Larry I'm 63 drawing survivors Benefits from Social security my question is I have several health problems COPD Rhematory Arithus osteoarthritis hep c bi polar manic depressive they tell me from social security I cant draw disability on myself is there anything I can do to make this happen Thank You Randy

Hi Randy,

Establishing that you're disabled after reaching age 60 wouldn't have any effect on the amount of a widower's benefit. The only thing that it could do is make you eligible for Medicare prior to the normal age of 65, but Medicare eligibility wouldn't start until you've been disabled for at least 2 years. So, if you're 63 now, you may not be able to qualify for Medicare before age 65 even if you're disabled.

You must have enough Social Security work credits to potentially qualify for any benefits on your own work record, and you'd only be able to get a higher total benefit rate if your own benefit rate would be higher than your survivor benefit rate. I have no way of knowing whether or not you might be eligible for benefits based on your own work history, but you should be able to check with Social Security to find out.

Best, Jerry