Survivors: what continues, what changes, what can wait

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The first 90 days, in order

1. Make the notifications (week 1–2). Social Security (800-772-1213) — also stops the decedent's benefits and starts survivor benefit review; DFAS (800-321-1080) if military retired pay was involved — SBP processing begins here; the VA (800-827-1000) for compensation, pension, burial benefits, and DIC; and any employer pension or insurer.
2. Update DEERS — don't surrender anything (week 1–4). Report the death at 800-538-9552 or an ID card office. Surviving spouses and eligible children KEEP military benefits; you'll be issued your own ID. Never let anyone 'collect' your card without issuing your survivor credentials.
3. File the benefit claims (month 1–2). DIC (VA Form 21P-534EZ) if the death was service-connected or the veteran was rated totally disabled for the qualifying period; SBP annuity through DFAS; CHAMPVA (VA Form 10-10d) if newly eligible. A Veterans Service Officer files all of these at no charge.
4. Stabilize your own health coverage (month 1–3). Your Medicare is yours — nothing about it lapses. Confirm where YOUR coverage now comes from: TFL continues for unremarried surviving spouses; CHAMPVA continues or begins; an employer plan through the deceased may be ending, which can open enrollment windows.
5. Flag the money mechanics (month 2–3). Premiums being paid from the decedent's account need new payment paths. Note the IRMAA horizon: this year files jointly, the filing-status change hits Medicare premiums two years out — the widow's-penalty page explains the planning.

Nothing on that list requires choosing a plan, signing with an agent, or restructuring anything. Grief season is for notifications and claims; the genuine decisions — if any — keep.

What happens to each coverage

Two income facts that shape everything later

DIC is tax-free and invisible to Medicare's income test; SBP is taxable and visible. Since the offset's full repeal in 2023, eligible surviving spouses receive both in full — a real income floor, with a built-in IRMAA asymmetry worth understanding before the two-year lookback arrives. And survivor benefits from Social Security follow their own rules — the 800 number conversation in step one covers whether switching to a survivor benefit beats your own.