Colorado Disability Benefits: Social Security Disability Insurance and SSI

If you are a resident of Colorado seeking to apply for SSI or SSDI, you can contact the Social Security office nearest you or you can call Social Security at 800-772-1213. You can also begin an application for SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) online.

Disability Evaluation in Colorado

Once Social Security determines that a Colorado disability claimant meets the basic eligibility criteria for either SSDI or SSI (Supplemental Security Income), the agency sends the claimant's file to Colorado's Disability Determination Service (DDS). DDS is a state agency run by Colorado's Department of Human Services. DDS has one office, located at 3190 S. Vaughn Way, Aurora, CO 80014-9833. Its telephone number is (303) 368-4100.

After a disability application is denied in Colorado, claimants have 60 days to appeal the denial. After first requesting that DDS review the claim ("reconsideration"), a claimant can request a hearing with an administrative law judge.

Social Security's Office of Hearing Operations (OHO, formerly known as the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review) handles disability hearings for SSI and SSDI claimants. Colorado has two OHO offices. Individuals who live near Alamosa, Canon City, Durango, Glenwood Springs, Grand Junction, La Junta, Montrose, Pueblo, and Trinidad use the OHO office located in Colorado Springs:

Plaza of the Rockies
111 S. Tejon Street
Suite 401, North Tower
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
(888) 844-8269

Claimants who live near Aurora, Denver, Lakewood, Littleton, Louisville, Fort Collins, and Greeley use the OHO office located at:

1244 Speer Boulevard, Suite 752
Denver, Colorado 80204-3584
(888) 397-9803

Additional Assistance for SSI Recipients in Colorado

Most SSI recipients who live independently in Colorado are eligible for a supplemental payment of $25 per month. Colorado administers this supplement, called Aid for the Needy Disabled/Blind through the Colorado Department of Human Services. The supplemental payment means that, in 2019, a typical SSI recipient in Colorado can receive a total of $796/month (the $25 state supplement plus the $771 basic federal benefit).

Colorado pays an increased state supplement to SSI recipients who live in adult foster homes or who receive special services to allow them to remain in their own homes. For example, those who receive home care services can receive a state supplement of up to $530 per month. Low-income disabled children are also eligible for the home care supplement if they would be institutionalized without the services.

In addition to state supplemental payments, SSI recipients in Colorado are automatically eligible for Medicaid. The Social Security Administration makes Medicaid eligibility determinations when it issues disability award letters, and then Colorado contacts the newly approved recipients directly.

Disability Resources in Colorado

Colorado provides assistance for those applying for Social Security benefits through the state's Social Security field offices.

Colorado also has disability rights advocates at nonprofit agencies such as:

The Legal Center
455 Sherman Street, Suite 130
Denver, CO 80203
303-722-0300
800-288-1376

You may also want to seek the services of a lawyer, especially if you've been denied benefits. To arrange a consultation with a disability lawyer in Colorado, use our disability attorney directory.