An investigation produced earlier this month by Cox Media Group’s (CMG) investigative teams is gaining traction in Washington, D.C., resulting in the head of the Social Security Administration directing a review of its overpayment policies and procedures.
This directive can after lawmakers demanded answers from the SSA – and some even calling for congressional hearings.
In a compelling video expose, CMG investigative teams across its eight stations, in collaboration with KFF Health News (formerly Kaiser Health News), chronicled how the SSA systematically overpaid vulnerable Americans by more than $20 billion dollars, then demanded reimbursement.
Some repayment demands were for tens of thousands of dollars.
“The results of stories like this highlight the power and importance of investigative journalism,” said Marian Pittman, CMG’s EVP of Content, Product, Innovation and Research. “Our investments in both local news and investigative journalism are essential to protecting consumers and informing and elevating our viewers.”
The story gained national attention and was picked up by scores of media outlets, including Good Morning America (GMA), U.S. News and World Report, Newsweek, The Miami Herald, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Following CMG’s revelatory reports, legislators from both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill acknowledged the need for immediate action to address the issue and ensure that those who were not at fault were not burdened with the responsibility of repaying large sums of money.
“We’ve let the federal agency know we expect them to stop and not penalize those people,” said Senator Sherrod Brown (OH), who chairs the Senate Subcommittee on Social Security. “They may have been overpaid over the years, but it’s not like they have a savings account now of those overpaid dollars that they can simply pay back.”
Senator Maggie Hassan (NH), also on the Senate Subcommittee on Social Security, commented: “These reports make clear the extreme financial hardship that some people face when required to quickly correct a Social Security overpayment.
The administration needs to keep working to prevent overpayments in the first place while also not causing undue harm on some of the most vulnerable Social Security recipients if overpayments do occur.”
Representative Mike Carey (OH), who sits on the House Subcommittee on Social Security, called for Congressional hearings following CMG’s reporting.
“They weren’t trying to game the system; they were just playing by the rules, and it’s very unfortunate,” Carry said. “I don’t want anybody to ever be in that situation again, so that’s why I think we need to have a hearing. We need to come to grips with where we are right now, find out what the problems are, and fix them.”
Representative Marc Molinaro (NY-19) issued a news release saying the SSA should “immediately stop seeking back overpayments.” He sent a letter to SSA’s acting commissioner saying demanding repayment “is absolutely unfair to the Americans who unknowingly received overpayments from the SSA, and this needs to be addressed immediately.”
Senator Rick Scott (FL) who sits on the Committee on Aging stated: “If somebody lied, if there was fraud, I mean, then that person ought to be responsible for that. But when the Social Security Administration tells you a number, then they should be held accountable.” Scott’s follow up remarks called for stronger leadership at SSA saying, “Appoint people that are going to hold people accountable for making mistakes.”
Contributing Reporters:
Jodie Fleischer, Cox Media Group
Josh Wade, Cox Media Group
Justin Gray, WSB-TV, Atlanta
Ted Daniel, WFXT-TV, Boston
Madison Carter, WSOC-TV, Charlotte
John Bedell, WHIO-TV, Dayton
Ben Becker, WJAX-TV, Jacksonville
Shannon Butler, WFTV-TV, Orlando
Jesse Jones, KIRO-TV, Seattle
Samantha Manning, Cox Media Group
David Hilzenrath, KFF Health News
