Disability Terms and Definitions

Elimination Period This is the period of time between the date the disability commences and the beginning of the benefit payment period. It is the period during which an employee must be disabled before payment of benefits begins. It is sometimes referred to as the Qualifying Period. Cost-of-living adjustments Each January, your benefits will increase automatically if the cost of living has gone up. For example, if the cost of living has increased by 2 percent, your benefits also will increase by 2 percent. Disability A general term used for the problems a person with a health condition (such as cerebral palsy or deafness) has because of barriers in his or her environment. Benefit Year The 52 consecutive weeks for which you are eligible to receive unemployment benefits. The benefit year begins on the day that you file for unemployment benefits. ADA Americans with Disabilities Act The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in employment, State and local government, public accommodations, commercial facilities, transportation, and telecommunications. It also applies to the United States Congress. Medicare (SSDI) Two-part health insurance program for eligible disabled individuals and people age 65 or older SSI State Supplement A cash benefit authorized by Ch. 49.77 and 49.775, Wis. Stats. This benefit is intended to supplement the federal SSI benefit payment. Eligibility is based on current receipt of federal SSI benefits or special "grandfathered" status as a recipient of the state supplement only. DHO Disability Hearing Officer. Conducts in person hearings. Next appeal is to a federal Administrative Law Judge (ALJ). Social Security and Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) Monthly cash benefit administered by the federal Social Security Administration (SSA) to retired or disabled workers and their qualified dependents. Beneficiaries must be 62 years of age or older, or disabled, and have enough work "credits" to be qualified. Indexing Indexing is designed to provide some protection against inflation. After the first year of disability, a disabled employee's pre-disability earnings are usually increased (or indexed) by a certain percentage on an annual basis.

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	Did You Know?
	SSDI stands for Social Security Disability Insurance A system of federally provided payments to eligible workers (and, in some cases, their families) when they are unable to continue working because of a disability. Benefits begin with the sixth full month of disability and continue until the individual is capable of substantial gainful activity.