Before I even start, I’m going to address the gender issue. This column is about benefits available to spouses. However, I don’t want to spend the whole column trying to be gender-neutral and using awkward combined pronouns like “he/she” or “him/her,” or jumbled phrases like “benefits for husbands and/or wives.” Because statistics show that 90 percent of the people who get spousal benefits are women, I’m going to keep things simple and address this column to women. Or more specifically, to wives who are wondering what benefits they might be due on a husband’s Social Security record. And two more caveats before I go on. In this column, I will be talking about benefits for wives—not widows. Different rules apply to widows benefits. They have been explained in past columns and will be explained in future columns. But today I will be addressing women whose husbands are still alive and …