Social Security is NOT AN “Entitlement”. Republicans and Elon Musk are lying about this and trying to get people accustomed to losing it. Sorry but i have been PAYING THROUGH MY PAYCHECKS for this my entire career life How about quit giving the billionaires tax cuts.
Musk Hints Entitlements Like Social Security Are DOGE’s Next Target
Musk continues unsubstantiated claims of massive fraud through dead people
Musk and Trump continue to say the SSA is providing benefits to people who are too old to be alive. Musk mentioned in his interview that the number of dead people in the database has risen from 17 million to 20 million.
While there are dead people in the database, it is not a new discovery nor does it indicate widespread fraud.
A 2023 audit by the SSA Office of the Inspector General found that 18.9 million Social Security number holders born in 1920 or earlier were not marked as deceased, due to technological changes. “Almost none” of those social security number holders were receiving payments, according to the report.
As of September 2015, the SSA began to automate terminating benefits once people reached age 115, according to the website.
Federal government layoffs to impact SSA
Amid widespread layoffs and staffing cuts at several federal agencies, the SSA announced in February that a reorganization would result in “significant workforce reductions.”
The agency said it would aim to reduce its size by 7,000 employees from the current group of 57,000.
The deadline for the SSA to submit their layoff plans to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is Thursday. The agency expects staff reductions to come from retirements, buyouts and resignations, though layoffs may also be possible.
Some politicians, policy experts and consultants say the cuts could slow down benefit application processes at the agency, as previously reported by USA TODAY.