Social Security Addressing Aged Records
Reading Time: 1 MinuteLast Updated: March 5, 2025
The Social Security Administration (SSA) today shared its significant progress in identifying and correcting beneficiary records of people 100 years old or older. The data reported in the media represent people who do not have a date of death associated with their record. While these people may not be receiving benefits, it is important for the agency to maintain accurate and complete records.
“I thank President Trump for highlighting these inconsistencies during his speech last night to a joint session of Congress,” said Lee Dudek, Acting Commissioner of Social Security. “We are steadfast in our commitment to root out fraud, waste, and abuse in our programs, and actively correcting the inconsistencies with missing dates of death.”
The agency follows long established program integrity initiatives that identify people who have a higher likelihood of being deceased due to their age or incomplete death reports. For example, SSA receives data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services of individuals who have not used Medicare Part A or Part B for three or more years. SSA uses the data as an indicator to select and prioritize cases of individuals age 90 or older, who are currently in pay status and living in the United States, to determine continued eligibility for Social Security benefits. The agency attempts to conduct an interview with these individuals to verify they are still alive. If the agency identifies someone is deceased, it immediately stops payment and reports any suspicions of fraud to SSA’s Office of the Inspector General.
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Julie H.
I just exited DOGE and all I found were numbers representing the amount of those of a specific age group: however, I would prefer names and birth and death certificates, and those still receiving SS payments. Numbers can be made up to support one’s belief.
DjH
Trump repeats the debunked. There were placeholder birthyears that were deliberately ridiculous so folks at SSA knew there was missing information. Ignorant DOGE people didn’t understand the code, and made wrong assumptions that such birthyears meant ancient individuals received benefits. And SSA has, for many years, been tracking recipients who are at least 100 years old. Integrity is and has been a core value of SSA. DOGE made a mistake; Trump lied.
Tim H.
It’s so painfully obvious that SSA doesn’t follow the program initiatives to keep records up to date or there wouldn’t be the amount of people on the rolls that are 140 years old let alone older than that . There has been a severe dereliction in duties performed by employees .
Jolene Z.
Try again! It is not the employees but the funds not being allowed for SSA, for many years, being able to update the ancient software systems being used along with reducing staff, so less staff hours to make the necessary changes/updates to records—not a switch of a button to switch records from one program to another. Someone needs to get their facts straight.
Anonymous (.
Why is Medicare benefits made available (with the payment of standard premium) to people who have not contributed to Medicare all of their working life – such as retirees from international organizations that live in the US following their retirement ? this kind of benefits is not available even to US citizens who worked in the US
Mike
Trump is trying to cast doubt on the integrity of social security system, just like the claims of election fraud that were completely untrue. If he can persuade a large part of the population that Social Security is corrupted, he will then cut social security benefits. This man is a liar and 34 count indicted FELON. Please fact check anything he says, we all have to push back against this.
AJ
Thank you, President Trump for DOGE and exposing fraud in the government. We, the people, have spoken by voting you back in, and we, the people, thank you for making good on your word and helping to make America great again from the previous administration’s waste, fraud, and demented (dementia) thinking and behaving.
Jim
I want to thank The SS administration for the timely and professional response. While there may not have been large scale fraud, the application of inaccurate date for actuarial analysis would result in significantly misleading results.
Jan J.
Why is this just now finally getting done?! You should have been doing this long ago and as an ongoing process!
Maria C.
How about if the retiree lives in another country. I’m from the Philippines originally, in the Philippines before you can collect their said pension. They are obliged to send a picture of them self With the newspaper of the day. How can we control those people that do not live here in the US? I look forward to an answer.
Kathy
These daily updates from Social Security are getting ridiculous. I get that whatever Trump sycophant is running things at SSA right now wants to look good to his lord and master. Anyone who has half a brain can do their research and discover that while the outdated SSA systems might still have old records, they are NOT paying people who are over 150 years old despite what that lying piece of crap said in his “speech” on Tuesday night. Wake up people before it’s too damn late to do anything.
Angela
*psychopath 🙂