SWIFT Act

The Surviving Widow(er) Income Fair Treatment (SWIFT) Act proposes several changes to Social Security to increase financial support for surviving spouses and divorced spouses. If passed, the bill would allow widows and widowers with disabilities to access survivor benefits at any age, removing the current requirement that they be at least 50 years old.

The legislation also aims to increase monthly payments by raising the age limit for "child-in-care" benefits from 16 to 19 and eliminating certain rules that currently reduce benefits for those who qualify for multiple types of Social Security payments. Additionally, the bill ensures that any increase in Social Security income resulting from these changes would not disqualify a person from receiving other federal assistance, such as Medicaid or SNAP.