After my husband died, I was told that I was not eligible for his Social Security benefits because I had worked as a public school teacher in California, and so was subject to the "Government Pension Offset." I had not paid into Social Security myself; I receive a STRS (State Teachers' Retirement System) pension. He had received both his PERS (Public Employees' Retirement System) pension and Social Security. Does this denial affect my Medicare coverage?

Hi,

First off, I'm sorry for your loss.

I'm glad you asked this question. The answer is no. Even if you can't actually collect widow's benefits due to the fact that the Government Pension Offset (GPO) provision reduces your benefit rate to zero, as long as your spouse was insured for Social Security benefits you can still potentially become technically entitled to widow's benefits. And, as long as you're at least technically entitled to widow's benefits, or for any other type of monthly Social Security benefit, you can qualify premium free Part A of Medicare at age 65. The other parts of Medicare are optional and require a monthly premium, but that would be true regardless of your status with regard to monthly benefits.

You would, however, need to apply file an application in order to establish entitlement to widow's benefits or Medicare. I don't have enough information about your circumstances to be able to give you any specific advice, but you shouldn't be dissuaded from filing an application for widow's benefits simply because the Social Security employee that you spoke with told you that you wouldn't qualify for benefits due to GPO.

Best, Jerry