This is really long I was granted disability in the 90 s at that time my check it seems was 4 or 5 hundred and something my husband got cancer few years after that long story short when he started drawing my check was cut we had to get divorce so my check would go back up because we couldn't make we lived together the whole time and got remarried a week before he died am I entitled to any benefits besides what I get now which is ssi

Hi,

I'm sorry for your loss.

Unfortunately, I can't answer your question without more information. If you were divorced for longer than one full calendar year, your first marriage to your husband couldn't be combined with your second marriage in order to determine if you meet the 9 month duration of marriage normally required for widow's benefits. However, there are exceptions to the 9 month marriage duration requirement (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.04/handbook-0401.html), and I don't know if any of those might be involved in your case. There are also exceptions in cases of an accidental deaths (https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/handbook/handbook.04/handbook-0404.html), but that likely wouldn't apply in your case if your husband died solely as a result of his illness.

If your first marriage lasted at least 10 years, though, you may still qualify for survivor benefits as a surviving divorced wife, although you would need to be at least age 60, or age 50 and disabled to in order to qualify for either surviving divorced spousal or widow's benefits. And, your husband must have been insured for Social Security in order for any survivor benefits to be payable from his record.

I would suggest contacting Social Security and discussing your circumstances with them. If you think that you may qualify for benefits, you have the right to file a claim and receive a formal determination.

Best, Jerry