Social Security Administration and SSI

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a federal public assistance program that provides a minimum cash income to people who are below a designated poverty level who are old, blind, or otherwise disabled. Those who are blind or disabled must have medical verification that they are unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity.

The state-administered welfare programs for the aged, blind, and disabled that existed before SSI are widely recognized to have been enmeshed in a bewildering patchwork of rules, regulations, policies, and procedures. Costly delays, mistakes, intergovernmental strife, recipient frustration, and taxpayer complaints were common occurrences. 

A major argument in favor of SSI was that the federal government would do a better administrative job than the states. The Social Security Administration was made responsible for administering the new program because many SSI recipients would also be drawing social security benefits. In addition, the Congress hoped that the widespread favorable public image of the social security system would reduce the stigma often associated with being on welfare and would also encourage eligible persons to enroll in the program.

The Social Security Administration has a quality assurance program to test the administrative efficiency of SSI. This program employs sampling techniques to gauge administrative performance and to determine how efficiently the program is operating. Each month a random sample of cases is selected to determine the causes, extent, and cost of payment errors. SSI recipients are interviewed at home to determine if they are receiving the proper SSI payment.