Supplemental Security Income: Opportunities Exist for Improving Payment Accuracy
HEHS-98-75
Published: Mar 27, 1998. Publicly Released: Mar 27, 1998.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO conducted a follow-up review on the feasibility of the Social Security Administration (SSA) using new data sources on earnings and financial account information to determine applicants' eligibility for the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, focusing on: (1) the extent to which overpayments occur because SSI clients fail to disclose their earnings and financial accounts; (2) whether SSA could obtain more current and comprehensive information to detect undisclosed earnings; and (3) whether the agency could obtain more current and comprehensive information on undisclosed financial accounts.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Social Security Administration | The Commissioner of SSA should develop computerized interfaces necessary to access OCSE's New Hire Data Base and Quarterly Wage Data Base, and use them in accordance with applicable security and privacy laws and regulations to detect undisclosed earnings during initial and subsequent determinations of eligibility for the SSI program. |
Closed – Implemented
SSA is using OCSE wage and unemployment insurance (UI) data quarterly to detect wages and UI not reported by SSI recipients. This match replaces SSA's semi-annual wage match. In addition, SSA has finalized a memorandum of agreement with OCSE to provide direct query access for SSA claims representatives to OCSE's wage, UI, and new hire databases, and it has also completed the pilot testing of such access at the field level. As of September 14, 2000, all states were providing new hire information, quarterly earnings data, and monthly UI data to the OCSE database, called the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH). On January 2, 2001, the agency gave all field offices direct access to the NDNH and issued instructions for how field staff should use this information during initial claims and posteligibility situations. Given SSA actions, this recommendation is closed.
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| Social Security Administration | The Commissioner of SSA should study the feasibility of obtaining computerized information from financial institutions to detect financial accounts that SSI clients do not report during the application process and during subsequent determinations of eligibility. Such a study should include a comparison of the cost of obtaining and using such information and the program savings achievable as a result of that use. Security and confidentiality issues should also be addressed. |
Closed – Implemented
In 1998, SSA proposed legislation that would facilitate the agency acquiring financial account information on benefit applicants and recipients. This legislation passed under Section 213 of the Foster Care Independence Act. SSA is developing the necessary regulations for implementing this legislation, and currently draft regulations are in the Agency's review process. The Agency has also identified a vendor who can reach financial institutions nationwide so that field staff will be able to obtain information on the bank accounts of clients electronically. This project has been placed on the Title XVI 5-Year Plan as unscheduled.
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Topics
BeneficiariesClaims processingComputer matchingDatabasesEligibility determinationsFederal social security programsFinancial recordsOverpaymentsSocial security benefitsTelecommunicationsSupplemental security income