While Social Security is a crucial component of many Americans’ retirement income, it is particularly important to women. Because women tend to live longer than men, and historically, make less money than men, they are at a greater risk for outliving their savings. The Social Security Administration (SSA) has written a booklet detailing what women should know about Social Security. Here are the highlights: Nothing keeps women from getting their own Social Security benefits. If you’ve worked and paid taxes into the Social Security system for at least 10 years, and have earned a minimum of 40 work credits, you can collect your own benefits as early as age 62 Social Security benefits are based on your lifetime earnings. SSA adjusts (or “indexes”) your actual earnings to account for changes in average wages since the year the earnings were received. Then, SSA calculates your average indexed monthly earnings during the
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