Wyoming SSI and Disability Benefits for a Grandchild in Kinship Care

Two Different Federal Programs

When people say "disability benefits for a child," they could mean two very different things. Understanding which one applies to your grandchild matters because the programs have different eligibility rules, different payment amounts, and interact differently with Wyoming state benefits.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a needs-based federal program for children with significant disabilities whose household income and resources fall below strict limits. SSI is administered by the Social Security Administration, but it is not funded through Social Security payroll taxes — it comes from general federal revenue.

Social Security Dependent Benefits pay out when a parent (or in some cases, a grandparent) has earned enough Social Security work credits and is retired, disabled, or deceased. A child can receive a monthly benefit on that parent's or grandparent's record regardless of disability. If the child also has a disability, the benefits may continue past age 18.

SSI for a Grandchild in Kinship Care

A child may qualify for SSI if they have a physical or mental condition that significantly limits their ability to function and is expected to last at least 12 months or result in death. The Social Security Administration uses specific criteria for childhood disability — the process includes medical evidence, functional assessments, and often a consultative examination.

The income rules for SSI are where kinship care arrangements make a real difference:

• If the child lives with a parent, the parent's income and resources are "deemed" to the child — meaning the parent's earnings reduce the SSI payment or disqualify the child entirely
• If the child lives with a grandparent or other non-parent relative who is not a legal adoptive parent, deeming generally does not apply. Only the child's own income and resources count

This means a grandchild living with a grandparent may qualify for SSI even though the grandparent has Social Security retirement income, a pension, or wages. The grandparent's income is typically not counted against the child's SSI eligibility.

Interaction with Wyoming POWER

Here is where it gets important: if a child receives SSI, the child cannot also be included in a POWER (TANF) cash assistance unit. SSI is designed to meet the child's needs independently, so the child is excluded from the POWER assistance unit.

This does not mean the grandparent loses everything. The caregiver can still apply for SNAP, Medicaid, LIEAP, and other benefits — but the POWER Caretaker Relative child-only grant and SSI do not stack for the same child.

If SSI pays more than the POWER grant amount, the child comes out ahead on SSI alone. If the child's SSI is somehow less (rare for a single child), it is worth discussing the situation with both DFS and your local Social Security office.

Social Security Dependent Benefits

A grandchild may qualify for monthly Social Security benefits on a grandparent's record if these conditions are met:

1. The grandparent becomes entitled to Social Security retirement or disability benefits, or dies.
2. The child's natural or adoptive parents are deceased or disabled, or the grandparent has legally adopted the child.
3. The child began living with the grandparent before age 18 and received at least half of their support from the grandparent for the year before the month the grandparent became entitled to benefits or died. If the child was born during that year, the grandparent must have lived with and provided at least half of the child's support for substantially all of the period from birth to that month.

These benefits are not needs-based. The payment amount depends on the grandparent's earnings record, not on household income. However, Social Security dependent benefits paid to a child are counted as unearned income for the POWER Caretaker Relative grant — they reduce the child-only cash grant dollar for dollar.

Katie Beckett Medicaid Pathway

Wyoming offers a Katie Beckett option for children with severe disabilities. This pathway evaluates only the child's own income and resources — completely bypassing the caregiver's financial situation — to determine Medicaid eligibility. For a grandchild with significant medical needs, Katie Beckett can ensure continuous health coverage regardless of the household's income level.

What to Do Next

If you believe your grandchild may qualify for SSI or Social Security dependent benefits, your starting point is your local Social Security office. You can find the nearest Wyoming office at ssa.gov or call 1-800-772-1213.

For the full breakdown of how federal benefits interact with Wyoming state programs like POWER, SNAP, and Medicaid, the Wyoming Financial Help for Kinship Caregivers guide includes worksheets that help you map out which benefits stack and which ones offset each other.

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