Social Security
[Social Security overpays $1.3 billion in
benefits: GAO by: Joel Seidman] "An upcoming
GAO report obtained by NBC News says the
federal government may have paid $1.29
billion in Social Security disability
benefits to 36,000 people who had too much
income from work to qualify.
At least one recipient collected a potential
overpayment of $90,000 without being caught
by the Social Security Administration,
according to the report, which will be
released Sunday, while others collected
$57,000 and $74,000.
The GAO also said its estimate of
"potentially improper" payments, which was
based on comparing federal wage data to
Disability Insurance rolls between 2010 and
2013, "likely understated" the scope of the
problem, but that an exact number could not
be determined without case by case
investigations.
To qualify for disability, recipients must
show that they have a physical or mental
impairment that prevents gainful employment
and is either terminal or expected to last
more than a year. Once approved, the average
monthly payment to a recipient is just under
$1,000.
There is a five-month waiting period during
which monthly income cannot exceed $1,000
before an applicant can qualify for
disability, as well as a nine-month trial
period during which someone who is already
receiving benefits can return to work
without terminating his or her disability
payments.
The GAO said that its analysis showed that
about 36,000 individuals either earned too
much during the waiting period or kept
collecting too long after their nine-month
trial period had expired..." Full text:
Social Security overpays $1.3 billion in
benefits: GAO
Am 8:5
Obama issues 500,000 SSNs to illegals
Obama paid out $1 billion in benefits to people who did not have a Social Security Number
Social Security Reserves Projected to Run Out Earlier Than Expected
