Over the past several decades, the Social Security Administration has tested many new policies and programs to improve work outcomes for Social Security Disability Insurance beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income recipients. These demonstrations have covered most aspects of the Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income programs and populations. The demonstrations examined family supports, informational notices, changes to benefit rules, and a variety of employment services and program waivers.
A “State of the Science Meeting,” held on June 15, 2021, commissioned papers and discussion by experts to review the findings and implications of those demonstrations to improve outcomes and directions for future research. A subsequent volume—Lessons from SSA Demonstrations for Disability Policy and Future Research—collects the papers and discussion from that Meeting to synthesize lessons about which policies, programs, and other operational decisions could provide effective supports for disability beneficiaries and recipients who want to work.
“This new volume showcases the singular value of SSA’s temporary demonstration authority, both in identifying impacts and highlighting what we don’t know yet. Popular ideas focus on changes to benefit rules, which tend to have very small impacts on employment. More comprehensive and targeted services tend to have larger impacts. A lot of the promising avenues would need new research to refine their design if we want to build the most effective policies.” – Austin Nichols, Ph.D., Abt Associates.
“It is remarkable to have – in one collection – a discussion and synthesis of findings from decades of research demonstrations on issues related to disability and employment. These demonstrations, which often have the same technical rigor as experiments in the physical sciences, have revealed what works and what does not work in encouraging successful labor market outcomes for individuals with serious health impairments. This collection of papers is more than just a review of past findings, however, as it provides new ideas for research demonstrations that move beyond just labor market outcomes and that could examine the broader issues of overall income security and economic wellbeing. Papers in the collection also appropriately emphasize the diversity of the population in the United States and the need for new demonstrations to focus on understudied groups. Lessons from SSA Demonstrations for Disability Policy and Future Research will prove to be an extremely valuable resource for both researchers and policymakers as they design and implement the next generation of demonstrations to guide policy on the Social Security Administration's disability programs.” – David A. Weaver, Ph.D., former Associate Commissioner for Research, Demonstration, and Employment Support at the Social Security Administration.
“Social Security disability programs aim to meet beneficiaries’ needs for income and medical support while not hindering their work efforts. SSA demonstrations over the years have provided invaluable insight into what is and is not effective in achieving this delicate balance, and the scholars and experts contributing to this volume do a huge service in synthesizing and distilling the current state of the evidence from these demonstrations. This comprehensive volume provides a careful and honest assessment of the extent to which disability programs have achieved their central policy goals, and outlines a path forward for where research and policy attention should turn next.” – Stephanie Rennane, Ph.D., RAND Corporation.
“This timely volume contains essays and insightful commentary from leading experts, not just about what we’ve learned about disability policy from past demonstration projects but also about how we can design even better demonstrations in the future to fill in the remaining gaps.” - Kathleen J. Mullen, Ph.D., RAND Corporation.
“This superb volume provides what has long been needed: comprehensive review and critical reflection regarding several decades of disability demonstrations. The essays are models of policy expertise and savvy, and careful and thoughtful analysis. At once sobering and inspiring, it provides the indispensable foundation for the next generation of demonstrations – John Tambornino, Ph.D., Member, National Academy of Social Insurance
Nichols, Austin, Jeffrey Hemmeter, and Debra Goetz Engler. 2021. Lessons from SSA Demonstrations for Disability Policy and Future Research. Rockville, MD: Abt Press.
