Friday, September 09, 2011
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has spent tens of millions of dollars paying beneficiaries after they’ve died, some for as long as decades.
An audit by the agency’s inspector general found that since 2008 $40.3 million was paid to more than 6,000 individuals who were reported to be deceased. In most cases, the people were actually still alive, but in about 1,760 cases the recipients were most definitely dead.
One person told CNNMoney that he notified officials four years ago about his mother’s death. And yet she continues to receive her monthly checks.
Another Social Security recipient, who died in April 1990 and whose death was recorded by SSA the following month, kept getting checks that eventually totaled $210,000.
The audit also determined that SSA paid about $7.3 million to 11,912 people who weren’t even eligible for Social Security and overpaid about $313 million to 89,300 beneficiaries.
-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky
Social Security Pays Millions to Dead People (by Blake Ellis, CNN Money)
Reports Reveals Millions in Social Security Benefits Paid to Dead People (by Dana Liebelson, Project on Government Oversight)
Payments to Individuals Whose Numident Record Contains a Death Entry (Social Security Administration, Inspector General) (pdf)
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