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."
After some false starts, my WEP & GPO repeal related payments have been approved & should start soon.
Short story is that I wasn't getting any Social Security. So, I had to apply for spousal benefits to claim WEP/GPO adjustments. SSA website instructions suggested that I could apply for spousal benefits online, so I did. I got a call from SSA that I couldn't do that online, so my online application was rejected. A phone interview was scheduled, and after a week, my benefits were approved.
I was also told that in a situation like mine, the back payments will be only for 6 months prior to my SSA application, not to 01/2024 that apply to people who were already getting SSA payments. Well, anything is better than $0.
That sort of makes sense. The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 makes adjustments to claimed benefits. These adjustments are made to all eligible claims beginning Jan 1, 2024.
Independent of this is another SS rule: you can make claims retroactively for up to six months (with some exceptions). For example, if you are maxing out benefits by waiting until age 70, then so long as you apply before you are 70½ you can get all your checks from the month (after) you turn 70. But if you wait until you're 71, you'll still only get the last six months of benefits.
Put the two together, and you get your situation - unclaimed benefits now claimed retroactively are granted for only the past six months. And only claims are GPO-adjusted.
Comments
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."
Short story is that I wasn't getting any Social Security. So, I had to apply for spousal benefits to claim WEP/GPO adjustments. SSA website instructions suggested that I could apply for spousal benefits online, so I did. I got a call from SSA that I couldn't do that online, so my online application was rejected. A phone interview was scheduled, and after a week, my benefits were approved.
I was also told that in a situation like mine, the back payments will be only for 6 months prior to my SSA application, not to 01/2024 that apply to people who were already getting SSA payments. Well, anything is better than $0.
Independent of this is another SS rule: you can make claims retroactively for up to six months (with some exceptions). For example, if you are maxing out benefits by waiting until age 70, then so long as you apply before you are 70½ you can get all your checks from the month (after) you turn 70. But if you wait until you're 71, you'll still only get the last six months of benefits.
Put the two together, and you get your situation - unclaimed benefits now claimed retroactively are granted for only the past six months. And only claims are GPO-adjusted.