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Social Security news
Curated daily from official SSA channels and trusted independent sources. Each item links out to the original.
Articles
How Married Couples Can Maximize Social Security
The average married couple gets about $4,000 a month from Social Security — but coordinating when each spouse claims can swing the household's lifetime total by six figures. The key move: have the higher earner delay toward 70. Here's the playbook.
Now You Can Track Your Disability Claim Online
Social Security has added online tools that let disability claimants track their claim status, submit key forms, and get hearing notices through their my Social Security account — real-time visibility for a process that's often a monthslong black box.
Social Security Scams: How to Spot and Avoid Them
Social Security will never call, text, or email to threaten you, demand payment, or ask for gift cards — so if someone does, it's a scam. Here are the schemes targeting retirees now, the red flags that give them away, and how to report them.
Do Zero Years Really Hurt Your Social Security?
Worried that years without earnings will wreck your benefit? Zero years only count if you have fewer than 35 years of work — and even then, the hit is usually far smaller than people fear. Here’s what actually happens, and what does more damage.
SSDI Back Pay: How Much You're Owed
SSDI back pay is what Social Security owes you for the months between when your disability began and when you're approved — often a five-figure lump sum. It's calculated from your onset date minus a 5-month wait, and can reach up to 17 months before you applied.
Can You Get Disability for Back Pain?
Yes — back and spine conditions are among the most common bases for Social Security disability. But chronic pain alone isn't enough; you need objective medical evidence that it stops you from working, and your age plays a surprisingly large role. Here's how it works.
Can You Get Disability for Depression or Anxiety?
Yes — depression and anxiety are among the most common conditions approved for Social Security disability. But a diagnosis alone isn't enough: you must show the condition seriously limits your ability to function and work. Here's how SSA decides.
What's New in Your my Social Security Account
Social Security has refreshed its free online account with a redesigned retirement calculator that compares up to three claiming ages, a clearer claim-status tracker, and a consistent new design. Here is what changed and how to use it.
Why a Bigger Social Security COLA Can Disappoint
The 2027 cost-of-living adjustment could be one of the largest in years — but a bigger COLA isn't a raise. Medicare premiums, frozen tax thresholds, and inflation itself can quietly claw back much of it. Here's why, and what to watch.
Social Security Cuts by State: The 2032 Numbers
If Congress doesn’t act before the trust fund runs short in 2032, benefits would be cut about 24% across the board — an average of $500 a month. A state-by-state analysis shows cuts ranging from $459 to $556, hitting the oldest states hardest. See your state’s numbers.
Single in Retirement? Why Your Taxes Run Higher
Single, divorced, and widowed retirees often owe more tax on the same income than couples do — because the thresholds that tax Social Security benefits are far lower for one person and haven’t changed since the 1980s. Here’s why aging solo costs more at tax time, and what can soften it.
Could Raising the Payroll Tax Save Social Security?
Raising Social Security’s 12.4% payroll tax is one of the few levers big enough to close its funding gap. The 2026 Trustees Report puts that gap at 4.42% of taxable payroll — meaning the rate would need to reach about 16.8% to fund full benefits for 75 years. Here’s what that would cost.
Does Social Security Pay for Long-Term Care?
No — there’s no dedicated Social Security long-term-care benefit, and Medicare doesn’t cover most long-term care either. Since about 70% of people turning 65 will need care that can cost over $100,000 a year, here’s who actually pays.
SSDI and Medicare: How the 24-Month Wait Really Works
Medicare doesn’t start when your SSDI is approved — it starts 24 months after your benefits are dated to begin. Because a disability claim is backdated to when you became disabled, a slow decision or a won appeal can mean much of that wait is already behind you.
The Maximum Social Security Benefit in 2026, by Age
The most anyone can collect in 2026 ranges from $2,969 a month at 62 to $5,181 at 70 — but almost no one qualifies. Here are the maximums by claiming age, who actually gets them, and why the average check is far smaller.