I'm new to this community but dealing with a very similar situation! I worked 15 years as a teacher in a state system that didn't contribute to Social Security, and now I'm trying to piece together enough quarters from other jobs to qualify for benefits. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea about the distinction between Medicare credits and SS credits, or that the Fairness Act wouldn't actually give us credit for those teaching years toward the 40 quarters. That's disappointing but good to know. One question for the group: Has anyone successfully appealed or gotten clarification from SSA about borderline cases? I'm wondering if there are any situations where teaching years might count if there was some SS withholding during certain periods (like summer jobs through the school district that were covered). Also wanted to echo what others have said about contacting representatives. I just called mine yesterday after reading Keisha's post about the GPO eliminating survivor benefits entirely - that's absolutely outrageous and something needs to change. StarSeeker, you're so close with 33 quarters! I hope you can push through those last 7. This whole system seems designed to make it as difficult as possible for educators to get the benefits they deserve.

I'm so glad I found this thread! I'm also dealing with the education/Social Security mess. I taught for 12 years in Ohio where we didn't pay into SS, and I'm currently at 28 quarters from other jobs. Reading everyone's experiences has been really eye-opening. StarSeeker, I feel your frustration about needing those additional quarters. Like others mentioned, I'd definitely recommend checking your exact status on ssa.gov - sometimes the count is different than what we calculate ourselves. One thing I learned recently that might help both you and your husband: if either of you worked any federal jobs (even temporary or seasonal), those usually count toward SS quarters even if they were decades ago. Worth double-checking your records for anything like that. The Fairness Act discussion here has been really informative too. I've been following it but didn't realize how much bipartisan support the current version has. Even if we can't count on it passing, it gives me hope that lawmakers are finally recognizing how unfair WEP and GPO are to educators and public servants. Hang in there with the part-time work - 7 quarters isn't that far! And thank you to everyone who's shared their knowledge here. This community is exactly what I needed to find.

this is so confusing!!!! how is anyone supposed to keep track of all these rules and limits and trial periods???? and they wonder why people just give up trying to work at all!

Thank you everyone for all this valuable information! I've learned so much. I'm going to call SSA tomorrow to find out exactly where I stand with my Trial Work Period and get clarity on my specific situation. I'm also going to look into both the Ticket to Work program and whether any of my expenses qualify as Impairment-Related Work Expenses. Really appreciate all the help!

One more important point about the DAC benefits for your husband's son: When he converts from SSI to DAC, he'll receive a benefit equal to 50% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) while your husband is alive. If your husband passes away, the son's benefit would increase to 75% of your husband's PIA. This conversion won't affect your spousal top-up at all, as the family maximum typically doesn't apply in these situations. Both you and the son can receive your full entitled benefits without reducing each other's amounts.

As someone who went through a similar situation, I wanted to add that when you call SSA about the spousal top-up, ask them to calculate the exact amount you're entitled to and when your eligibility started. They should be able to tell you over the phone before you even go in for the appointment. Also, regarding the DAC benefits for your stepson - make sure the application gets filed soon because there can be processing delays, and you don't want him to miss out on any potential benefits while waiting. The transition from SSI to DAC is usually worth it financially, but as others mentioned, definitely check on the Medicaid situation first since that can be tricky to navigate. One last tip: if you end up going to the SSA office, try to schedule an appointment rather than walking in. The wait times for walk-ins can be brutal, especially if you need to discuss multiple benefit types like you do.

To directly answer your question about what to expect in 2025: Based on your 14 years of substantial earnings, your WEP penalty is likely reduced from the maximum by 40%. With the information you've provided, I estimate your benefit will increase by approximately $330-380 per month once WEP is eliminated. To get a more precise estimate, you can: 1. Log into your my Social Security account 2. Look for your PIA (Primary Insurance Amount) before WEP reduction 3. Compare it to your current benefit amount The difference is approximately what you'll gain when WEP is eliminated. Keep in mind that there will also be COLA increases between now and 2025 that will make the actual dollar amount higher.

Thank you all for the helpful information! I've been trying to get straight answers for months. I'm going to request the non-WEP PIA calculation and try to get through to an agent. From what everyone has shared, it looks like I might see an increase of $300-350 per month once WEP is eliminated. That would make a huge difference for me. Does anyone know if we'll receive any official communication from SSA about our specific increase amount before the changes take effect in 2025?

One additional consideration that might help with your decision-making: you can actually apply for both your retirement benefits AND your daughter's DAC benefits at the same time. This means you won't have to wait months between starting your benefits and getting her application processed. Also, if you do decide to start your benefits early, remember that you can still work and earn up to the annual earnings limit without affecting your benefits (in 2025 it's $23,400 if you're under full retirement age). This might help offset some of the reduction from taking benefits early. Have you calculated what your daughter's potential DAC benefit amount would be? It's typically 50% of your primary insurance amount, which might help you weigh the financial trade-offs more precisely.

I'm in a very similar situation with my 60-year-old disabled son! We went through the same SSI denial years ago due to assets. What I learned is that you can actually get some preliminary guidance without committing to anything by requesting a benefit estimate that shows what your daughter's DAC benefit would be at 50% of your PIA. Also, one thing that helped us was discovering that if you start benefits at 67 (your full retirement age) rather than earlier, you're not taking a "reduction" - you're just not getting the delayed retirement credits you'd earn by waiting until 70. The way I looked at it was: am I better off with my full benefit amount plus my son getting 50% of that, or waiting 3 years for the delayed credits while continuing to fully support him? For us, starting at full retirement age made sense financially even without the delayed credits, especially considering the Medicare eligibility after 24 months. Every family's situation is different though!