Social Security has been under scrutiny now that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is digging into its finances.
For this reason, Social Security is invested in recouping all of the money it can due to erroneous payments.
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That's how 65-year-old Ruth Podmanik from Sheffield Lake, Ohio found herself in a messy situation. The recent retiree revealed that her husband, Ed, passed away from leukemia back in 2012.
She’d recently been approved to start receiving her late husband's Social Security benefits. But now, as News 5 Cleveland reports, they’re going after Ruth for nearly $70,000 the agency claims was paid out mistakenly to Ed.
“I feel scared,” Ruth told News 5. “Am I going to have to sell my house?”
Social Security policies are leaving older adults confused
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says that Social Security has a payment accuracy rate of over 99%, and that only 0.3% of its payments are improper. Still, between 2015 and 2022, Social Security made roughly $72 billion in erroneous payments, according to its Office of the Inspector General.
Meanwhile, Podmanik says her husband received Social Security payments during a five-month period of being out of work due to his illness. But when Ed went back to work, Social Security kept sending him money.
She told News 5 that Ed called the Social Security Administration (SSA) "constantly" to ask why he was continuing to get benefits. They told him he was entitled to the money because of his leukemia.
Now, Social Security is coming after Ruth for an overpayment to Ed of over $69,000.
“Not once did they say anything to me about, ‘Hey, you know you still got an overpayment here?’” Podmanik told News 5.
Despite reaching out to the SSA to resolve the matter, she isn't getting answers. And she's not the only one.
"Every year, we've seen an increase in the volume of people calling and looking for help," Natasha Pietrocola, director of the Division of Senior and Adult Services in Cuyahoga County, told News 5.
She says many older Americans are confused about Social Security overpayments and are worried about the consequences.