SSI Participation Among the Elderly: A Hazard Model Approach

Abstract

This study revisits the historic policy concern over nonparticipation in the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. The most contemporary research model suggests that from a cross-sectional perspective, the elderly take-up decision is primarily determined by the financial situation of the eligible individuals. Yet extant studies have yet to establish a longitudinal model of SSI participation that explicitly takes into account the changing circumstances of the elderly. As such, this study extends the current literature by exploring the time-varying processes leading to eventual take-up of benefits among the elderly. Methodologically, the research relies on event history analysis of data from the Health and Retirement Study spanning the years 1996 to 2006 to explain the varying rates of participation over time as well as the role of life events on the take-up decision.