The Social Security Act requires that Social Security Disability benefits be paid where an individual is not able to perform work which exists in significant numbers in the national economy. The law treats persons who are 55 and over in a different way than those 54 and under. In many ways, they have two different standards of eligibility. The SSI medical eligibility standards are virtually the same as the standards for applicants for Social Security Disability, although SSI claimants also have income eligibility requirements that don't apply to Social Security Disability claims.
Persons who report income and pay Social Security taxes on those wages are treated as if they had paid insurance premiums to be covered under the Social Security Disability Insurance system. Of course, you can't choose not to pay those premiums in most cases. The longer you pay the Social Security tax on wages, the longer you are considered "insured" for the purpose of applying for Social Security Disability benefits. In order for you to be eligible for Social Security Disability benefits, the Social Security Administration has to find that you became disabled while you were still insured.
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