Payment Accuracy of Dually Entitled Title II Beneficiaries
SSA administers the Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance program under Title II of the Social Security Act. The program provides monthly benefits to retired or disabled workers and their families and to survivors of deceased workers.
Dual entitlement exists when a beneficiary is entitled to more than one benefit at the same time. For example, a beneficiary may be entitled to retirement benefits on his/her own earnings record and a spouse’s benefits on another person’s record. Although a beneficiary may be simultaneously entitled to more than one benefit, the total benefit may not be greater than the highest single benefit amount to which they are entitled. Generally, SSA calculates the amounts due and combines the benefits into one monthly payment.
Our current review assessed the accuracy of payments for beneficiaries who received benefits under more than one beneficiary record, but SSA’s records did not indicate that dual entitlement existed.
Our objective was to determine whether SSA was paying the correct benefit to individuals who had dual entitlements under the Title II program.