Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
My summary for those who cannot access Barron's article (LINK):
"RETIREMENT. DOGE is now going after the SSA. The charges of massive fraud have been discredited by accounting for dependent and survivor benefits that are tracked under the original Social Security recipient who may have passed away. The SSA expenses are only about 1% of the benefits the SSA pays out (It would be lower on the so-called SSA assets that are really Treasury IOUs; moreover, all of the Medicare application processing is also through the SSA, while states process the Medicaid applications). The SSA Inspector General found that between 2015-2022, only 1% of the SSA payments were improper. Those who have gone through the process of getting SSA benefits realize how difficult it’s to cheat the system.
There are problems with the SSA, but those don’t include fraud. There is a mismatch of the FICA revenues and benefits paid out that the Congress must address within 10 years. Take Administration’s promise to protect Social Security with a grain of salt – just look at how its promises to protect Medicare and Medicaid went in its recent budget. If your SSA check suddenly stops, DOGE probably ate it. So, keep an eye on your SSA direct deposits, signup or login to My Social Security and print your work earnings history and information on benefits. Fraudsters are already exploiting the situation by sending fake emails or making fraudulent calls – beware that the SSA doesn’t do that unless it has sent you a formal notification via the USPS."
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My summary for those who cannot access Barron's article (LINK):
"RETIREMENT. DOGE is now going after the SSA. The charges of massive fraud have been discredited by accounting for dependent and survivor benefits that are tracked under the original Social Security recipient who may have passed away. The SSA expenses are only about 1% of the benefits the SSA pays out (It would be lower on the so-called SSA assets that are really Treasury IOUs; moreover, all of the Medicare application processing is also through the SSA, while states process the Medicaid applications). The SSA Inspector General found that between 2015-2022, only 1% of the SSA payments were improper. Those who have gone through the process of getting SSA benefits realize how difficult it’s to cheat the system.
There are problems with the SSA, but those don’t include fraud. There is a mismatch of the FICA revenues and benefits paid out that the Congress must address within 10 years. Take Administration’s promise to protect Social Security with a grain of salt – just look at how its promises to protect Medicare and Medicaid went in its recent budget. If your SSA check suddenly stops, DOGE probably ate it. So, keep an eye on your SSA direct deposits, signup or login to My Social Security and print your work earnings history and information on benefits. Fraudsters are already exploiting the situation by sending fake emails or making fraudulent calls – beware that the SSA doesn’t do that unless it has sent you a formal notification via the USPS."