Treasury Recoups $31 Million in Social Security Payments to Dead People, Calls It ‘Tip of the Iceberg’

Congress granted a temporary, three-year access to the file, which contains over 142 million records dating back to 1899.

A Social Security card sits alongside checks from the U.S. Treasury in Washington on Oct. 14, 2021. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

More than $31 million in erroneous Social Security payments to deceased individuals has been clawed back by the Treasury Department, with an official saying it’s only scratching the surface of improper payments to dead people.

The recoveries were made during a five-month pilot program using the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) Full Death Master File, as part of Treasury’s efforts to prevent fraud and improve payment integrity, according to a Jan. 15 press release.