This study analyses the social insurance role of the Disability Support Pension (DSP) in Australia, using administrative and household survey datasets (HILDA, SIH and PLIDA). Our findings are as follows: (i) DSP entries are sensitive to economic and health shocks; (ii) Non-employment rates among DSP beneficiaries remain high, particularly post-GFC; (iii) The percentage of DSP full pensioners increases with age, with the rate for singles being higher than that for married individuals; and (iv) Demographic factors such as health status, labour force status and marital status correlate with the probability of entering DSP.

Man Hin (Iris) Chio is a PhD student from the Research School of Economics at the Australian National University. She completed her bachelor’s degree, majoring in economics and public policy, and her honours degree in Economics at the University of Queensland. Iris is currently engaged in her PhD research and tutoring.