Unveiling the Truth: Why Tens of Millions of Deceased Americans Are Not Receiving Social Security Checks, Contrary to Trump and Musk’s Claims

Recently, some claims have been made about the Social Security system by the Trump administration. They suggest that a shocking number of dead individuals aged over 100 are receiving benefits. President Trump and his adviser Elon Musk have highlighted this issue, sharing on social media that people who are centuries old might be collecting money meant for the living.

While it’s true that some mistakes happen, the numbers they talk about are blown out of proportion. Let’s dig into the facts.

What Claims Are Being Made?

During a press briefing in Florida, Trump claimed there are “millions” of people over 100 receiving Social Security payments. He suggested these payments are fraudulent. He also mentioned one individual he claimed is listed as being 360 years old. Musk joined in, making absurd tweets about vampires collecting Social Security.

What’s the Real Issue with Social Security Fraud?

A report from Social Security’s inspector general revealed that from 2015 to 2022, about $71.8 billion was paid out incorrectly. This is less than 1% of the nearly $8.6 trillion in benefits issued during that time. Most mistakes involved overpayments to living individuals, not payments to the deceased.

In January, the U.S. Treasury recovered over $31 million that had wrongly gone to dead individuals. This was part of a pilot program allowing the Treasury to access a detailed death database from the Social Security Administration, helping to identify and correct these errors. This database contains over 142 million death records, some dating back to 1899.

Are There Really Tens of Millions of Centenarians Receiving Benefits?

No, there aren’t. The misunderstanding often comes from the outdated software used by Social Security. Some entries with missing birthdates default to a date over 150 years ago. Reports have shown that the agency hasn’t updated its system to accurately reflect death information, leaving some Social Security numbers unmarked as deceased. However, most of these individuals are not currently receiving payments.

The agency also stops payments for anyone over 115 years old.

The Bigger Picture

Experts like Chuck Blahous argue that while rooting out improper payments is essential, Social Security is not where the government finds its most significant financial issues. He emphasizes that Medicaid, for instance, faces more substantial error rates.

Sita Nataraj Slavov warns that claims like those made by Trump and Musk may lead the public to think Social Security’s issues have easy solutions. Unfortunately, restoring the program’s solvency often requires tough choices, like raising taxes or cutting benefits.

What’s the White House Response?

Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the White House, pointed to the inspector general’s reports, stating efforts are ongoing to eliminate waste and fraud within the system, reaffirming the administration’s commitment to looking after taxpayer dollars.