New bill could boost Social Security benefits for millions of unpaid employees

Millions of Americans step away from paid work every year to care for children, aging parents, disabled spouses or seriously ill relatives. The decision can keep families together and spare loved ones from institutional care, but it often comes with a long-term cost that shows up decades later in smaller Social Security checks.

A new proposal in Congress is aimed at changing that. The Social Security Caregiver Credit Act of 2026 would allow eligible unpaid caregivers to earn up to five years of Social Security retirement credits while providing care to a dependent relative. 

The bill has been introduced in the House by Rep. Brad Schneider and in the Senate by Sens. Chris Murphy and Kirsten Gillibrand.

Under current rules, Social Security retirement benefits are based on a worker’s 35 highest-earning years. When someone leaves the workforce or cuts hours to provide unpaid care, those years can count as low-earning or zero-earning years, permanently reducing future benefits.

“Caregiving for an aging parent, relative with a disability, or ailing loved one is a full-time job,” Gillibrand said. “Individuals who leave the workforce to care for their loved ones should receive compensation for that critical work.”

The bill would apply to people who spend at least 80 hours per month caring for a dependent relative without pay. That could include care for a child under 12, an aging parent, a spouse or another family member with a disability or chronic dependency.

Instead of allowing those months to count as zeros in a person’s Social Security record, the government would credit eligible caregivers with “deemed wages” for benefit calculations. 

The credit would be capped at five years. Murphy said the proposal is about treating caregiving as work.

“Caregivers shouldn’t lose out on Social Security benefits because they step away from the workforce to care for a loved one,” Murphy said. “Caregiving is work, and it’s time we start treating it that way.”

The issue is widespread. Lawmakers cited research showing that roughly 63 million American adults provide care to adults or children with a medical condition or disability, nearly one-quarter of the adult population.

Why women could benefit most

Although the bill is written in gender-neutral terms, supporters say it would likely have a major impact on women, who make up a disproportionate share of unpaid caregivers and are more likely to reduce paid work for family responsibilities.

Financial experts say the current system was built around a model of continuous full-time employment that does not reflect how many families operate.

“When a caregiver steps out of the workforce to raise a child, care for an aging parent, or support a disabled spouse, those years count as $0 earnings in their 35-year average calculation,” finance expert Michael Ryan told Newsweek. “Every zero drags down lifetime benefits permanently.”

Advocacy groups including Social Security Works, the National Alliance for Caregiving and the Alliance for Retired Americans have endorsed the proposal, arguing that unpaid care has economic value and should not lead to poverty in retirement.

The fight ahead in Congress

The bill has been introduced but has not yet advanced through committees. Similar proposals have failed in previous sessions, and this version faces a familiar obstacle: Social Security’s long-term funding concerns.

Critics warn that expanding credits could increase obligations for a system already facing solvency pressure. Supporters counter that family caregivers are already doing work that would otherwise cost households, insurers or government programs far more.

If passed, the bill would not immediately increase every caregiver’s check. But for people who qualify, it could raise future retirement benefits by replacing some unpaid caregiving years with credited earnings.

For families who have long treated caregiving as a private sacrifice, the proposal would mark a significant shift: recognition that the work done at home still counts.