I was married in 1982 to husband who just passed away in march 2019. He was living in a nursing home, and when i turned 65 last year, i received medicare from his work record. I was also listed as "community spouse" thru the state system as I had no income of my own, therefore receiving his soc sec check each month to pay bills. Ive got a printed summary from ss office telling me i will be receiving widow/survivor benefits. But ive got no letter. My husbands EX wife got a letter and a condolensce message of her 'husband passing" they were div for 40 yrs and yes she was married to him for 10 yrs . But i ve been the wife for 37 yrs and shes getting survivor benefits but i have got no letter and not apparently getting the soc sec check. This means for me : everything i pay in monthly bills is gone. theres no money for house payment, car, electricity, water, food (other than food stamps) and must go on welfare. I'm confused....why is the ex getting these beneifts while i the current wife till he died gets ZERO after 37 yrs of marrieage, no separations, nothing, i was faithful and still his wife when he died. This seems soo unfair. to me. :(

Hi,

I'm sorry for your loss. The fact that your husband's ex-wife is entitled to benefits on his record has absolutely no effect on either your eligibility for widow's benefits or your benefit rate. It sounds like you've filed for widow's benefits and that Social Security is apparently processing your claim, so you'll probably just need to be patient for a while longer. You may want to check with Social Security to see if they can give you a status report on your claim.

Best, Jerry