Will I lose Medicare when earning $2000/month on SSDI? Confused about work and disability status

You're asking about something called Extended Period of Medicare Coverage. The good news is that even if you lose your SSDI payments due to work, your Medicare can continue for AT LEAST 93 months (that's 7+ years) after your Trial Work Period ends. So you'll have quite a long time with Medicare coverage even after SSDI cash benefits stop. I went back to work 2 years ago and still have my Medicare.

i lost all my benefits when i started working so be careful!!!! SSA doesn't tell u everything and they just cut me off with no warning

I should clarify a couple things since there's some confusion: 1) You get a 9-month Trial Work Period where you keep full SSDI no matter how much you earn 2) After TWP, you enter a 36-month Extended Period of Eligibility where you get SSDI in months you earn under SGA ($1,550 in 2025) 3) Medicare continues for at least 93 months after your TWP ends 4) After those 93 months, you CAN BUY Medicare coverage if you're still disabled but earning over SGA So your $2,000/month would eventually end your SSDI cash payments (after TWP and any EPE months below SGA), but your Medicare continues much longer!

My brother went thru this exact situation. Started working part time making about $1800/month. He got to keep his SSDI for 9 months during what they call the trial work period. Then they stopped his cash benefits but his Medicare kept going. He's been working for 3 years now and still has Medicare.

If you're struggling to get through to SSA about this important question, try Claimyr.com - it helped me get through to an agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU showing how it works. I used it when I had questions about going back to work with SSDI and it was worth it to actually speak to someone who could see my specific record.

One thing no one mentioned yet - have you looked into the Ticket to Work program? It gives you extra protections when testing your ability to work. You can get employment services and if your work attempt fails due to your disability, it can make it easier to get your benefits restarted quickly.

This whole system is DESIGNED to keep disabled people in poverty!!! If you earn too much, you lose benefits. If you save too much, you lose benefits. If you get married, you can lose benefits. It's ridiculous that they punish people for trying to improve their situation!!

make sure u keep track of ur TWP months!!! i thought i had used 5 but SSA said i used all 9 and suddenly my checks stopped. now im fighting with them to fix it

Thank you all so much for the helpful information! I'm feeling much better about trying to return to work knowing my Medicare will continue for years even if my cash benefits stop. I'll definitely check out Ticket to Work and keep careful records of my work activity. I think I'll also use that Claimyr service to speak with an agent to get everything documented in my file before I start working.

One more thing to consider - when you do start working, make sure to report your work activity to SSA right away using form SSA-821 (Work Activity Report). Don't wait for them to find out on their own through wage reporting, because that can cause overpayments and headaches later. I learned this the hard way when I went back to work. Also, if your employer offers health insurance, you might want to compare it with Medicare to see if you want to keep both or just Medicare during your work attempt. Having that safety net of extended Medicare coverage really does make the transition less scary!

As someone who's been through this process, I want to emphasize how important it is to understand the Extended Period of Eligibility (EPE) that comes after your Trial Work Period. During the 36-month EPE, you'll get your SSDI payment back in any month you earn under the SGA limit ($1,550 in 2025). So even at $2,000/month, if you have a month where you work less due to your condition, you could still get your SSDI that month. This flexibility really helped me when I was testing my work capacity - some months I could work more, others I needed to scale back. The system isn't perfect, but these work incentives do provide more of a safety net than most people realize. Just make sure to report everything promptly and keep detailed records!

I'm new to this community but dealing with a similar situation. Just wanted to add that if you do decide to use Ticket to Work, make sure you understand that while it provides great protections, you need to be making "timely progress" toward your employment goals to keep those protections. The Employment Network will work with you to set reasonable milestones, but it's not automatic - you have to actively participate. Also, I've found that having a relationship with a disability employment specialist has been invaluable. They understand both the medical and vocational aspects of returning to work with a disability. Many state vocational rehabilitation agencies offer these services for free. Your story really resonates with me - the fear of losing benefits while trying to improve your situation is so real, but hearing everyone's experiences here gives me hope that it's possible to work and maintain some safety net!