Taxpayers with disabilities may qualify for a number of IRS tax credits and benefits. Parents of children with disabilities may also qualify. These seven tax credits and other benefits are available if you or someone else listed on your federal tax return is disabled:

1. Standard Deduction

Taxpayers who are legally blind may be entitled to a higher standard deduction on their tax return.

2. Gross Income

Certain disability-related payments, Veterans Administration disability benefits, and Supplemental Security Income are excluded from gross income.

3. Impairment-Related Work Expenses

Employees, who have a physical or mental disability limiting their employment, may be able to claim business expenses in connection with their workplace. The expenses must be necessary for the taxpayer to work.

4. Credit for the Elderly or Disabled

This credit is generally available to certain taxpayers who are 65 and older as well as to certain disabled taxpayers who are younger than 65 and are retired on permanent and total disability.

5. Medical Expenses

If you itemize your deductions using Form 1040 Schedule A, you may be able to deduct medical expenses. See IRS Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses.

6. Earned Income Tax Credit

Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is available to disabled taxpayers as well as to the parents of a child with a disability. If you retired on disability, taxable benefits you receive under your employer’s disability retirement plan are considered earned income until you reach minimum retirement age. The Earned Income Tax Credit is a tax credit that not only reduces a taxpayer’s tax liability but may also result in a refund. Many working individuals with a disability who have no qualifying children, but are older than 25 and younger than 65 do — in fact — qualify for EITC. Additionally, if the taxpayer’s child is disabled, the age limitation for the EITC is waived. The EITC has no effect on certain public benefits. Any refund you receive because of the EITC will not be considered income when determining whether you are eligible for benefit programs such as Supplemental Security Income and Medicaid.

7. Child or Dependent Care Credit

Taxpayers who pay someone to come to their home and care for their dependent or spouse may be entitled to claim this credit. There is no age limit if the taxpayer’s spouse or dependent is unable to care for themselves.

For more information on tax credits and benefits available to disabled taxpayers, see Publication 3966, Living and Working with Disabilities or Publication 907, Tax Highlights for Persons with Disabilities available on IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, announced on February 1, 2010 that 15 healthcare providers and networks have received $17.4 million in contract awards to provide electronic medical records to the Social Security Administration (SSA). These electronic medical records, which will be sent through the Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN), will hopefully shorten the time it takes Social Security to make a disability decision and will improve the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of the disability program.

“Using health information technology will improve our disability programs and provide better service to the public,” Commissioner Astrue said. “We’ve seen a significant increase in disability applications. To process them, the agency sends more than 15 million requests annually for medical records to healthcare providers. This largely paper-bound workload is generally the most time-consuming part of the disability decision process. The use of health IT will dramatically improve the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of this process, reducing the cost of making a disability decision for both the medical community and the American taxpayer.”

The contract awards are funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Stimulus). They will require awardees, with a patient’s authorization, to send Social Security electronic medical records through the NHIN. The NHIN, a safe and secure method for receiving access to electronic medical records over the Internet, is an initiative of the Department of Health and Human Services supported by multiple government agencies and private sector entities.

For the last year, Social Security has been successfully testing health IT to obtain electronic medical records. Disability applications processed with electronic medical records from the test sites have significantly reduced processing times. Some decisions are now made in days, instead of weeks or months. Social Security expects to receive more than 3.3 million applications in fiscal year (FY) 2010, a 27 percent increase over FY 2008.

Data from the U.S. Census is used to assign congressional seats to states, and it directly affects how more than $400 billion per year in federal funding is distributed to state, local and tribal governments. Accurate counts impact several important programs and services that are critical to the disabled community.

Here is what the census means for people with a disability:

* Helps state and county agencies plan for eligible recipients under the Medicare, Medicaid,and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs.

* Distributes funds and develops programs for people with disabilities and the elderly under the Rehabilitation Act.

* Distributes funds for housing for people with disabilities under the Housing and Urban Development Act.

* Allocates funds for mass transit systems to provide facilities for people with disabilities under the Federal Transit Act.

* Awards federal grants, under the Older Americans Act, based on the number of elderly people with physical and mental disabilities.

* Allocates funds to states and local areas for employment and job training programs for veterans and disabled veterans under the Job Training Partnership Act, Disabled Veterans Outreach Program.

* Ensures that comparable public transportation services are available for all segments of the population under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, and Chubby Checker, Grammy Award winner and rock and roll legend, have launched a new campaign to inform millions of Americans about a new “twist” in the law that makes it easier to qualify for extra help with Medicare prescription drug costs. The extra help program currently provides assistance to more than nine million older adults and people with disabilities — saving them an average of almost $4,000 a year on their Medicare prescription drug plan costs. To apply for extra help, there is an easy-to-use online application available at www.socialsecurity.gov.

To qualify for extra help, people must meet certain resource and income limits. The new Medicare law eases those requirements in two ways. First, it eliminates the cash value of life insurance from counting as a resource. Second, it eliminates the assistance people receive from others to pay for household expenses, such as food, rent, mortgage or utilities, from counting as income. There also is another important “twist” in the law. The application for extra help can now start the application process for Medicare Savings Programs — state programs that provide help with other Medicare costs. These programs help pay Medicare Part B (medical insurance) premiums. For some people, the Medicare Savings Programs also pay Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) premiums, if any, and Part A and B deductibles and co-payments.

To learn more about the extra help program and to view the new TV spot featuring Chubby Checker, go to www.socialsecurity.gov/extrahelp.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a federal program that helps people with disabilities and very low incomes pay for food, clothing and shelter. SSI is often confused with Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI). One of the main differences between the two programs is that SSDI is available to people with disabilities no matter how much money they earn or have, while SSI places very strict limits on a recipient’s income and assets. However, in most states, an SSI beneficiary who receives even $1 from the program also qualifies for Medicaid health coverage, which can be far more valuable than SSI’s benefit itself.

How to Qualify for SSI:

This first requirement is often the hardest for SSI applicants to meet, in large part because the federal government’s definition of “disabled” is so narrow. In essence, adult SSI applicants who are seeking benefits based on a disability must show that they are almost completely unable to work at any job whatsoever. The applicant must have a physical or mental impairment that makes it impossible for him to engage in any “substantial gainful activity,” and this impairment must be expected to last for longer than one year or to result in death. If an applicant is able to engage in substantial gainful activity, then he will typically not be eligible for SSI. A child applicant must have a physical or mental impairment that results in marked and severe functional limitations and can be expected to last for longer than one year or result in death.

An SSI Beneficiary Must Have Very Limited Resources:

Once an SSI applicant has shown that she is disabled, she must also prove that she has less than $2,000 to her name. If the applicant can use or liquidate an asset to pay for food or shelter, the asset will probably count as a “resource” against this limit. A resource would include any funds held in the applicant’s bank accounts, retirement accounts, or in cash. If the applicant has set up a trust that does not meet specific requirements, the trust funds are also counted against the $2,000 limit. The applicant’s own home will not be considered an available resource, and her car is also exempt. The $2,000 resource limit does not disappear once a person qualifies for SSI. If an SSI beneficiary ends a month with more than $2,000 in her name, she will lose her benefits in the following month.

Income Is Key:

SSI recipients get only a modest monthly benefit, and this sum is reduced by any income they may have. In 2009, the maximum federal SSI benefit was $674 a month, although many states add a small supplement to this. In addition, SSI benefits are reduced by $1 for each dollar of unearned income a beneficiary receives (such as interest or dividends), and by $0.50 for each dollar of earned income (such as wages). SSI benefits are also reduced if an adult beneficiary lives in someone else’s home without paying rent, or if he receives free meals. Finally, the income of the people living with the beneficiary can count against the beneficiary. If the beneficiary’s combined income reduces his SSI benefit to zero, he loses SSI, along with any Medicaid benefits that may come with it.

Supplemental Needs Trusts Can Help:

Although SSI’s income and asset rules are highly restrictive, several types of trusts, called “Special Needs” or “Supplemental Needs” trusts, can protect an SSI beneficiary’s assets while allowing her to maintain SSI eligibility. Relatives and friends of the SSI recipient can also set up a trust for the recipient and fund it with their own money. If properly structured, these trusts also will allow an SSI recipient to continue receiving benefits. Unfortunately, a poorly drafted special needs trust can destroy any hopes an applicant has of ever qualifying for SSI.

Quality Advice Is Necessary:

SSI is a very complicated program with rules that most attorneys who do not focus on this practice area have trouble understanding. Therefore, it is essential to seek out a qualified special needs planner, such as the Attorneys at the Law Firm of Needham Mitnick & Pollack, who can guide you or your family through the complicated process of obtaining and maintaining SSI benefits.

President Barack Obama just signed hate crime legislation that extends federal hate crimes to include those committed against people because of gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. It also loosens limits on when federal law enforcement can intervene and prosecute crimes.

Obama said in East Room reception, surrounded by supporters, “No one in America should be forced to look over their shoulder because of who they are, or because they live with a disability.”

For more on this new law, please click here.

Associated Press – The Social Security Administration makes it official Thursday: There will be no cost of living increase for Social Security recipients next year, the first year without one since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975.

The announcement comes as President Barack Obama and key members of Congress call for a second round of $250 payments to more than 50 million seniors, veterans, retired railroad workers and people with disabilities.

The payments would be equal to about a 2 percent increase for the average Social Security recipient. The cost: $13 billion.

Obama called on Congress Wednesday to approve the payments, and several key members of Congress said they would.

“This additional assistance will be especially important in the coming months, as countless seniors and others have seen their retirement accounts and home values decline as a result of this economic crisis,” Obama said in a statement.

Blame falling consumer prices for no automatic increase next year. By law, Social Security’s cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, is pegged to inflation, which was negative this year, due largely to falling energy costs.

The $250 payments would go to Social Security recipients as well as those receiving veterans benefits or disability benefits, railroad retirees and retired public employees who don’t receive Social Security. Recipients would be limited to one payment, even if they qualified for more.

Obama said he would not allow the payments to come out of the Social Security trust funds and further erode the finances of the retirement program. Social Security already is projected to pay out more in benefits than it collects in taxes in each of the next two years.

However, Obama did not offer any alternatives to finance the payments. A senior administration official said Obama was open to borrowing the money, increasing the federal budget deficit. The official, who requested anonymity, was not authorized to speak on the record.

The $250 payments would match the ones issued to seniors earlier this year as part of the massive economic recovery package enacted in February. Those, too, were financed with borrowed money.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he supports sending out another round of payments, as did Rep. Charles Rangel, D-N.Y., chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over Social Security in the House.

Other lawmakers said Social Security recipients shouldn’t get the extra payments because the formula doesn’t call for it.

“I think it would be inappropriate,” said Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H. “The reason we set up this process was to have the Social Security reimbursement reflect the cost of living.”

Social Security payments increased by 5.8 percent in January, the largest increase since 1982. The big increase was largely because of a spike in energy costs in 2008.

Inflation has been negative this year as gasoline prices have dropped 30 percent and overall energy costs have dropped 23 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Social Security payments, however, cannot go down. The average monthly Social Security payment for all Social Security recipients is $1,094.

The Baltimore Sun reports that nearly 30 years after the Social Security Administration opened its $92 million Metro West complex on Baltimore’s west side, federal officials are planning to move 1,600 employees from there to an office building to be constructed near the Reisterstown Plaza Metro station in Northwest Baltimore.

The state Board of Public Works is scheduled to consider Aug. 26 a request from the Maryland Department of Transportation to transfer an 11.3-acre parcel at 6100 Wabash Ave. to the U.S. General Services Administration in preparation for the proposed development.

The GSA is seeking a private developer to construct a 538,000-square-foot office building and 1,076-space garage and lease it to the Social Security Administration.

According to state and federal officials, the building is needed by 2012 to accommodate 1,600 SSA employees who work in “functionally obsolete” space at the Metro West complex at 300 N. Greene St. About 400 more Metro West employees will be relocated to the Social Security Administration headquarters complex in Woodlawn, leaving none at Metro West.

The Reisterstown Plaza project will be one of the largest and most expensive federal office buildings to rise in Baltimore in years. The GSA has not disclosed a construction price, but using an industry standard of $200 per square foot, it would cost more than $100 million to build. It is expected to result in the creation of hundreds of construction jobs and to bring federal employees to a section of Baltimore that has been hard hit by the recession.

“This is not a stimulus project, but it will do exactly what stimulus money is meant to do,” said City Councilwoman Rochelle “Rikki” Spector, whose district includes 6100 Wabash Ave. “It is really an economic generator for the next 40 years.”

“Keeping these employees in Baltimore City will further strengthen our neighborhood as we continue to recover from this terrible economic recession,” said Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, a Maryland Democrat. “This is a huge victory for our community.”

It’s a “major construction investment in Baltimore,” said Laurie Feinberg, chief of comprehensive planning in Baltimore’s planning department.

The project will be the first phase of a larger “transit-oriented development” that is expected to bring housing, stores, office space and parking to land around the Reisterstown Plaza Metro station.

The state owns two dozen acres close to the station and plans next year to seek a developer interested in building a large mixed-use project next to the SSA facility, according to Christopher Patusky, director of the Office of Real Estate for Maryland’s Department of Transportation.

Gov. Martin O’Malley has made transit-oriented development a high priority for Maryland, and the SSA project puts Reisterstown Plaza in a position to become a model for other transit stops, Patusky said. “Locations around transit are becoming more and more desirable for everyone,” even government agencies, he said. “We anticipate that this will bring up [property] values all around the site. It’s a home run for the entire area.”

The Reisterstown Plaza site was selected over at least 24 others considered by the General Services Administration. Now used mostly for parking, it is bounded by Wabash Avenue, Mount Hope Drive, the Powder Mill Branch stream and the Seton Business Park. The Metro station borders the site’s northeastern portion.

The state intends to “transfer” the land to the GSA for $6 million, and the agency is expected to assign it to the developer it selects to build the Social Security Administration offices. According to regional public affairs officer Gina Blyther Gilliam, the General Services Administration expects a selection by next spring, and the developer will lease the building for 20 years to the SSA. Congress authorized federal funding for the project in 2006.

Metro West was hailed as a key to the revitalization of Baltimore’s west side when it opened in 1980. Federal employees were expected to help revive the area by shopping at Lexington Market and along Howard and Lexington streets.

According to public officials, the 15-story tower and two five-story wings no longer meet the needs of the Social Security Administration for a variety of reasons, including technological inadequacy and the security risk posed by a sky bridge over a major highway. According to Gilliam, the GSA’s goal is to “dispose of” the Metro West facility after the SSA moves out. One potential user is the University of Maryland, whose Baltimore campus is several blocks to the south.

Because of its size and cost, Medicaid has been called the “workhorse” of the U.S. health system. Now it’s front and center in the debate on overhauling the U.S health system and expanding coverage to the uninsured.

With 60 million enrollees, Medicaid dwarfs other insurance programs, including its cousin, Medicare, which covers 44 million elderly and disabled people.Medicaid is a joint federal-state program, with the federal government picking up about 57 percent of the overall Medicaid tab. But the federal contribution varies by state, ranging from 50 percent to 73 percent, with poorer states getting a bigger matching rate.

Medicaid isn’t a one-size-fits-all program; after meeting certain federal requirements, each state has the flexibility to shape coverage and benefits. As a result, the Medicaid program in Pennsylvania bears little resemblance to the one in Louisiana. For example, non-working parents in Pennsylvania qualify for Medicaid if their incomes are below twice the federal poverty level ($44,100 for a family of four). But in Louisiana, non-working parents qualify only if their incomes are below 11percent of the poverty level ($2,426 for a family of four). States frequently experiment with new concepts in benefit design, eligibility and delivery systems.

In general, Medicaid covers about 45 percent of poor Americans, defined as those with incomes below the federal poverty level (about $22,000 for a family of four). To be eligible for coverage, individuals must fall below certain income thresholds, which vary by state, and belong to certain categories, such as having dependent children, or being pregnant or disabled. In 20 states, a parent in a family of four who gets paid the federal minimum wage makes too much to qualify. Only 18 states cover adults without dependent children.

Medicaid benefits include mental health services, transportation-to-health services, and comprehensive screenings and treatment for children. In addition, Medicaid enrollees have much lower out-of-pocket costs than people with private coverage. There are typically no monthly premiums and no, or very low, co-payments

However, in many states, specialists and dentists don’t see Medicaid patients. Providers typically blame low reimbursement rates as the main reason for not accepting Medicaid patients. In Kentucky, Medicaid pays doctors $210for a colonoscopy; Medicare pays $333. Private insurers usually pay more. In Pennsylvania, Medicaid pays doctors $300 for an appendectomy, while Medicare pays $575.

About 76 percent of all enrollees are children and their parents. And 65 percent of people on Medicaid come from working families. About three quarters of Medicaid spending is for the elderly and disabled, even though the two groups make up only about one quarter of the program’s enrollees. Medicare provides little coverage for long-term care, so many elderly, after depleting their savings, rely on Medicaid to pay their costly nursing home bills.

Administrative costs of Medicaid are less than 7 percent, or half the rate that’s typically seen in the private sector. Medicaid holds down costs in part by paying providers lower fees and doing little marketing.

Although the typical Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) recipient has worked for a fairly long time before the onset of his/her disabling condition, an adult who became disabled before turning 22 can also qualify for SSDI if she/he has a parent who meets certain qualifications.

SSDI is a federal program primarily designed to aid people who have become disabled after having worked for a certain amount of time. Unlike Supplemental Security Income (SSI), SSDI is not a needs-based program, which means that there are no income and asset restrictions. Instead, a beneficiary typically has to have paid into the Social Security system for at least 10 years prior to his disability. An SSDI benefit depends on the beneficiary’s income before he/she became disabled, the size of his/her family, and the amount he/she paid into the Social Security system. Finally, SSDI recipients can receive Medicare two years after qualifying for SSDI.

Most people who have a serious disability before turning 22 are not able to assemble the necessary work record to qualify for SSDI on their own. But people in this situation may instead be able to qualify for SSDI on their parents’ work record, in certain situations.

First, the “adult disabled child” (the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) term for a person with a disability that manifested itself before age 22) must be completely disabled according to the SSA’s adult disability standards. Second, the disability must have occurred before the potential beneficiary turned 22. Third, the potential beneficiary’s parent must have paid into the Social Security system for the required number of quarters. Finally, and most importantly, the potential beneficiary’s parent must be either dead, permanently disabled, or receiving Social Security retirement benefits.

If an adult disabled child and her parent meets all of these qualifications, then the “child” should be able to receive a substantial benefit, often greater than an SSI award. On top of the monetary gain, the child does not have to worry about her/his own unearned income or assets, since SSDI does not take these into account. However, if a child earns enough income through employment, the SSA may determine that she is no longer disabled and cancel her SSDI benefits. The parent’s own retirement benefits are not affected by their child’s receipt of SSDI, and the child can still qualify for SSI benefits if her SSDI payments, which count as unearned income for SSI purposes, do not disqualify her/him.

Parents who have not begun to receive their own Social Security income but who think that their child may qualify for SSDI in the future may want to have their child screened by the Social Security system for his disability before he reaches age 22. If this is not possible, it pays to have the child’s physician clearly document all of the information surrounding the child’s disability from as early an age as possible. This way, when the parent does retire, the child has a long record showing the presence of the disabling condition before he/she turned 22, making the SSDI application easier.

Attorney Sheri Abrams can explain the rules for applying for SSDI and can give your family guidance if you think your child may qualify in the future.