How To Spend Money Wisely?

How to spend my child's SSI money appropriately?

• My son was approved for SSI. He was approved very quickly within 3 weeks and we just received the first check, no back pay. I read the booklet on how to spend the money but it is all very general. So far I paid ½ (it is just me and him in the household) of the rent and electricity bill. Can you use it to pay a portion of all household bills or just utilities? Our utilities include electric, water, trash, and propane. We have a cell phone and cable. Could it pay ½ of these as well? Cable is not really necessary although he does have it in his own room. The cell phone I do have for personal use but I also need it for him. If I need to pick him up from school, if the teacher calls, to make appointments, if the car breaks down going to appointments, etc. What about a portion of car insurance since right now I am not working and the car is primarily for therapy (we go 3x a week). I know I can use some for gas for appointments but how do I figure how much. Do I need to figure out mileage or just ½ of what our weekly gas is? I know the money can be spent for medical and dental. However our insurance is covering all the speech and occupational therapy visits. I am looking into ABA and other therapies the insurance might not cover. We will use it for dental visits. We will use it for personal needs such as clothing and some recreation. I have some specific examples to ask about: After potty training my son really needs a new mattress. Would this be okay to purchase with this money? We do not have central heat/air. During the summer we use fans and an air conditioner. The air conditioner in the house is about 13 years old and does not work properly. Also no matter how much I clean it, it looks moldy. Could I use this money to purchase a new one? Or could I only use this money to pay ½ since it is for my use too? My son loves Thomas the train. Sometimes it’s the only thing that will calm him down. His tv is on the verge of dying. Could I use this money to purchase him a small tv, dvd player, and some Thomas movies. Would this classify as recreation? Right now he is classified as nonverbal. Could I purchase him an IPAD and autism/communication related apps with this money? He has sensory issues most commonly is jumping everywhere. The OT recommended giving him an “appropriate” place to jump such as a trampoline. Would this be okay to purchase? If you get SSI, how do you spend it? Any ideas are appreciated. Thanks.

• Answer:

  Are you asking legally or morally? Legally, you can spend it on just about anything. Morally? You are taking money from hard working people who can not give their children the things you want to give to yours with this money, so I'd say no to all the luxuries. That would be cable TV anywhere in the house, a TV in his room, "recreation", any cell phone calls that are not related to the things you mentioned, a trampoline, an IPAD, etc. Necessities are food, clothing, and shelter; and, in this case, any medical needs could also be considered necessary. .