May and John Doe adopt their 8 year old grandson Joseph. John dies in a work-related accident. Mary is a dependent spouse. How many dependents are there?

May and John Doe adopt their 8 year old grandson Joseph. John dies in a work-related accident. Mary is a dependent spouse. How many dependents are there?

• A. 1 total and no partial dependents.
• B. 2 total dependents.
• C. 2 partial dependents.
• D. 1 total and 1 partial.

Answer: (B)

The concept here is who counts as a dependent for benefit calculations. A dependent can be a spouse or a child who relies on the worker for support, and adopted children count the same as biological children. Mary is a dependent spouse, meaning she qualifies as a dependent. Joseph is an adopted grandchild, and since he’s been adopted by May and John, he’s treated as a dependent child just like a biological child. With John’s death, these two individuals—the surviving spouse and the adopted child—are the dependents. There aren’t any other dependents mentioned, so the total number of dependents is two. Both are full dependents rather than partial.

The concept here is who counts as a dependent for benefit calculations. A dependent can be a spouse or a child who relies on the worker for support, and adopted children count the same as biological children.

Mary is a dependent spouse, meaning she qualifies as a dependent. Joseph is an adopted grandchild, and since he’s been adopted by May and John, he’s treated as a dependent child just like a biological child. With John’s death, these two individuals—the surviving spouse and the adopted child—are the dependents.

There aren’t any other dependents mentioned, so the total number of dependents is two. Both are full dependents rather than partial.