Dear Larry,
Dear Larry,
When should an age 55 disabled worker take her widow benefit. Her husband died this month. thanks, Kody

Hi Kody,

She should take her reduced excess widow benefit immediately. The excess widow benefit is the difference between her widow benefit and her retirement benefit. This excess will then be reduced by 29.5 percent. But since your client's husband died after she started collecting her disability benefit, the reduction applied to her excess widow benefit will be eliminated when she reaches full retirement age. Hence, taking her excess widow benefit early does not entail a permanent reduction in the excess widow benefit.

My best, Larry