Don't get too excited about the Fairness Act. They've been trying to pass this for TWENTY YEARS with no success! Congress doesn't care about retired teachers or police officers. All talk, no action. I'll believe it when I see it.

Thank you all for the incredibly helpful responses! This gives me much better clarity on how to advise my client. To summarize what I've learned: 1. Yes, deemed filing actually works in her favor here - she's already technically applied for ex-spousal benefits 2. If GPO is repealed, SSA would recalculate and pay her the higher amount 3. She should be prepared to contact SSA when/if legislation passes to ensure her case is reviewed 4. Implementation could take months even after passage 5. There's a good chance we'll see some modification rather than full repeal This has been extremely valuable - much appreciated!

just wondering does her ss checks still get deposited while shes traveling? my aunt went to philippines for 3 months and had problems with her bank

Thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I've checked mom's Medigap Plan F policy and confirmed it does include the foreign travel emergency coverage ($250 deductible, 80% coverage up to $50,000 lifetime). Based on your advice, I'm also getting her a supplemental travel medical policy for peace of mind. Found one that specifically coordinates with Medicare/Medigap and includes medical evacuation coverage. Mom's really excited about her trip now that we have the insurance figured out. I appreciate all the personal experiences shared - it really helped us make an informed decision!

One practical suggestion: Have your mother request an appointment with a Technical Expert at her local Social Security office, not just a regular claims representative. Technical Experts have more advanced training on these complex benefit calculation scenarios and can provide detailed explanations of how her specific benefit was calculated. Make sure she brings documentation of your father's disability approval, death certificate, and any correspondence about benefits. Ask specifically for a written explanation of how her survivor benefit was calculated and have them document any questions about alternative calculations in her file. If she believes there's been a mistake, she can request a reconsideration, but be aware these are rarely successful without clear evidence of a calculation error.

Just want to add my two cents that whatever amount they calculate, your mom should double-check it. When I got survivor benefits they miscalculated the first time and it was almost $300 less than it should have been! I had to fight with them for 3 months to get it fixed and get backpay.

Please tell your mother that whoever told her this is COMPLETELY WRONG! I wish the SSA would do more to educate people about this because this misconception causes so many seniors to limit their work unnecessarily. I'm 71 and make over $60K at my consulting job and get EVERY PENNY of my Social Security without reduction. The person who told her this was probably confusing the earnings limit that applies BEFORE full retirement age with the tax situation that can happen at ANY age.

Just to add some specific numbers to help your mom understand her tax situation, since that's probably what her friend was confusing with benefit reductions: - Single filers with combined income between $25,000-$34,000 may have up to 50% of SS benefits subject to tax - Single filers with combined income above $34,000 may have up to 85% of SS benefits subject to tax "Combined income" means adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + 1/2 of Social Security benefits. But again, this is just about how much of her SS might be taxable on her tax return. It has absolutely no effect on the amount of her monthly benefit check from Social Security.

Tell your friend he should look at his life expectancy. Everyone here is assuming he'll live a long time but what if he doesn't? My dad waited to claim and then only got benefits for 4 years before he passed. If he claims at 62, that's 8 years of benefits he'd get before 70. That's a lot of money! And another thing - what about spousal benefits for his wife? His wife has to be 62 to claim those I think so that's a long way off. But once she reaches that age it's based on his PIA so if he takes early it won't affect her spousal amount I'm pretty sure.

Thank you all for the incredible advice! I spoke with my friend today and shared your insights. He was surprised to learn about how his claiming age would affect potential survivor benefits for both his kids AND his wife. He's going to try using the Claimyr service to actually speak with someone at SSA about his specific numbers. He's now leaning toward waiting until at least his FRA, possibly longer. The family maximum benefit concept was new to him too. It sounds like the best approach is to get actual calculations from SSA for different claiming scenarios to see the real impact on total family benefits. Really appreciate all your help with this unusual situation!