...
By Aliss Higham
Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
A new proposal from a leading senior citizens group suggests that Social Security beneficiaries could receive checks worth just shy of $500 from money made by repaid overpayments.
Why It Matters
The Social Security Administration (SSA) pays out billions in various types of benefits every month to nearly 70 million recipients, helping form the bedrock of income for retirees, survivors, and disabled Americans across the country.
Read More on U.S.
What To Know
According to an analysis by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL), the federal government could send seniors a dividend check worth $495 if it recovered its entire overpaid benefits balance in a typical year.
Newsweek reached out to TSCL via email for comment.
The nonpartisan group that advocates for older Americans said the dividend check could offset a lower Cost of Living Adjustment forecast for benefits paid in 2026, which is currently expected to be 2.2 percent—although the COLA boost will not be announced until October.
"This would be a strong tool to make up for a lower COLA than seniors are hoping for," TSCL said.
...
In recent years, the SSA has come under scrutiny for overpayments. Some seniors who have unknowingly been overpaid are asked to pay back 100 percent of the incorrect payment within 30 days or risk having their benefits withheld until the debt is paid off.
According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, the SSA made $6.5 billion in overpayments in the fiscal year of 2022.
To tackle beneficiaries being put in fraught financial standing, during the latter part of the Biden administration, the SSA limited overpayment recovery to 10 percent of a person's benefit to ease burdens on beneficiaries.
However, the Trump administration has now reversed this. The SSA announced last week that it would revert to a 100 percent immediate recovery rate for all overpayments made after March 27, excluding Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.
What People Are Saying
TSCL Executive Director Shannon Benton said in a March 12 press release: "The clawback of payments is especially unfair to seniors who do not have external support to help manage their finances and track their benefits. Many beneficiaries may not be aware of an overpayment and could suddenly find themselves without a check."
Lee Dudek, acting commissioner of Social Security, on SSA overpayment recovery: "We have the significant responsibility to be good stewards of the trust funds for the American people. It is our duty to revise the overpayment repayment policy back to full withholding, as it was during the Obama administration and first Trump administration, to properly safeguard taxpayer funds."
What Happens Next
The SSA said in a March 7 statement that by reverting the overpayment rate, "the Office of the Chief Actuary estimates this change will result in an increase in overpayment recoveries (i.e., a program savings) of about $7 billion in the next decade."
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines