Thanks to everyone for all the helpful advice! I spoke with SSA yesterday (and yes, I did use Claimyr to get through quickly). The agent confirmed everything about the ABLE account and helped me understand exactly how my daughter's earnings will affect her SSI payment. I'm relieved to know she can save for her future while still maintaining some benefits and especially keeping her Medicaid. We're setting up the ABLE account this weekend, and I've started documenting all her hearing-related work expenses for those IRWE deductions. The agent said her benefits will decrease some, but with the combination of part-time work and reduced SSI, she'll actually have more monthly income overall, which is wonderful. Thanks again for helping us navigate this complicated system!

That's wonderful news! It sounds like you've got a great plan in place. Your daughter is so lucky to have an advocate like you helping her navigate this system. The fact that she'll end up with more monthly income overall while keeping Medicaid is exactly what the work incentive programs are designed to achieve. One small tip for the ABLE account - many programs offer automatic investment options if you're not comfortable managing investments yourself. Ohio's STABLE Account has some really user-friendly options for beginners. Best of luck to your daughter with her new job! It's great to see someone successfully transitioning to work while maintaining the safety net of benefits. Stories like yours give hope to other families in similar situations.

Thank you all for the extremely helpful information! I'm definitely going to pursue this. I'm making a list of the documents I need to gather and will try calling SSA next week. I'll update this thread once I find out what I'm eligible for. Keeping my fingers crossed that this will give my monthly income a boost!

Good luck with your call to SSA! Just wanted to add a couple more tips from my experience: 1) Try calling early in the morning (around 8 AM) when they first open - the wait times are usually shorter then. 2) If you can't find your original marriage certificate or divorce decree, you can usually order certified copies online from the vital records office in the state where the marriage/divorce occurred. Most states have online ordering systems now. 3) Write down all your questions before you call so you don't forget anything important during the conversation. Really hoping this works out for you and gives you some financial relief!

Update: I finally got through to someone at SSA today after trying for three days. The agent explained that they had initially calculated my benefit based on my husband's estimated earnings for his last year of work, but when the actual earnings were processed, it was lower than estimated. They're giving me options to either have reduced payments for 10 months or pay a lump sum (which I can't afford). I'm still going to file for reconsideration because I don't think I should be penalized for their estimation error. Thank you all for your helpful advice and support during this stressful time. The forms and information you suggested really helped me understand what was happening and what my options are.

I'm so glad you were able to get through and get some clarity on what happened! That estimation issue is incredibly frustrating - you're absolutely right that you shouldn't be penalized for their error. When you file your reconsideration, make sure to emphasize that: 1. You relied on SSA's benefit determination in good faith 2. You had no way to verify their earnings estimate was incorrect 3. The overpayment was entirely due to their administrative process, not any action on your part Also consider requesting a waiver alongside the reconsideration. Even if the overpayment stands, you might still qualify for waiver if repayment would cause financial hardship. Many people don't realize you can pursue both options simultaneously. Keep us posted on how the reconsideration goes - your experience could really help others in similar situations!

Thank you all for the incredibly helpful responses. This has been so educational! It sounds like the consensus is that my husband's decision to take his benefits early won't affect his potential survivor benefits if I pass away after reaching my FRA (even if I haven't filed yet). I'm going to look up that SSA Publication No. 05-10084 that was mentioned and print it out for our records. Also going to bookmark that Claimyr service in case we need to speak directly with SSA about this or other matters. Now we can make our decisions with better information. We were considering having him delay filing, but knowing this makes his early filing less concerning from a worst-case scenario perspective.

You're very welcome! It's so important to have this information when making these big decisions. One additional tip from my experience working with clients on Social Security planning - consider documenting your current benefit estimates and projected amounts in a file that your husband can easily access. Include your Social Security statements, any communications from SSA, and the research you've done. Also, while you're looking up that publication, you might want to check out SSA's "What Every Woman Should Know" publication (05-10127) which has a good section on survivor benefits. It's written in plain English and covers a lot of scenarios like yours. Sounds like you've got a solid plan now - your husband can file early with confidence knowing it won't hurt his potential survivor benefits down the road. Good luck!

One more thing to be aware of: even though there's no benefit REDUCTION after FRA, your higher earnings might make your Social Security benefits TAXABLE. Up to 85% of your benefits can be subject to income tax depending on your combined income. This doesn't reduce what SS pays you, but it does affect your overall tax situation. Just something to keep in mind for tax planning purposes!

Just want to add another perspective as someone who started benefits at FRA while still working. The key thing that helped me was getting everything in writing from SSA. When I called, I asked the agent to send me a written confirmation of how the earnings test would apply to my specific situation. This way I had documentation if there were any issues later. Also, don't forget that once you start receiving benefits, you'll need to report your estimated earnings for the following year on Form SSA-777. Since you're planning to continue working full-time through 2025, you'll want to be prepared for that. But again, since there's no earnings limit after FRA, it's really just for their records and won't affect your benefit amount. The peace of mind of having everything documented upfront was worth the extra step for me!