Gina,

When a person is awarded SSDI, the monthy amount they recieve is based on their past earnings. The more you earn while working, the more money per month you will get from SSDI.

For people like me, who became disabled at a young age and barely worked enough and made only a little money at work -- well then there is a minimum payment (in the $600 per month area) that SSDI pays.

So, long story short - whatever amount you get from SSDI now is the most you will get (except of course for the "Cost of Living" increase at the end of every year which is usually about 1%).

So, the $600 you get per month won't be going much higher no matter what (again with the exception of the once a year tiny 1% increase).

However - there are other programs out there that can help.

There is Section 8 housing vouchers where the federal government pays all or part of your rent. Then there are other renters rebate programs on the state, county, and town levels depending on where you live.

There are food stamps, energy assistance for the electrical bill, heat assistance, some states have reduced phone bill rates for the disabled.

Many states will pay the Medicare part B premiums for you, if you are low income and need the help. In your situation because you still live with your parents and are still able to get medical insurance through them then your state will not pay because there is not a dire need... but if the health insurnace through your parents was no longer available, and depending on other circumstances for eligibility, the state could pay for the medicare premiums for you.

To find out about the types of programs in your state, and to find if you are eligible, you would contact the Department of Social Services (formerly known as the welfare department) and talk to a case worker and fill out applications for the programs.



If you continue to be stuck at home - is it possible to purchase one of the Hepa filtration room air purifiers? The Ionic type of air purifiers have been shown in studies to increase the amount of bad air in the home, but the Hepa type of air filtration units have always been considered to be the best.

A room unit can cost about $200 and up depending on the type of unit and the size of unit you need to clean the room, and units that clean the air in the whole house are thousands of dollars.... but could you get a unit to purify just the air in your bedroom so that you would at least have one room in the house that has safe air for you?