There are recent developments in Social Security that will have an immediate impact on beneficiaries.
The move reverses a policy implemented by the Social Security Administration in 2024 in response to News Center 7’s report on billions of dollars in Social Security overpayments.
News Center 7’s I-Team Investigator John Bedell has been following this story for years. He investigated the new change, why it is occurring, and how it may affect Ohioans.
Kara Kendall of Miami Township, an SSA overpayment recipient, stated, “I was in full panic.”
Kendall is referring to the moment she received a surprise bill from the federal government totaling more than $17,000. It was an overpayment for her Social Security disability benefits.
Bedell inquired as to whether Kendall had ever determined the cause of the overpayment. She replied, “No.” Nothing at all. I received no information.
Kendall established a payment plan with the SSA. For 18 months, until this time last year (April 2024), to recoup the overpayment debt. The Social Security Administration reduced her monthly checks, her sole source of income, by nearly half.
“Because otherwise, I would have been completely without a check,” Kendall told me.
However, under a new policy change, all future SSA overpayments will be handled by withholding 100% of monthly benefits to recover any overpayments.
Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana raised concerns during a Senate confirmation hearing last week. “Now, it’s one thing for somebody who’s well off to pay back, and it’s another thing for someone who basically lives on cash flow and then you’re asked to repay that, which has, you know, been spent.”
In a series of News Center 7 I-Team investigations conducted in collaboration with our Cox Media Group sister stations and KFF Health News, we heard from over 400 families who received demand letters from Social Security demanding that they repay thousands, if not tens of thousands, of dollars.
Often, the mistakes were the fault of the SSA.
Following our reporting, the agency changed its policies last year, limiting clawbacks to 10% of monthly paychecks.
However, Acting SSA Commissioner Lee Dudek has announced that he will reverse the policy change in order to “properly safeguard taxpayer funds.”
The SSA estimates that the change could save taxpayers $7 billion over the next decade.
However, when Senator Cassidy questioned President Donald Trump’s nominee to be the new full-time SSA Commissioner, Frank Bisignano, he left the door open for additional changes.
“I knew there was only one way to do it. We’ve implemented another. I’ll make certain that we get all of the money we’re entitled to. However, we must remain human throughout the process.”
The change applies to people who received an overpayment after March 27. It excludes Social Security Supplemental Security Income or SSI. Those withholdings will remain at 10%.
According to Bedell, the change is expected to affect roughly half of the two million Americans who receive Social Security overpayments each year, as discovered by our investigations.
