To apply or not to apply

From page 6 of my book:

First of all, Social Security Disability Insurance is a long term disability insurance

program administered by the Federal government. It is not welfare, nor is it being on

the dole. If you have paid your FICA or Self-Employment taxes for an adequate number

of “quarters”, you are entitled to apply for Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) if you

believe you are disabled from working.

If you are not insured, that is, you have not worked or paid enough to be insured into

Social Security, you may be eligible for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), if you meet

certain financial criteria related to household income and resources.

Social Security will tell you whether you financially qualify for either or both benefits

when you apply. You may disagree with what Social Security tells you with regard to

qualifying for either. For example, SSA may show no earnings reported for a period of

time that you worked with the result that you don’t have enough “quarters” to be insured

for DIB benefits. In that instance, you can give SSA proof of employment for those

periods, such as W-2 forms, and request a correction of your earnings record.

2019