Four different programs pay workers who can’t do their job: workers’ compensation, short-term disability, long-term disability, and Social Security Disability Insurance. They overlap, they offset against each other, and they cover very different things. Here’s how to figure out which ones apply to you — and how they stack when more than one does.
Workers’ comp: work-related only
WC covers injuries and illnesses caused by your job. It pays 100% of reasonable and necessary medical care for the injury with no deductible or copay, plus wage replacement at roughly two-thirds of your average weekly wage, tax-free, capped at a state-specific maximum (about $1,680/week in California, $1,255 in New York, $1,260 in Florida, $1,205 in Texas in 2026).
WC continues as long as you’re medically off work or in treatment, subject to state caps. Some states cap temporary disability at 104 weeks (CA), some at 401 weeks (NC), some have no calendar cap at all if you remain disabled. Permanent disability is paid out as a separate award based on your impairment rating. The full mechanics are in our claim process walkthrough.
Short-term disability: any injury or illness, briefly
STD is private insurance, usually employer-provided as a group benefit. It covers any injury or illness — work or not — that keeps you off work for a short period. Typical terms:
- Benefit: 50% to 70% of base salary (60% is most common)
- Duration: 13 to 26 weeks after an elimination period of 7 to 14 days
- Taxable: if the employer paid the premium, benefits are taxable; if you paid with after-tax dollars, they’re tax-free
- Five states (CA, NY, NJ, RI, HI) plus DC and Puerto Rico run statutory STD programs that cover workers even without employer plans
STD does not pay medical bills. It only replaces income.
Long-term disability: any injury or illness, sustained
LTD is also private insurance, usually employer-group with a buy-up option. It picks up where STD ends — typically at week 13 or 26 — and runs for years. Typical terms:
- Benefit: 50% to 67% of base salary (60% is most common)
- Elimination period: 90 to 180 days from disability onset
- Duration: to age 65, or for a fixed term (2, 5, 10 years)
- Definition shift: first 24 months pay if you can’t do your own occupation; after 24 months, only if you can’t do any occupation you’re reasonably suited for
- Offsets: nearly every LTD policy reduces benefits dollar-for-dollar by SSDI, WC, and sometimes state STD
SSDI: long-term, severe, federal
Social Security Disability Insurance is the federal program for people who can’t do any substantial work for at least 12 months (or who have a terminal condition). It is the strictest definition by a wide margin.
- Eligibility: enough recent work credits (usually 5 of the last 10 years), severe medically determinable impairment, can’t do any substantial gainful activity ($1,620/month for non-blind workers in 2026)
- Benefit: based on your average indexed earnings — average payment is around $1,580/month, max around $4,000/month in 2026
- Waiting: 5-month waiting period before checks start; 24 months on SSDI before Medicare kicks in
- Approval: roughly 35% approved initially; many succeed at the hearing level after appeal
When they stack (and offset)
Here’s where it gets tangled. You can collect from multiple programs at the same time, but they reduce each other.
WC + SSDI offset. Combined WC and SSDI can’t exceed 80% of your average current earnings before disability. SSA reduces the SSDI portion if it would. The offset is recalculated when WC settles — which is why settlement language often includes a Medicare/Social Security allocation that spreads the lump sum across your expected lifetime to minimize the offset.
WC + LTD reduces LTD. Almost every LTD policy treats WC as an offset, so the LTD insurer pays only the gap between your WC benefit and your policy benefit. If your WC pays 67% and your LTD policy pays 60%, LTD pays zero while WC runs.
WC blocks STD in many plans. Most STD policies explicitly exclude work-related conditions on the theory that WC covers them. So a back injury at work goes through WC, not STD — even if your STD plan would have paid faster.
STD/LTD + SSDI offset. If you eventually win SSDI, the LTD carrier will demand back the past benefits the SSDI award covers retroactively. Set the lump sum aside for that demand.
When you can’t have WC at all
Three conditions have to hold for WC to apply:
- The injury is work-related. Arising out of and in the course of employment is the legal test. Slipping in the office parking lot usually qualifies; slipping at home doesn’t.
- Your employer carries WC insurance. Required in every state except Texas, and even Texas employers almost always carry it. Sole proprietors with no employees often don’t carry coverage for themselves.
- You’re an employee, not an independent contractor. The 1099 distinction matters. Misclassification is common, and many workers who get a 1099 are legally employees for WC purposes. If you control your own hours, supply your own tools, and work for multiple clients, you may be a true contractor with no WC coverage — in which case STD, LTD, and SSDI are your only options for income replacement.
Which one should you file?
If the injury is work-related and your employer has coverage, file WC. It pays medical (the others don’t), it’s tax-free, and the weekly rate is usually higher than STD or LTD would pay alone. The fact that filing WC sometimes offsets your STD/LTD doesn’t change the math — the combined benefit is still higher.
If the injury isn’t work-related, WC isn’t available. File STD first for the short term, then LTD if you cross the 90 to 180-day elimination period, then SSDI if disability is going to last 12+ months. Apply for SSDI as early as you can — processing takes 3 to 6 months initially and another 12 to 18 months if you have to appeal.
Where the calculus changes
Two situations rewrite the rules. Approaching Medicare eligibility (age 65 or 24 months on SSDI): any WC settlement now requires Medicare’s interests to be considered, usually through a Medicare Set-Aside (MSA). Settle wrong and Medicare can refuse to pay for injury-related care later. Third-party claims: if someone other than your employer caused the work injury (a delivery driver, a defective product, a subcontractor), you can pursue both WC and a third-party lawsuit. The third-party recovery is partly subject to a WC lien, but the net to you is usually far higher.
What to do next
Sort out which programs apply, file the ones that do, and get the offsets right at settlement. The first 72 hours of a work-related injury matter most — see our day-one playbook. To know what benefits you’re actually owed under WC, run through the 10 rights every injured worker should know and how much workers’ comp pays.
If anything is contested — coverage denied, offsets miscalculated, settlement offered short — consult a workers’ comp attorney. Fees are capped by statute (15% CA, 20% FL, 20% NY) and paid out of the recovery, not out of pocket. More plain-language Q&A in our workers’ comp FAQ hub.