Book companion · Appendix H
Where these answers come from.
Every number in my book and videos traces back to a primary source. Here they are — the same places I check, kept current so you can verify anything yourself.
Start here
Official government sources
These are the definitive sources. When something you read anywhere — including here — disagrees with these, believe these.
Social Security Administration
Benefits, calculators, and your personal record. Key pages: ssa.gov/benefits (eligibility and tools), ssa.gov/pubs (fact sheets), ssa.gov/cola (each year’s new numbers).
my Social Security
Your own earnings record and benefit estimates. Check it yearly — errors here shrink your check, and they’re fixable.
Medicare
Enrollment, plan comparison, and coverage rules. Use the Plan Finder rather than any third-party comparison site.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
The source for annual premiums, deductibles, and IRMAA brackets — published each November for the following year.
Internal Revenue Service
How benefits are taxed. Topic 423 covers Social Security taxation; Form W-4V handles voluntary withholding.
Go deeper
For when you need the actual rule
- POMS — Program Operations Manual System secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf
SSA’s internal manual — the same policy text their claims representatives use. This is where edge cases get settled. Dense, but definitive.
- Social Security Trustees Report ssa.gov/oact/tr/
The annual report on the program’s finances — trust fund projections and what “2034” actually means. Read this instead of headlines about it.
- SSA Red Book ssa.gov/redbook
The disability work rules in one place: SGA, trial work period, and what happens when you try to return to work.
- Federal Register federalregister.gov
Where rule changes are published before they take effect — the earliest legitimate warning of anything that will affect your benefits.
Research & nonprofits
Independent analysis I trust
National Council on Aging
Benefits screening and research on what older adults leave unclaimed.
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Fact-based program analysis — their “Top Ten Facts about Social Security” is a good primer.
Center for Retirement Research
Boston College’s retirement research — rigorous work on claiming decisions and retirement income.
AARP
Practical guides and calculators. (Disclosure: AARP membership is one of our affiliate partners.)
NBER
Academic economics. The 2022 Altig/Kotlikoff/Ye paper found a median $182,370 lifetime loss from suboptimal claiming — the study behind my book’s opening.
A word of caution
Where to be careful
Reddit’s r/SocialSecurity and similar forums have real people sharing real experiences — genuinely useful for knowing what the process feels like. But treat every rule quoted there as unverified until you check it against SSA. And no matter where you read it: the SSA will never call, text, or email you asking for payment, gift cards, or your full Social Security number. That’s always a scam. Report it at oig.ssa.gov/report.
This year’s numbers, in one free PDF.
Every limit, premium, and threshold that changes each January — verified against the sources above and updated every year.