What is available to my spouse if survivor benefits are waived and I die first?
With no survivor benefit election, all benefits cease at your death, including the health insurance. Your spouse would receive your last pension check and the balance of your contribution account, if any, at the time of your death. Your spouse would also be given an opportunity to purchase health insurance for a limited time under the federal COBRA plan. Please refer to the PERS Information Handbook on this web site for more detailed information regarding calculation of average monthly salary, survivor options and early retirement reductions.
Related Questions
- Does Social Security recognize common-law marriage as a basis of eligibility for receiving survivors and spouses benefits?
- Can a divorced party reduce a former spouses share of retirement benefits by electing survivor benefits for someone else?
- If an employee dies before retirement age, do those years qualify in determining additional survivor benefits?
