-Cal coverage if your child makes $79,270 per year or less.
      • If your child's income is even higher than that, he or she can get private health coverage through work or on Covered California. Private insurance companies cannot deny coverage to your child.
      The bottom line

      Your child can get health coverage after getting a job.

      Learn more about Medi-Cal's Working Disabled Program and SSI 1619(b).

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      • Previous
      • Next

      Learn more

      Benefits for Young People

      Find out how benefits support young people who work.

      Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

      SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

      Building Your Assets and Wealth

      Discover ways to save up money while working.

      Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money
      OpenClose
      The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

      Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

      • The Basics
      • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
      • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
      • 3) Your Child Can Save More
      • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
      • Resources

      Try It

        Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

        A Job + SSI = More Money

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        Getting a job doesn’t mean your child will stop getting Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. SSI makes sure your child will be better off when working.

        SSI Rules that Help Young People who Get Jobs

        SSI is based on financial need. That’s why people worry that if they get jobs, they’ll lose their SSI benefits. These rules show why you don’t need to worry:

        • The Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE) means that if your child gets a job while in school, his or her SSI benefit probably won’t go down. That means your child will get money from work and SSI at the same time.
        • With the SEIE, anyone under 22 and regularly attending school can make up to $2,350 per month up to a total of $9,460 in a year, without having that money reduce their SSI benefits at all!
        • If your child doesn’t qualify for the SEIE, working is still a good idea, because SSI counts less than half of what a person earns at a job when calculating his or her benefit.
        The bottom line

        If your child is in school and under 22, the SEIE means he or she can work and keep getting as much SSI as ever. For every additional dollar your child earns that is not excluded by the SEIE, your child’s SSI benefits amount will only go down by 50 cents. No matter what, SSI's rules mean that your child will have more money overall while working.

        Learn more about the SEIE.

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        • Previous
        • Next

        Learn more

        Benefits for Young People

        Find out how benefits support young people who work.

        Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

        SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

        Building Your Assets and Wealth

        Discover ways to save up money while working.

        Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work3) Your Child Can Save More
        OpenClose
        The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

        Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

        • The Basics
        • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
        • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
        • 3) Your Child Can Save More
        • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
        • Resources

        Try It

          Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

          Your Child Can Save More

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          As your child makes more money, he or she can start saving for bigger goals, like college, a car, or someday buying a home. Building assets will be a key to comfort and security for your child’s entire life.

          SSI and Medi-Cal Rules Help People who Work and Save

          Supplemental Security Income (SSI) has a $2,000 resource limit. However, your child can save way more money than this if he or she gets a job.

          SSI resource rules for people who work:

          • Not all resources are counted, so your child can own a car or get certain types of financial aid for school that won’t be counted against the resource limit.
          • ABLE accounts will let you and your child put money into a special account where the first $100,000 will not count against the SSI resource limit.
          • Savings in a Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS) or Individual Development Account (IDA) are not counted. These special types of accounts let your child save for specific expenses, like school tuition.
          • Assets in certain types of trusts do not count.

          Medi-Cal resource rules for people who work:

          • There is no resource limit for Medi-Cal!
          The bottom line

          Saving money for the future is important. Talk to a benefits planner to figure out which asset-building strategies will let your child keep getting SSI.

          Read more about asset-building strategies.

          No more Medi-Cal/MSP resource limits

          On January 1, 2024, Medi-Cal resource limits were completely removed. This applies to Medi-Cal through A&D FPL, the Working Disabled Program (WDP), and ABD–MN, as well as Medicare Savings Programs (MSPs). If you've been denied Medi-Cal or an MSP because you had too much in resources, try applying again.

          Note: This doesn't change SSI-linked Medi-Cal or Medi-Cal through SSI 1619(b), as they still have SSI's $2,000 resource limit. And it doesn't change income-based Medi-Cal, which never had a resource limit.

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          • Previous
          • Next

          Learn more

          Benefits for Young People

          Find out how benefits support young people who work.

          Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

          SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

          Building Your Assets and Wealth

          Discover ways to save up money while working.

          Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
          OpenClose
          The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

          Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

          • The Basics
          • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
          • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
          • 3) Your Child Can Save More
          • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
          • Resources

          Try It

            Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

            Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI

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            The more your child works, the more money your child can make. If he or she makes enough, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits may stop, but overall your child will be much better off!

            SSI Has a Safety Net for People who Lose Benefits and Need Them Later

            Even if your child makes a lot more money than he or she ever got from SSI, you will probably worry about what would happen if the job ended due to a disability. Would your child be able to get back on SSI if needed?

            Yes.

            SSI’s 1619(b) rule helps people who stop getting SSI benefits start getting them again. If a job ends or earnings go down, your child can just report the change to Social Security and SSI benefits will start up again. He or she will not even have to reapply.

            1619(b) is for people earning less than $64,517 in a year ($66,542 if blind). If your child earns more than that, other rules can help your child start getting SSI benefits again if they are needed.

            The bottom line

            If your child stops getting SSI benefits due to work income and then that income goes down, he or she can get back on SSI.

            Learn more about getting back on SSI.

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            • Previous
            • Next

            Learn more

            Benefits for Young People

            Find out how benefits support young people who work.

            Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

            SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

            Building Your Assets and Wealth

            Discover ways to save up money while working.

            Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support WorkResources
            OpenClose
            The Basics1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work2) A Job + SSI = More Money3) Your Child Can Save More4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSIResources

            Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

            • The Basics
            • 1) Medi-Cal Covers People With Disabilities Who Work
            • 2) A Job + SSI = More Money
            • 3) Your Child Can Save More
            • 4) Your Child Will Stay Connected to SSI
            • Resources

            Try It

              Parent Focus: Four Ways Benefits Support Work

              Resources

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              Learn More on DB101

              Use DB101’s School and Work Estimator to get a sense of how work could impact your child’s benefits.

              For more about these and other ways benefits support work, read DB101’s articles about:

              • Parent Focus: Turning 18, which looks at how your child's benefits might change at age 18.
              • Benefits for Young People, including details about many different benefits and how rules change as your child gets older.
              • Supplemental Security Income, which covers SSI’s rules in detail.
              • Medi-Cal, which covers people with and without disabilities.
              • Building Your Assets and Wealth, an introduction to asset-building strategies.
              • Plans to Achieve Self-Support, an in-depth look at the ways a PASS can help.
              • Individual Development Accounts, a detailed look at IDAs and how to set them up.

              Getting Help with Your Benefits

              If you get Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), or Childhood Disability Benefits (CDB), and you're looking for a job, a trained Benefits Planner can help you avoid problems with your job plan. If you need help or have questions about your situation, you can call the Ticket to Work Help Line at 1-866-968-7842 or 1-866-833-2967 (TTY), Monday through Friday.

              View DB101's full list of experts who can help you understand different benefits.

              Community-Based Organizations

              Various community-based organizations guide people through state, federal, public, and private health and income programs. Some organizations may work with specific populations while others work with people with any type of disability. Here are a few examples

              Goodwill Industries services range from personal evaluation and office skills training to career counseling, childcare, and transportation. Some Goodwill Industries centers also do benefits planning for people who get SSI, SSDI, and Medicare. Find locations at www.Goodwill.org, or by calling (voice) 1-800-466-3945.

              The California Foundation for Independent Living Centers lists centers serving people with all disabilities. Many of these centers do benefits planning for people who get SSI, SSDI, and Medicare. If they don't offer benefits planning themselves, Independent Living Centers can refer you to local benefits planners. Find the list of independent living centers at www.CFILC.org, or by calling (voice) 1-916-325-1690 or (TTY) 1-916-325-1695.

              The California Department of Public Health's Office of AIDS lists 1,300 organizations offering HIV/AIDS services throughout California. Some of these organizations provide case management, benefits planning, and benefits counseling services that can include help with public and private benefits programs. You can search the list online, or call (voice) 1-800-367-AIDS (2437) or (TTY) 1-888-225-AIDS (2437).

              Disability Rights California provides representation for consumers of public programs who are disabled. Website publications include topics on health care, benefit programs, and In-Home Supportive Services.

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              Add to favoritesAdd to favorites
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              • Previous

              Learn more

              Benefits for Young People

              Find out how benefits support young people who work.

              Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

              SSI helps people with disabilities and seniors who have low income and resources.

              Building Your Assets and Wealth

              Discover ways to save up money while working.