Map Shows Where 400K Americans Could See SSI Benefits Cut

The Trump administration is preparing a rule change that could reduce or eliminate Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for hundreds of thousands of low-income older adults and people with disabilities.

The change targets how in-kind support, such as food or housing provided by family or friends, is counted against SSI benefits, potentially reducing or removing benefits households that are already struggling financially.

Newsweek has contacted the White House for comment via email.

Current Policy and Proposed Change

Under current rules, SSI benefits can be reduced by up to one-third—about $300 for someone receiving the maximum $967 per month—if the recipient receives in-kind support from relatives or roommates. However, those reductions do not apply if the recipient lives in a “public assistance household,” which includes families enrolled in programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

The exemption was designed on the basis that SNAP households have limited means and cannot provide significant financial support to SSI beneficiaries.

The proposed rule would remove SNAP as a qualifying program for “public assistance household” status. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), a left-leaning think tank, this would put nearly 400,000 SSI beneficiaries living with family or friends experiencing financial hardship at risk of cuts—typically by hundreds of dollars per month—or loss of eligibility altogether.

The CBPP estimated that over 275,000 people could face benefit reductions and over 100,000 could lose eligibility entirely.

States Most Affected

California would face the largest number of affected SSI recipients, with 57,600 people at risk. Other high population states like New York (35,900), Florida (30,800), and Texas (23,600) also have large numbers of beneficiaries who could see cuts or lose eligibility. Together, these four states account for nearly 39 percent of the total estimated affected population.

Other states with substantial numbers of potentially impacted recipients include Pennsylvania (18,200), Ohio (16,000), Illinois (14,400), Michigan (14,100), Georgia (11,600), and Massachusetts (11,600).

Colin Ruggiero, a co-founder of DisabilityGuidance.org, told Newsweek: “It means that SSI recipients living in SNAP-recipient households could see their benefits reduced by up to a third or lose them entirely. The government would treat help from family, such as food or housing as ‘in-kind support’ and count it against the recipient. This would hit low-income, multigenerational households the hardest.”

He added: “It penalizes families by reducing SSI payments when they provide shelter or basic support to loved ones. Instead of recognizing this care as essential, the rule treats it as financial assistance that lowers eligibility.”

What Happens Next?

To reinstate the stricter standards, the Trump administration would have to issue a formal rule proposal and open it to public comment before finalizing any changes.