The Basics
Benefits programs give you resources that help make your life better. For most young people with disabilities, the benefits that help you the most provide you with health care coverage and money.
In this article, we discuss why benefits matter, what the most common benefits are, and how you can get them. We also explain how, if you get a job and save some money, you can still get good health coverage and may be able to keep getting cash benefits.
The article pays particular attention to how the rules change depending on your age, and how that impacts the benefits you are eligible to receive. These rules are explained clearly and concisely so you can figure out how to apply for benefits, no matter what your age.
Note: DB101 keeps track of changes to health coverage and related laws. DB101 has been and will continue to be updated to reflect any changes. For news related to health coverage, visit the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS).
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Why Benefits Matter
A lot of young people don’t know much about cash and health care benefits. Sometimes parents take care of applying for benefits and managing money. Some people are embarrassed they get benefits. Others think that benefits are just too confusing to understand. Some don’t get benefits because they don’t know they qualify.
It is very important that you understand benefits, even if your parents do most of your benefits paperwork. You need to know how benefits can help you live independently and pursue your dreams, which can include going to college and getting a job.
Benefits Lead to Independent Living
As a person with a disability you have more opportunities than you might think. People with disabilities are living in their own homes, graduating from college, working at good jobs, getting married, and having children. Getting jobs, studying, living on your own, making friends, and all of the other activities in life are all part of independent living!
One major reason that people with disabilities can live independently is the support that benefits offer. Benefits are keys that will give you support you need as you decide what to do in life and get started with adulthood.
The most important disability benefits you will get are money and health care. The money will help you pay your rent, let you have a social life, make affording college possible, and help you buy food and other necessities. The health care benefits will keep you as healthy as possible and prevent health care expenses from putting you into debt. These benefits mean that you can think about your future and explore life, instead of constantly worrying about paying bills.
Benefits Provide Money So You Can Get a Job or Go to School
Benefits are designed to help you get an education and a job. You may be worried that getting a job will cause you to lose your cash benefits, but the reality is that when you get a job, your income will almost always go up.
Depending on the benefits you get, your cash benefits may go down as your work income goes up, though your job income will more than make up for any drop in benefits.
With other benefits programs and thanks to some work incentives discussed later, you may be able to keep getting the same amount of cash benefits after you get a job! Some of the best work incentives are actually ways for you to save money for an education or make money while you’re in school.
Benefits Give Access to Health Care
Did you know that the average cost of an emergency room visit is more than $1,000 and that medical expenses are the number one cause of personal bankruptcy in the United States? Make sure you have health care benefits!
When you get a job and your income goes up, you will still be able to get health care coverage. In many cases you will continue getting the exact same coverage as you have now. In other cases you may have to enroll in a different program that will also cover your medical expenses.
Are You Eligible for Benefits?
In order to get the benefits designed to help people with disabilities, your disability has to “qualify.” This means that it has to meet certain standards. Depending on your age, who gives the benefit, and what the benefit is, these standards vary and your disability may or may not qualify you for the benefit.
Even if your disability qualifies, just having a disability doesn’t automatically mean you will get cash benefits or health care coverage. In addition to having a disability, you must also either have low income or have paid into an insurance program. How programs determine if your disability qualifies and whether you have a low enough income or will get insurance coverage are explained on the Eligibility pages of this article.
Income-Based Benefits
Income-based benefits help you if your family doesn’t earn a lot of money. Depending on your age, some benefit programs also have asset limits.
For most young people with disabilities, the income-based benefits programs that help the most are Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which gives cash income support, and Medical Assistance (MA), which gives health care coverage.
More information on both programs is given in Key Programs.
Insurance
Insurance programs are programs you pay into regularly. If something comes up and you need help, insurance becomes available.
For example, if you have private health insurance, you, your employer, or your parent pays money each month, and when you need to go to the doctor, the insurance pays most of the expenses.
Private health care coverage is described in greater detail in Key Programs and Private Health Care Coverage for Young People.
When you work, a small part of the money you make is automatically paid into a Federal program called Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). If your disability gets worse and you can’t work anymore, SSDI will give you income support. To learn more, read DB101’s section on SSDI.
Most young people don’t qualify for SSDI because they haven’t worked long enough. However, Social Security also has a program called Child’s Benefits that helps the children of people with disabilities and children with deceased parents. Another program called Disabled Adult Child (DAC) provides benefits for disabled young people over the age of 18 if their parents are retired, disabled, or deceased. To learn more about these programs, Chat with a Hub expert.
Why You Should Take Charge of Your Benefits
It is important that you understand and manage your benefits, because your money and your health care will be your responsibilities during adulthood.
Managing Your Benefits Gives You More Options
What role does money play in your life? You might think of money as what you need to buy the things that you want, but it is also used to pay bills, buy groceries, and take care of everyday concerns. We need money to carry out our day-to-day lives.
However, money can be more than that. It can pay for your education, for your own apartment, or for a car that you can drive to work. It can be the key that opens the door to a brighter future – a future in which you feel in control and enjoy your life because of the path you have chosen.
Learning to take control of your money will help you realize your dreams and achieve your goals. Part of this involves learning how to deal with benefits. Cash benefits are a portion of your income that will help you during your transition to adulthood. Health care benefits will save you money that you can use for other purposes and at the same time will keep you healthy!
Managing your benefits will let you be the person who decides what you want to do with your life and help you fulfill your goals and dreams.
You are Approaching or Have Already Arrived at Adulthood
You are an adult or soon will be an adult. You need to know how to manage your benefits, your health, and your money. Your parents or other family members have probably helped you with benefits in the past, and up to this point in your life they have made many choices about the direction of your life. As a young adult, it is important for you to set goals for yourself so that you can live an independent life. Your parents and family will still be able to help you, but as an adult it will be your responsibility to lead your life and make the final decisions on how to live it.
You might feel anxious or scared about taking more control over your life and that’s okay. It’s a lot of work, and handling your benefits is hard, but there is also a lot of information available and many people who can help you make good decisions. Begin with Key Programs to get a brief introduction to the most important programs that can help you.
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Key Programs
There are many different disability benefits programs. This section explains three of the most important ones:
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
- Medical Assistance (MA)
- Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD)
Make sure you understand why these programs are important by reading the introductions to them below. Private health care coverage is also discussed as it is an important health coverage alternative.
Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
SSI is the most important income support benefit for young people. Even if you have never had a job, you may be able to get SSI. Even if you are under 18 and live with your parents, you may be able to get SSI.
Who it helps
People who are disabled or blind may not be able to work or afford to live on their own. If you have a disability, don’t have enough money for your basic needs, don’t have much income, and have limited assets, you may be able to get SSI. If you have a disability, are under the age of 18, and your parents have low income and limited assets, you may also be eligible for SSI.
What it provides
If you qualify for SSI, you get a monthly check. This money helps you pay your expenses, like food and rent. Most people who get SSI also qualify for Medical Assistance (MA).
Learn more in SSI Eligibility for Young People.
SSDI is another major income support benefit for people with disabilities. When you work, taxes are taken out of your paycheck. Some of those taxes are automatically paid into the SSDI program. If you have paid enough money into SSDI, you will get SSDI benefits if your disability prevents you from working.
SSDI isn’t a very important program for most young people, because they haven’t worked long enough to get benefits from it. While you probably don’t qualify for SSDI now, if you get a job you will qualify later, and the more you work, the bigger your SSDI check will be if you need it!
To learn more, read DB101’s section on SSDI.
Medical Assistance (MA)
MA is the most important public health benefit for young people with disabilities.
Who it helps
MA is for people who cannot afford medical expenses, including people who are disabled, young, or pregnant. Generally, to get it, you or your family must have low income.
What it provides
If you qualify, MA pays for your medical expenses, including visits to the doctor, hospital stays, prescription drugs, medical equipment, and other medical services.
Read MA Eligibility for Young People to learn more.
MinnesotaCare is another public program that is very similar to MA. It is most helpful for people who are 18 or over, do not have a disability determination, make too much income for MA according to the rules in DB101's MA article, and cannot get coverage through an employer. Read DB101's MinnesotaCare article to learn more.
Note: Some immigrants under 18 may be able to get MinnesotaCare even if they do not qualify for MA. In most other cases, if you are under 18, you will not qualify for MinnesotaCare because you could get MA instead.
Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) Basics
MA-EPD lets you get a job, save up some money, and keep your MA health coverage.
Who it helps
MA-EPD is for people with disabilities who have jobs. There is no income limit, but you do have to pay a monthly premium to get it, with the amount of the premium depending on your income.
What it provides
MA-EPD pays for the same services that standard MA covers, including visits to the doctor, hospital stays, medical equipment, and other medical services.
Learn more in MA-EPD Eligibility for Young People.
There is another way you can keep getting MA while you work. If you lost your SSI because of earnings from work, you can continue to get MA through a rule called SSI 1619(b). It is exactly the same MA coverage that you had before you started working. 1619(b) is explained in more detail in MA Eligibility for Young People.
Private Health Care Coverage
Private health insurance is the most common way people get health coverage.
Who it helps
People get private health coverage in different ways. Some get it through their jobs, others get it from their parents’ employers, and some sign up for it on their own at MNsure. If you get an individual health plan, the government may help pay your monthly premium through tax subsidies. Note: There is no income limit for getting subsidies that help pay individual coverage premiums. (Before 2021, the limit was 400% of FPG.) To get subsidies, you still must meet other eligibility rules and the premium amount you pay depends on your income and your plan.
What it provides
Private health care coverage pays for some of your medical costs when you see a doctor or other health care provider, or get prescription medicine at a pharmacy. Depending on your private health care coverage plan, the plan may pay for almost the entire cost of your medical expenses, or it may pay only a portion of those expenses.
Read Private Health Care Coverage for Young People to learn more.
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Eligibility for Key Programs
Now that you’ve read some basic information about SSI, MA, MA-EPD, and private health care coverage, we can begin to look at the factors that will impact your eligibility for these key programs.
The rules for eligibility can seem very complicated. They are different for different programs and they can also be different depending on your age. In addition, you may be going through a period in your life during which you’re moving out of your parents’ home, going to college, or getting a job. Each of these changes can impact your benefits too!
The good news is that the DB101 website explains a lot and there are also people you can contact who can help you figure out these rules and answer your questions. DB101’s Chat with a Hub expert feature allows you to connect with a Hub expert using live chat, phone, or secure email. Anything you talk about is private.
The Hub expert can help you determine if you’re eligible for certain programs, understand your current benefits, get help using the DB101 website and estimators, and connect you to other resources.
When you get a job, or go to school, or get older, your eligibility and benefit amounts can change. DB101 includes Estimators that can help you predict how your benefits might change. For young people, the School and Work Estimator is especially helpful. After reading about benefits, try it out!
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SSI Eligibility for Young People
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) pays a monthly check to people who have low income and are disabled or blind. To get SSI, you have to meet certain rules. Some rules are the same, regardless of your age. For example:
- You must be a U.S. citizen or a qualified alien
However, other rules change a lot depending on your age. The biggest changes involve:
- How SSI decides whether you have a disability
- Whose income and assets are counted when SSI decides if your income and assets are low enough for you to get benefits
How to Apply for SSI
You can apply for SSI at your local Social Security office or by telephone at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY: 1-800-325-0778). If you need help applying for SSI, contact a Social Security advocate.
Many people who qualify for SSI also qualify for Medical Assistance (MA), Minnesota Supplemental Aid (MSA), and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Chat with a Hub expert to learn more about these programs.
Eligibility Details
Our description of SSI eligibility below is divided into four parts. Click on the appropriate sections you want to read:
- SSI if you are younger than 18
- If you get SSI and are turning 18 soon
- SSI if you are already 18 or older
- Incentives that help you go to school, work, and save money
Note: This article covers the basic SSI rules for young people. For more complete details, see DB101's article on SSI and Work.
SSI if You Are Younger than 18
If you are under 18, SSI says you are a child and have a disability if:
- You have a physical or mental impairment or combination of impairments
- Your impairments cause severe limitations in your daily life, and
- Your condition has lasted or is expected to last for at least 12 months
Not everybody with a disability automatically gets benefits. You must also have no other way to pay for basic expenses like food, rent, and utilities. If you are under 18, SSI decides whether you need help by looking at the money you and your parents earn and the assets you and your parents have, including savings accounts, stocks, and real estate.
Note: You can open an ABLE account where over time you can save up to $100,000 in resources and not have them counted by SSI. Learn more about ABLE accounts.
SSI counts both your income and assets and your parents’ income and assets when you are under 18 because they expect your parents to pay for your living expenses. This is called parent-to-child deeming.
If you or your parents make too much money or have too many assets, you will not get SSI. The exact limits depend on the size of your family. For example, if you live with both your parents and you have no siblings, the earned income limit is usually $4,841 per month and the asset limit is $2,000.
A complete table of income limits for families with a disabled child is listed near the bottom of Social Security’s SSI for Children webpage.
If your income and assets and your parents’ income and assets don’t exceed the limits, you will get a monthly SSI check. The maximum check you can get is $967.
SSI considers your parents’ income and decides to reduce your benefit by $200 due to parent-to-child deeming. Instead of giving you a check for $967, they give you a check for $767.
If you live with one parent, and get child support from your other parent, SSI counts two-thirds of the child support as income.
Your parent gets $300 each month from child support. SSI counts two-thirds of that and reduces your monthly SSI check by $200.
Sometimes child support comes in the form of shelter, instead of a check. In that case, SSI will figure out how much money that support is worth and count two thirds of it as income. In the case of shelter, your benefit check could be reduced by a maximum of $322.33.
If You Get SSI and Are Turning 18
If you get SSI and then you turn 18, the biggest change in SSI eligibility rules is that you are considered an adult, not a child. When SSI decides whether you have a disability, SSI will not use their definition of disability for children. Instead, as an adult, SSI looks at your ability to work, not just your physical or mental limitations. That means that some people stop getting SSI benefits after they turn 18.
During the first year after you turn 18, SSI will automatically check to see if they still consider you disabled. This is called the SSI Age-18 Redetermination. They will say you have a disability if:
- You have a physical or mental impairment or combination of impairments
- Your impairments limit your ability to work, and
- Your condition has lasted or is expected to last for at least 12 months.
SSI may also look at your work and school record to see if you are able to work and may even talk to your teachers, counselors, or employers.
If you are going through the SSI Age-18 redetermination, Social Security may consider you to have a disability, even if you are working and earn less than $1,620 per month.
If you were not getting SSI before you turned 18 and you apply for SSI as an adult, Social Security may consider you to have a disability if you are working, but only if you make less than $1,620 per month, if you aren't blind. If you are blind, you could earn much more.
If SSI decides that you are not disabled because you don’t meet the adult definition of disability, you will no longer be able to get SSI. They will keep sending you SSI checks for two months, but then your benefits will end. In this situation, if you still want to get SSI you have two options:
- You can appeal. When SSI sends you the letter telling you that your benefit is ending, you have 10 days to request an appeal. During the appeal process, you can ask that SSI continue your benefits until they make a decision. Learn more about appeals.
- If you are participating in an employment support program, like Vocational Rehabilitation, an Individualized Education Program, a PASS plan or any other program approved by SSI that will help you get a good job in the future, you can apply to continue benefits through a special rule called Section 301.
If SSI says that you meet the adult definition of disability and that you will continue to get benefits after turning 18, these are things that could impact the monthly amount you get:
- Parent-to-child deeming ends. This means that SSI will no longer count your parents’ income and assets when considering your eligibility for benefits. This may help you get a higher benefit than before you were 18.
- If you or your family gets child support for your living expenses, SSI will now count all of it as income. This may cause your benefit to be reduced.
- You living situation: If you live alone or pay your fair share of expenses as a roommate with others, your benefit amount may be higher than if you live with others who help pay for your shelter.
- In-Kind support and maintenance: If someone else helps to pay your rent, your benefit amount may be reduced by up to one-third ($322.33. This is called a Value of the One-Third Reduction (VTR).
If you have any questions about this, use DB101’s Chat with a Hub expert feature.
SSI if You Are Already 18 or Older
If you are 18 or older and did not get SSI before turning 18, SSI says you are an adult and have a disability if:
- You have a physical or mental impairment or combination of impairments
- Your impairments limit your ability to work, preventing you from earning Substantial Gainful Activity ($1,620 per month if you’re not blind), and
- Your condition has lasted or is expected to last for at least 12 months
Note: If you are blind, you could be able to earn more than $1,620 per month.
Some people who get SSI before they are 18 lose it when they turn 18 because they don’t meet the adult definition of disability. Other people who couldn’t get SSI before they were 18 due to parent-to-child deeming may now be able to get it.
Not everybody who meets the adult definition of disability automatically gets benefits. You must also have no other way to pay for basic expenses like food, rent, and utilities. If you are over 18, SSI decides whether you need help by looking at your income and how many assets you have, including savings accounts, stocks, and real estate.
If you have more than SGA in earned income, or too much unearned income, or if your assets are above the asset limit, you will not get SSI. If your income and assets don’t exceed the limits, you’ll get a monthly check. The amount of money you get each month will depend on your income.
If you don’t have more assets than the limit and SSI sees that you don’t have any money to spend on your basic needs, they’ll send you the maximum benefit amount each month.
In 2025, the maximum benefit is $967. If SSI looks at your income and sees that you have some money, but not enough for all of your basic needs, they’ll give you less money than the maximum.
If you work, you may have to spend money on things, like transportation, medical expenses, or accommodations, to do your job. If you have a disability, SSI may consider some of your expenses to be Impairment Related Work Expenses (IRWEs) and may not count the money you spend on them as income. If you are blind, the rules are a bit different and the expenses are called Blind Work Expenses (BWEs). Be sure to keep all receipts for expenses you think qualify as IRWEs or BWEs.
The bottom line: If you have IRWEs or BWEs, you may qualify for SSI even if you think your income is too high to get it. Or, you might get higher SSI benefits than you otherwise would.
Incentives that Help You Go to School, Work, and Save
SSI and many other government benefit programs have strict limits on how much income and savings you can have. If you go over the limits, you will no longer get benefits. The problem is that sometimes they end up preventing people from working and saving.
When the government realized that these limits were actually stopping people from getting jobs, saving money, and living better, they created work incentives like the Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE), the Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS), Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), and ABLE accounts that help you earn and save money without losing your benefits.
For more detailed information about SSI's work rules, see DB101's article on SSI and Work.
Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE)
Usually, if you make too much money, your SSI benefit will either decrease or be eliminated altogether. There are some exceptions to this rule, however, which SSI calls "exclusions."
One of those exclusions is the Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE). This exclusion allows students to earn up to $2,350 per month, and up to $9,460 per year, without having those wages count as part of their countable income.
You make $1,050 per month at a summer job. During the school year, you also make $350 each month at a work-study job. Since the money you make doesn’t exceed the monthly and annual limits for the SEIE, your SSI benefit won’t decrease at all.
If you drop out of school, you will no longer get the SEIE, and you will get a smaller benefit than you would if you stayed in school. Stay in school! You’ll get more money thanks to the SEIE, and when you graduate you’ll get a higher paying job thanks to your degree!
In order to qualify for the SEIE, you have to be under 22, working, and "regularly attending school". That usually means you have to go to school more than:
- 8 hours a week for college students
- 12 hours a week for grades 7-12, or
- 12-15 hours a week for employment training
Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS)
Usually, if you have too many assets or too much income, you will no longer qualify for SSI. Setting up a PASS is one way for people getting SSI to save money without having it count against their benefits eligibility.
To set up a PASS, you must qualify for SSI, have a specific work goal, and have expenses that you need to pay to reach your job goal. You must also show that you’ll have enough income to pay for your basic living expenses after you’ve set up your PASS.
There are a couple of big advantages to having a PASS:
- You can use unearned income to save money, which means that you can start saving even if you don’t have a job yet.
- SSI does not count the money that you put in a PASS account as income or assets. So you can earn and save more with a PASS without having your SSI benefit reduced.
The limitation is that the money you save with a PASS must be used for an employment-related expense. However, those expenses can include things like money for school, transportation, books, and services.
For more information, read DB101’s PASS section or contact a PASS Cadre.
Learn more about SSI young people who work by watching the short video below.
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MA Eligibility for Young People
Medical Assistance (MA) helps people with low income pay for their visits to the doctor, hospital stays, prescription drugs, medical equipment, and other medical services. Most people who qualify for SSI and MSA can also get MA.
To get MA, you have to meet certain rules. These rules can seem confusing because there are big changes when you turn 19. The biggest rules changes involve:
- How much income you can have and still get MA
- Whether there might be an asset limit for qualifying for MA
- Whose income and assets are counted when MA decides if your income and assets are low enough for you to get benefits
This section on MA eligibility is divided into two parts:
After you learn about eligibility, you can apply for MA:
- Online using MNsure.
- In person at your local county or tribal human services office.
- Filling out a paper application and faxing it in to 1-651-431-7750 or mailing to the address listed on the form.
Note: If you get SSI, you should apply at your county or tribal human services office.
If you apply online, MNsure will only check to see if you might qualify for disability-based MA if you answer "yes" to at least one of these questions:
- Are you blind or do you have a physical, mental, or emotional health condition that limits your activities (like bathing, dressing, daily chores, etc.)?
- Do you need help staying in your home or help paying for care in a long-term care facility such as a nursing home?
- Do you want help from Medical Assistance (MA) to pay for medical bills from the last three months?
If you have a disability and don't answer these questions correctly, you might not get the best health coverage for you. If you have any questions about applying, Chat with a Hub expert.
MA if You Are 18 or Younger
If you are 18 or under, there are 2 common ways to get MA. You can qualify:
- If your family has low income, whether or not you have a disability, or
- If you are disabled and you have low income
There is no asset limit either way.
Income-based MA eligibility
Whether or not you have a disability, when you apply for MA, MA will first check to see if you qualify based on your income and your parents’ income. If you are a child 18 or younger and your family’s income is at or below 280% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) ($87,360 per year for a family of four), you may qualify for MA. Use this tool to check whether your family's income is low enough for you to get income-based MA:
| Your family size: | |
Income limits for your family: | |
| Income-based MA, adults (138% FPG) | |
| Income-based MA, children/pregnant women (280% FPG) | |
| MinnesotaCare (200% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans, reduced fees (250% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans (no income limit) | -- |
If your family's income is at or below the limit for a program, you may qualify if you meet other program rules.
Notes:
| |
Disability-based MA eligibility
If you do not qualify for income-based MA, MA will check to see if you qualify for disability-based MA. To qualify, you must be determined disabled by the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the State Medical Review Team (SMRT). The rules about disabilities are different if you are under the age of 18 than if you are 18 or older. You can read more about differences in the definition of disability for children and adults on this article's SSI page.
If SSA or SMRT says you have a disability, MA will only look at your income when deciding whether you qualify, and will not look at your parents’ income. This makes it much easier for you to qualify for disability-based MA. The countable income limit for people with disabilities is 100% of FPG, or $15,060 per year. For people with disabilities, countable income is not the same as total income, so use this little tool to see whether your countable income is under the limit:
| Your Monthly Earned Income | $ |
| Your Monthly Unearned Income (not including SSI) | $ |
| Your Monthly Impairment Related Work Expenses (IRWEs) | $ |
 | |
| Your Monthly Countable Income | |
| Your Annual Countable Income | |
| |
| Your Countable Income as a Percent of FPG |
There is no asset limit. In other words, if you are a child with a disability and don't work full-time, you'll probably be able to get disability-based MA, no matter how much your parents make and how much your family has in assets.
Note: If you are 18 or under and have a disability, your parents’ income won’t impact your eligibility for disability-based MA, due to a rule called TEFRA. Learn more about MA-TEFRA.
If you’re on Supplemental Security Income (SSI), there is a rule called 1619(b) that lets you keep your MA coverage even if your earned income becomes too high for you to keep getting an SSI cash benefit. With 1619(b), you can make up to $79,483 per year without losing your MA.
While 1619(b) means that you can get MA while earning way more than the program’s normal income limit, your assets have to stay below SSI’s $2,000 asset limit. If your assets go above that limit, you should consider MA-EPD. Learn more about MA-EPD.
MA if You Are 19 or Older
The biggest change when you turn 19 is that you must meet the eligibility rules for adults, not for children. As with the rules for people under 19, there are two main ways that you may qualify for MA:
- If you have low income, whether or not you have a disability, or
-
If you are disabled and you have low income and low assets
- Note: The asset limit for people with disabilities only applies if you are 21 or older.
The income limits are different for these two ways of qualifying and how MA counts your income is also different, so depending on your situation and whether your disability meets SSA's standards, you may qualify by one of these sets of rules and not the other.
Income-based MA eligibility
Whether or not you have a disability, when you apply for MA, MA will first check to see if you qualify for income-based MA. If you are 19 or older and your family’s income is at or below 138% of FPG ($20,783 per year if you are single) , you may qualify. If you are pregnant, you can have income up to 280% FPG ($57,232 per year if you are single and pregnant with your first child; the baby counts as a family member according to MA). There is no asset limit for income-based MA.
Use this tool to check whether your family's income is low enough for you to get income-based MA:
| Your family size: | |
Income limits for your family: | |
| Income-based MA, adults (138% FPG) | |
| Income-based MA, children/pregnant women (280% FPG) | |
| MinnesotaCare (200% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans, reduced fees (250% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans (no income limit) | -- |
If your family's income is at or below the limit for a program, you may qualify if you meet other program rules.
Notes:
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Disability-based MA eligibility
If you do not qualify for income-based MA, MA will check to see if you qualify for disability-based MA. To qualify, you must be determined disabled by the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the State Medical Review Team (SMRT). Both SSA and SMRT use SSA's adult definition of disability for anybody 18 or older.
The monthly countable income limit for adults with disabilities is 100% of FPG ($1,255 for an individual, $1,704 for a family of two).Countable income is not the same as your total income, so use this little tool to see whether your countable income is under the limit:
| Your Monthly Earned Income | $ |
| Your Monthly Unearned Income (not including SSI) | $ |
| Your Monthly Impairment Related Work Expenses (IRWEs) | $ |
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| Your Monthly Countable Income | |
| Your Annual Countable Income | |
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| Your Countable Income as a Percent of FPG |
Note: If you are living with others, some of their income may be counted when your application is reviewed for disability-based MA. If you are in that situation, you should use DB101's Benefits and Work Estimator to see whether you qualify for MA.
A major change when you turn 21 is that you must meet an asset limit in order to get disability-based MA. The asset limit is $3,000 if you are single ($6,000 for couples). You must approve the use of the Account Validation Service (AVS) so that MA can make sure your assets are below the limit.
Tip: Disability-based MA doesn’t have the same asset limit as SSI, so if you get both, be sure to stay below SSI’s limit as well ($2,000 for individuals, $3,000 for couples).
Note: Income-based MA does not have an asset limit. If you are currently on disability-based MA and your income rises, you may be able to switch to income-based MA or to MA-EPD (described on this article's next page).
If you don’t qualify for MA or MA-EPD, there are other health coverage options you may be able to get on MNsure. To learn more, read DB101’s articles on MinnesotaCare and Buying Health Coverage on MNsure.
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MA-EPD Eligibility for Young People
If you get a job and are making too much money or have saved up too much money to get disability-based Medical Assistance (MA), you might be able to keep your MA coverage by getting Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD).
To get MA-EPD, you have to meet certain rules. These rules are a lot simpler than MA’s rules, because they don’t change much as you get older.
To qualify for MA-EPD, you must:
- Be certified disabled by the Social Security Administration (SSA) or the State Medical Review Team (SMRT)
- Be working, paying Social Security and Medicare taxes, and earning more than $65 per month
- Not be eligible for standard Medical Assistance (MA), including 1619(b)
- Pay a monthly premium. The amount you pay depends on your income. If you are under 18 and live with your parents, the amount of the premium will also depend on their income.
MA-EPD is a great option if you like your current MA coverage and get a job. You don’t have to be afraid you will lose your health coverage.
Tip: If the premium is high, look at individual health plans on MNsure. Learn more in DB101's Buying Individual Coverage on MNsure article.
If you prefer private health care coverage and the county decides that your private coverage is cost-effective, you can get MA or MA-EPD to pay your private health care coverage premium and copayments. This is especially helpful if your employer offers health coverage and you have to pay part of the monthly premium. Chat with a Hub expert to learn more.
How to Apply for MA-EPD
The only way you can apply for Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) is by filling out the Minnesota Health Care Programs Application for Certain Populations and taking it or mailing it to your local county or tribal human services office. You cannot sign up online.
Note: You should only use this application if you think you might qualify for MA-EPD. If you are not sure whether you qualify for MA-EPD, Chat with a Hub expert.
If it turns out you are not eligible for MA-EPD, you may be able to get MinnesotaCare or private insurance subsidized by the government through tax credits.
For more information, read DB101’s MA-EPD article.
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Private Health Care Coverage for Young People
In order to get private coverage, somebody—you, your employer, your parents, your parents’ employer—must pay for that coverage. In this section, we will introduce you to the basic ways you can get private health care coverage, as well as some of the expenses you may encounter with private coverage.
Coverage Through Work
Many, but not all, jobs offer health care benefits. That’s why private health care coverage through work is the most common way that Americans get their health care coverage.
If you get your health coverage through your job, usually your employer pays most of the expenses. This means that the employer pays hundreds of dollars each month so that you have access to health care. Depending on your job, you will also have to pay a monthly amount in addition to what your employer spends. The total monthly expense paid for the private health care coverage is called the premium.
If your employer provides health coverage, you may be able to get MA or MA-EPD to pay for your portion of the premium if the county determines your private coverage is “cost-effective”. Chat with a Hub expert to learn more.
In addition to the premium you and your employer will be paying, you will have to pay various other expenses out of your own pocket. The most common health care expenses are called “copayments”. A copayment means that every time you have a doctor’s appointment, have a test done, or get a prescription filled you will have to pay some money. With private coverage, copayments generally range from about $10 to $50.
Depending on your health care plan, you may not have to pay anything for certain types of services (testing and vaccinations, for example). But you may have to pay a lot for other types of services. Some plans, for example, may require you to pay for half of all your hospitalization expenses, which can add up to hundreds or even thousands of dollars each day. Other plans simply do not cover certain medical expenses, such as wheelchairs or other durable medical equipment.
All plans have an annual limit on the total amount you have to pay in addition to your monthly premium. This limit is called the out-of-pocket maximum. So, if you have a plan with a $2,000 out-of-pocket maximum, once you’ve paid a total of $2,000 in copayments and other medical expenses, you won’t have to pay any copayments or other expenses for the the rest of the year. Note: You will still have to pay your monthly premium.
Coverage Through Parents
Generally, when people get private health care coverage through their jobs, they are allowed to pay an additional amount to have their family members added to the coverage, including their children
Minnesota law guarantees that your parents can add you to their “employer-sponsored health care plan” (the health care plan they get through work) until you turn 25 (unless you are married). Federal law says that parents who get new health care plans are allowed to add any children under the age of 26 to their plans.
If you have a disability and are dependent on a parent for financial support, you can be covered by your parent’s plan no matter what your age.
Purchasing Coverage
Some people pay a health coverage company directly for their health care coverage instead of getting it through their jobs or parents. This is called individual coverage. With individual coverage, you will usually have to pay a monthly premium, copayments, and a deductible, depending on your plan.
MNsure is the easiest place to apply for individual coverage. It used to be that health insurance companies could deny your application or charge you more if you had a disability, but starting in 2014, that's no longer true. Now, anybody under the age of 65 can go to MNsure and sign up for a private insurance plan.
You should think about getting an individual plan through MNsure if you cannot get health coverage from:
- Your job
- Your spouse’s job
- Your parent’s job
- Medical Assistance (MA)
- MinnesotaCare, or
- Medicare
If you cannot get health coverage from any of the above options, the government may help you pay your monthly premium via a tax credit. If your family’s income is at or below 250% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG), ($37,650 for an individual or $78,000 for a family of four), the government also helps you get a silver plan that has lower copayments and other expenses.
Note: There is no income limit for getting subsidies that help pay individual coverage premiums. (Before 2021, the limit was 400% of FPG.) To get subsidies, you still must meet other eligibility rules and the premium amount you pay depends on your income and your plan.
| Your family size: | |
Income limits for your family: | |
| Income-based MA, adults (138% FPG) | |
| Income-based MA, children/pregnant women (280% FPG) | |
| MinnesotaCare (200% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans, reduced fees (250% FPG) | |
| Subsidized private plans (no income limit) | -- |
If your family's income is at or below the limit for a program, you may qualify if you meet other program rules.
Notes:
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Read more about how to sign up for individual coverage in DB101's Buying Health Coverage on MNsure article.
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Other Programs
There are many other benefits programs that you might qualify for. If you get SSI and are over 18, you can probably also get Minnesota Supplemental Aid (MSA) and MFIP. If your income and assets are low enough, you may also be able to get income support from the Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP).
Depending on your circumstances, two Social Security programs may give you benefits based on contributions your parents made during their careers: Child’s Benefits and Disabled Adult Child (DAC) benefits.
A third set of programs, including ABLE accounts, Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), help you save up money or other assets without losing your other benefits.
Minnesota Supplemental Aid (MSA)
MSA provides an additional cash benefit to disabled people over the age of 18 and blind people of any age who have low incomes and low assets. The amount of your MSA monthly benefit depends on your living situation and expenses. A person living alone and getting SSI will usually qualify for a MSA benefit of $81.
Most people 18 or older who get SSI also qualify for MSA. However, you do not automatically get MSA if you are getting SSI or other benefits. You have to apply separately for MSA at your county or tribal human services office. Sometimes you can get MSA even if you don’t get SSI.
Chat with a Hub expert to learn more.
If you qualify for MSA, you should also qualify for MA and SNAP. You can apply for MSA and SNAP online with MNbenefits or by completing a Minnesota DHS Combined Application Form and submitting it to your county or tribal human services office. Get detailed information on how to apply for MA.
For more details on MSA, read DB101’s MSA section.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
If you get MSA, you can also get Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps you pay for food.
SNAP used to be called Food Stamps or 'Food Support', but it changed names and it works a little differently now. Instead of using stamps, you get a plastic card called an Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card that looks and works like a debit card. Minnesota puts money on the EBT card each month and you use the card to pay for food.
In order to get SNAP benefits, you must have low income and limited assets. You can apply for SNAP at your local county or tribal human services office. For more details, read DB101’s SNAP section.
Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP)
MFIP provides money to families who don't have enough to pay for basic needs like food, clothing, and rent. MFIP defines a family as one or two parents living with their child or children under 18. The age limit is 19 for children who are in school full time. A family could include biological kids, step-kids, adopted kids, and children of relatives.
To figure out whether or not you're eligible for MFIP, the state looks at your income and assets. You can apply for MFIP at your local county or tribal human services office. For more details, read DB101's MFIP section.
Child’s Benefits (only if you are under 19)
The most common way for adults to get Social Security benefits like SSDI or retirement benefits is to work and pay into Social Security’s trust fund.
For young people, however, a more common way to get Social Security benefits is to qualify for Child’s Benefits. You do not need to have a disability to qualify for Child’s Benefits. To get them, you must:
- Be under the age of 18 (or 19 if you’re attending high school or other secondary education)
- Not be married, and
- Have a parent who gets Social Security retirement benefits or SSDI. If your parent is deceased, you may also qualify
Note: You'll get Child's Benefits in any month your parent gets a Social Security disability or retirement benefit. You will also get benefits if your parent is deceased and would have qualified for benefits based on his or her work record. That means that if your parent is in SSDI's Trial Work Period, you'll keep getting Child's Benefits, but during the Extended Period of Eligibility, you'll only get a Child's Benefit in any month your parent gets an SSDI benefit. Make sure to notify Social Security if your family is in this situation.
You can apply for Child’s Benefits at your local Social Security Office, or by calling 1-800-772-1213 (TTY: 1-800-325-0778). If you have questions about this, Chat with a Hub expert.
Disabled Adult Child (DAC) Benefits (only if you are 18 or older)
If you have a disability, you may be eligible to get money each month through the Disabled Adult Child (DAC) benefits program.
DAC is based on your parent’s work record. You can only get DAC if you are 18 or older. In order to qualify for DAC, you must also:
- Have become disabled before you turned 22
- Not be married, unless your spouse also gets SSDI or DAC
- Meet the adult definition of disability, and
- Have a parent who gets Social Security retirement benefits or SSDI. If your parent is deceased, you may also qualify
You don’t automatically get DAC when you turn 18. You can apply for it at your local Social Security Office, or by telephone at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY: 1-800-325-0778).
If you get DAC, you can also get health coverage through Medicare after a 24-month waiting period.
Note: When DAC benefits begin or when they go up, they might cause you to stop getting SSI. However, even if SSI stops, you might be able to keep your Medical Assistance (MA) health coverage, because MA has a special rule that helps people who stop getting SSI due to DAC. If you get DAC and stopped getting SSI because of your DAC benefits, Chat with a Hub expert and see whether MA's DAC disregard applies to you.
To learn more about DAC, Chat with a Hub expert.
Asset-Building Programs
Asset-building programs are a different type of benefit designed to help you save money you have earned. Instead of sending you a check or paying for your health care expenses, asset-building programs help you save money so that you can afford to pay for your own expenses, such as education, buying a car, or even retirement.
ABLE Accounts
If your disability began before you turned 26, you can open an ABLE account where over time you can save up to $100,000 in resources and not have them counted by SSI. ABLE accounts mean that if you get a job, you can start saving some money without losing your benefits. Additionally, the money in an ABLE account gets tax advantages similar to the way retirement accounts work.
However, ABLE accounts have restrictions:
- They can only be opened through specific programs or institutions.
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You can only open one ABLE account.
- Minnesota ABLE Plan is Minnesota's ABLE account program.
- You can choose to open an account in another state’s ABLE program.
- You and the other people making contributions on your behalf have a limit on how much you can deposit each year. Combined, you cannot deposit more than $19,000 in 2025.
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You can only use money in an ABLE account for specific things, such as:
- Education
- Housing
- Transportation
- Help getting and keeping work
- Health care
- Assistive technology, and
- Other approved expenses.
- A person can only have one ABLE account.
Learn more about ABLE accounts.
Individual Development Accounts (IDA)
An IDA helps people save money for a specific goal, such as purchasing a home, starting a small business, or paying for education. The great thing about an IDA is that for every dollar you save, the bank or other financial institution where you have your account will match your money. For example, if you save $50 per month, the financial institution might contribute $100 per month. The amount they’ll contribute depends on the institution, but sometimes they will put more money into your account than you do!
To open an IDA:
- You must have low income, and
- The money you contribute must be money that you earned from work, not from a benefits check, your parents, or any other source
If you are getting SSI, MSA, or MA benefits, it is very important that you enroll in an IDA that is federally funded through Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or the Assets for Independence Act (AFIA). The SSI, MSA, and MA programs do not count money deposited in those type of IDA, so your benefits won’t be jeopardized.
If you enroll in a non-federally funded IDA (for example, one funded by a non-profit or private company), money deposited and matched in your IDA could affect those benefits.
If you have any questions about this at all, Chat with a Hub expert for further information. IDA’s are a great money-saving tool, but you need to be sure and enroll in the right type of IDA so that you don’t jeopardize your benefits.
You can also read DB101’s IDA article to learn more.
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) gives money to low to moderate income workers and families. Even people who don’t make enough money to owe income taxes may be able to get a check from the IRS if they qualify for this tax credit.
To qualify, the only requirement is that you have income from employment, self-employment, or employer-paid disability benefits received. If your income is too high, you will no longer qualify for the credit.
To get the Earned Income Tax Credit, you need to file your taxes, even if you owe nothing! Make sure to complete the “Schedule EIC” as well. This is free money, and lots of people don’t get it because they don’t know!
The amount of your EITC depends on your family size and income. The maximum credit for 2025 (filing by April 2026) ranges from $2 to $8,046. Make sure to file your taxes and apply!
For more details, read DB101’s Tax Credit page or Chat with a Hub expert.
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Next Steps
Learn More
Benefit programs give you resources that can help make your life better.
To learn more about the programs discussed in this article, read DB101’s sections on:
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
- Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI)
- Minnesota Supplemental Aid (MSA)
- Income-based Medical Assistance (MA)
- Disability-based MA
- MA for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD)
- MinnesotaCare
- Employer-Sponsored Health Coverage
- MNsure
- SNAP
- Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP)
- Building Assets and Wealth
- ABLE Accounts
- Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS)
- Individual Development Accounts (IDAs)
- Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
Apply for Benefits
- You can apply for SSI, SSDI, DAC, and Child’s Benefits at your local Social Security Office or by calling 1-800-772-1213 or 1-800-325-0778 (TTY).
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You can apply for Minnesota health coverage programs, including MA:
- Online using MNsure.
- In person at your local county or tribal human services office.
- Filling out a paper application and faxing it in to 1-651-431-7750 or mailing to the address listed on the form.
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The only way you can apply for Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD) is by filling out the Minnesota Health Care Programs Application for Certain Populations and taking it or mailing it to your local county or tribal human services office. You cannot sign up online.
- You can apply for Minnesota cash assistance programs, including MSA, MFIP, and SNAP at MNbenefits.
- To apply for a PASS, contact your local PASS Cadre.
- The Minnesota Department of Health has a helpful Guide to Purchasing Health Insurance.
- If you can't find what you're looking for or have questions, Chat with a Hub expert
Learn About Work and Benefits - Chat with a Hub expert!
When you have questions or need help, use Chat with a Hub expert. This feature connects you to a DB101 Expert using live chat, phone, or secure email. Anything you talk about is private.
- Understand your current benefits
- Get help using DB101.org
- Connect to resources
- Plan next steps
Free Legal Help
The Minnesota Disability Law Center (MDLC) provides free assistance to people with civil legal issues related to their disability. Call the MDLC Intake Line at 1-612-334-5970 (Twin Cities metro area), 1-800-292-4150 (Greater Minnesota), or 1-612-332-4668 (TTY).
Find Local Services
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You can use MinnesotaHelp.info to find social services near you, from benefits applications to job counseling. |
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