California Department of Social Services - State
Hearings Division
Notes from the Training Bureau - September 7, 2001
| Item 01-09-01C ACWDL 01-34 - - June 4, 2001 (Synopsis): Increase in the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) Amount |
Increase in the Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA) Amount
In determining whether a person is disabled for Medi-Cal purposes, he/she must meet the Social Security disability standard. In order to meet that standard the person is evaluated under a sequential evaluation. The first step of the sequential evaluation is whether the person is engaging in SGA. As a general rule, if a person is engaging in SGA, he/she will not be found disabled despite his/her impairments. SGA is defined based on the amount of income a person earns monthly.
On December 29, 2000, the Social Security Administration published final regulations
in the Federal Register that requires annual adjustments to the SGA amount based
on the average wage index. The SGA amount for 2001 is $740 monthly. Prior to
2001, the SGA amount was $700 monthly.