Larry,
I am a 63 yr old wartime Vietnam era veteran, My Health has been steadily on the decline the past ten years with being diagnosed with severe degenerative Joint Disease, The Past few years I was unable to hold a job, so to survive i worked odd jobs to survive...I am now threatened with homelessness, 2 Years ago I had to pass up 2 surgery dates with the VA hospital. for Hip joint replacement....(whom pretty much has taken care of me since 1971) I live by myself (divorced) I just went thru the rigamaroe of filling out forms for SS disability only to find out I'm short credits and not eligible for disability .
I must file for early retirement now,,,Any Sugestions to filing on line? also when i look at my employment record It seems thers some missing income especially before i went into the USMC....I see no entries made previous to 1971 I know I worked a few jobs before i enlisted- I also filed 2 years ago with the VA and was denied...after i was actually denied, they did not inform me of this till 8 months later. I do not have the time to fight with them now if i do i will become homeless.
I have become very Paranoid about any kind of Gov. questions...I need it badly and so afraid i may answer a question improperly..and screw myself out of funds.
ANY Suggestions you may have for me would be greatly appreciated Thanks For hearing me Mike

Hi Mike,

I'm sorry to hear about all of the problems you've been having.

I really don't have any advice for you given just the information you've furnished in your question. It sounds like you don't qualify for Social Security disability benefits, and if you feel as though you must file for reduced retirement benefits due to your financial circumstances, you probably aren't in a position to consider other options. However, better filing options may be available, especially if you were married for at least 10 years prior to your divorce. You may want to consider using the maximization software on this website in order to explore all of your possible options.

There's no real difference between filing for benefits online, by phone or in person. It just comes down to the method with which you are more comfortable. Just be sure to carefully review your application to make sure that all of the information entered is correct. And regarding the earnings that you feel are missing from your Social Security earnings record, there's not much chance of getting credit for those earnings now unless you can submit proof of the earnings and establish that Social Security taxes were paid. The ideal type of evidence would be a copy of your W-2 forms.

Best, Jerry