Both my wife and I are over 65 and have been receiving SS benefits for several years. We have both just received letters from SSA notifying us that both of our benefits are to be reduced by almost identical amounts of $200 per month.
My wife worked (outside the home) for a shorter period than I did, contributed less than I did and receives less than I do. Why does SSA decide after several years to cut our benefits, and how does it come up with almost identical cuts?

Hi,

Hopefully, the notices that you received should give you some type of explanation. It would be extremely unusual if the cuts have to do with your benefit rates themselves. That would likely involve some kind of major calculation error, which rarely occurs.

Without any knowledge of your situation, my guess would be that the benefit cuts to which you refer most likely involve some type of deduction that's being made from your benefits. For example, Part B Medicare premium rates can vary substantially depending on a person's annual income (https://www.medicare.gov/your-medicare-costs/part-b-costs/part-b-costs.html). If your notices don't adequately explain the cuts, you'll probably want to contact Social Security to ask for an explanation.

Best, Jerry