I went on Social Security Disability in 2016. The only reason I got it so fast - six months from last date of work - is one of my (many) diagnoses is on a magic list they have, my lymphedema. Turns out if your diagnosis is on the magic list, it doesn't take much documentation to get them to agree to your disability. If your diagnosis is *similar* to one on the list, it takes longer, and if you diagnosis is NOT on the list, no matter how disabling, it's an uphill battle to get them to recognize you. I didn't even know about the magic list until I went to apply for myself. My husband keeps saying he wants to just retire at the earliest age possible (he works security), but I tell him that the longer he waits, the more he will be eligible for, and he should wait as long as possible since over the years his security jobs never paid as well as my medical transcription did, particularly when I was a hospital employee. It's all in the math.
Yes, it is all in the math. My husband had multiple issues, none on the "magi" list, until he was diagnosed with bipolar. Even though the physical issues were more debilitating, it was the "BP" that finally qualified him. I'm grateful I could wait until 70! It was well worth it, but I know not everyone can wait.
I had a different experience, due to something called the "windfall elimination provision", which uses a different calculation for those who receive a government pension. In essence, it penalizes those who paid into the system before taking a government position. There's still a "benefit", just at an adjusted reduced amount.
It's so complicated! There are different circumstances and it's not always easy to figure out just how much you can receive. Pensions seem to be quickly being replaced by less stable IRA's.
Ours is more complicated with my husband's pension from RR retirement. While I still pay SS tax, I am under the impression that I do not get those benefits because the RR pension is also a federal program....Yikes.
I'm happy for you though...we should be able to enjoy the time to relax that we have worked for...
Will you be able to collect on your husband's? One of my sort of gripes is that Ron paid into SS for 30 years and collected for 18. I can only get my own now. What happens to what he'd paid into it? No idea. The whole system is a mystery, but I am grateful for what I can collect.
I went on Social Security Disability in 2016. The only reason I got it so fast - six months from last date of work - is one of my (many) diagnoses is on a magic list they have, my lymphedema. Turns out if your diagnosis is on the magic list, it doesn't take much documentation to get them to agree to your disability. If your diagnosis is *similar* to one on the list, it takes longer, and if you diagnosis is NOT on the list, no matter how disabling, it's an uphill battle to get them to recognize you. I didn't even know about the magic list until I went to apply for myself. My husband keeps saying he wants to just retire at the earliest age possible (he works security), but I tell him that the longer he waits, the more he will be eligible for, and he should wait as long as possible since over the years his security jobs never paid as well as my medical transcription did, particularly when I was a hospital employee. It's all in the math.
Yes, it is all in the math. My husband had multiple issues, none on the "magi" list, until he was diagnosed with bipolar. Even though the physical issues were more debilitating, it was the "BP" that finally qualified him. I'm grateful I could wait until 70! It was well worth it, but I know not everyone can wait.
I had a different experience, due to something called the "windfall elimination provision", which uses a different calculation for those who receive a government pension. In essence, it penalizes those who paid into the system before taking a government position. There's still a "benefit", just at an adjusted reduced amount.
It's so complicated! There are different circumstances and it's not always easy to figure out just how much you can receive. Pensions seem to be quickly being replaced by less stable IRA's.
Ours is more complicated with my husband's pension from RR retirement. While I still pay SS tax, I am under the impression that I do not get those benefits because the RR pension is also a federal program....Yikes.
I'm happy for you though...we should be able to enjoy the time to relax that we have worked for...
Will you be able to collect on your husband's? One of my sort of gripes is that Ron paid into SS for 30 years and collected for 18. I can only get my own now. What happens to what he'd paid into it? No idea. The whole system is a mystery, but I am grateful for what I can collect.