Present Situation Regarding Social Security Spouse And Survivor Benefits
When Social Security was established back in 1935 it was typical for women to remain inside home to raise the family. In most families the husband was the major earner or the only earner in the family. Furthermore, women statistically survive longer than men, especially if the wife is younger than the husband.
The combination of lower or no earnings and a longer life span implied many women found themselves in poverty at the time their husbands passed away, as their husband's Social Security retirement benefits expired at their death. The Social Security Board realized the challenges that women face and have implemented several changes to the system over the years to account for these needs.
One important amendments to the Social Security system was to enable women to apply for benefits at age 62 in place of waiting until 65 under the theory that they were younger than their husbands and that they would want to retire at the same time.
Then in 1939 two new categories of benefits were included: Social Security survivor benefits and dependent benefits (payable to the spouse and minor kids of retired workers).
These modifications changed Social Security from a retirement program that only paid benefits to retired workers into a family-based program, where spouses and children could receive benefits of retired, disabled or departed workers. This was a tremendous help to women who were not eligible for retirement benefits on their own, or who had significantly smaller benefits than their husbands.
Today, even though it's not uncommon for women to earn as much or more than their husbands, they still may take time off to look after families, and they still statistically live longer than their spouses. Moreover, the number of divorced women reaching retirement age is higher than before. Because of this, many women still receive Social Security spousal benefits or survivor benefits instead of benefits depending on their own work period.
Therefore it's necessary for women - regardless of their marital status is - to understand the spousal and survivor benefits available to them in addition to the retirement benefits so they can enjoy the maximum benefits they are eligible to.
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