A New Government Report Found $291 Million in SSI Benefits That Were Never Delivered to Recipients

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program pays senior benefits and benefits for individuals who are blind or disabled. Though federal programs are often criticized for overpayments, a new government report found that the Social Security Administration (SSA) failed to pay approximately $291 million in SSI benefits, leaving beneficiaries to go without the money that they're entitled to.

Here's what you should know about the underpayments, what's being done, and how to tell if you might be owed money.

Understanding SSI

SSI is a needs-based program for adults and children who have little to no income and resources. To qualify, individuals must be age 65 or older or have a disability or blindness.

The benefits are generally designed for individuals who don't earn more than $2,073 per month from work. Resources are generally capped at $2,000 for individuals and $3,000 for couples.

Who's affected by the underpayments

Given the program's strict income and resource limits, the individuals who qualify for SSI significantly depend on the benefits. That means that benefits underpayments may have a significant impact on some of the most financially vulnerable individuals and households.

Many people confuse SSI with SSDI. SSDI is designed to provide benefits to individuals with severe disabilities that leave them unable to work. SSDI benefits are tied to an individual's earnings from previous employment.

How SSI underpayments occur

SSI underpayments may occur in several different ways. If no payment is made for a period when a payment was due, it's considered an underpayment. Additionally, an underpayment might result if a payment was made, but it was for less than the amount owed. If a payment is made to a beneficiary, but that beneficiary dies before they cash the check, that is also considered an underpayment.

Underpayments may be resolved depending on how large they are. The SSA issues an underpayment of $1 or more once it's discovered. However, the SSA may have to conduct and document a pre-payment review before releasing a payment for a large underpayment.

How the audit sampled payment data

A report from the SSA's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) found evidence of significant underpayments based on an audited sample. The SSI audit reviewed a sample of 260 underpayments and divided them into two populations. The first population consisted of 2.5 million underpayments pending as of September 2024, while the second consisted of 2.4 million underpayments that the SSA paid out between July 31, 2021 and July 31, 2024.

How the SSA fared on pending underpayments

The audit reviewed 160 pending underpayment samples and found that the SSA paid 50% of those benefits out correctly. However, the audit also found that the SSA didn't follow policies for 43% of cases, while the remaining 7% of records were erroneous underpayments that should be removed from SSA records.

Additionally, 47 underpayments in the sample were for deceased recipients, and they totaled $22,861. Those payments remained on the SSA's records but aren't payable to anyone.

How the SSA fared on paid underpayments

The audit also reviewed a sample of 100 paid underpayments and found that the SSA conducted the required prepayment review for 88% of those cases. For 12% of the cases, the audit found "no evidence that SSA employees followed policy and completed the required prepayment reviews before issuing payments."

The final data on SSI underpayments

Based on the sampled data, the report indicates that the SSA didn't pay more than 1.1 million underpayments that total about $291 million to SSI recipients or their survivors.

The audit revealed concerning results. "Our audit found gaps in policy adherence and documentation that could significantly affect vulnerable SSI recipients," said Michelle L. Anderson, Assistant Inspector General for Audit as First Assistant. "SSA has agreed with our recommendations and look forward to monitoring corrective actions."

The timeline surrounding some of those payments is significant, too, with some payments going unaddressed for years. Underpayments for living recipients with terminated SSI records were pending for an average of 18 years. Underpayments involving deceased SSI recipients were pending for an average of 22 years.

What the SSA has agreed to

The OIG recommended the SSA take several actions, including taking appropriate action on the 139 underpayments found on the audit. The OIG recommended the SSA determine how to identify and resolve the approximately 1.1 million outstanding payments and also implement corrective actions to address employee errors.

The SSA has agreed to implement those recommendations, which may help address existing underpayments and reduce employee errors in the future.

Bottom line

It's important to carefully monitor your SSI benefits and ensure you're not missing any benefits. You may log into your my Social Security account and see your payments under the "Payments" section of the website. The site shows dates and amounts of your recent deposits, but it only reflects when the payments were processed by the SSA, not when they arrived in your bank account. Cross-check this information with your bank to see when the funds arrive.

If you find that you're missing a payment or aren't receiving the benefits you should be receiving, be proactive and contact the SSA. Staying on top of your payments may help you to quickly spot issues and financial mistakes so you may resolve them.

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