$31M in Improper Payments RECOVERED by Treasury!

Magnifying glass focusing on Social Security Administration webpage.

Treasury recovered $31 million in improper payments to deceased individuals in just five months, exposing decades of government waste that hardworking Americans have funded through bloated entitlements.

Story Highlights

Treasury’s Do Not Pay system, boosted by SSA’s Death Master File, clawed back $31 million from payments to the dead since early 2025.
Senate passed the Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act on September 26, 2025, to make these taxpayer protections permanent.
2025 budget reconciliation law mandates states check Death Master File quarterly for Medicaid enrollees starting 2027, penalizing improper payments.
Fragmented data systems and delayed death reporting have long allowed billions in waste across Medicare, Medicaid, and other programs.

Roots of Government Waste in Health Benefits

Federal agencies have issued improper payments to deceased beneficiaries for decades due to fragmented data systems and delays in death reporting. The Social Security Administration maintains the Death Master File, but legal restrictions historically limited its sharing with Treasury’s Do Not Pay system and state Medicaid programs. States relied on incomplete vital records, missing out-of-state deaths. GAO reports repeatedly flagged payments in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid after enrollees died. COVID-era stimulus amplified these failures, spurring bipartisan action. President Trump’s fiscal discipline now demands accountability, protecting taxpayer dollars from bureaucratic incompetence.

Senator Kennedy’s Push Yields Quick Results

Senator John Kennedy’s 2024 Stopping Improper Payments to Deceased People Act temporarily enabled SSA to share Death Master File data with Treasury’s Do Not Pay system. Treasury reported recovering $31 million in fraud and improper payments within the first five months of 2025 implementation. This law projected $330 million in savings from 2024 to 2026 by halting erroneous disbursements. Fiscal conservatives hailed the results as proof that common-sense data sharing stops waste without harming eligible Americans. Under President Trump, such reforms align with promises to end overspending and prioritize living citizens.

2025 Reforms Target Medicaid Enrollment

July 2025’s federal budget reconciliation law enacted Section 71104, requiring states to review SSA’s Death Master File quarterly for Medicaid enrollees starting January 1, 2027. States must also check providers from 2028, with HHS reducing federal funds for improper payments like those to ineligible or deceased individuals effective October 1, 2029. These measures address systemic failures where dead people remained enrolled due to poor cross-checks. CBO estimates minimal spending impact from death checks alone, but paired with six-month redeterminations, they cut $63 billion while underscoring the need for tighter controls on entitlements.

Broader reconciliation provisions slash over $1 trillion in federal health spending over ten years by curbing Medicaid expansion and ACA subsidies, reflecting conservative priorities for limited government and fiscal sanity after years of leftist overspending.

Senate Advances Permanent Fix for Taxpayers

On September 26, 2025, the Senate passed the Wyden-Kennedy-Peters Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act, permanently authorizing SSA’s Death Master File sharing with Do Not Pay across federal agencies. Sponsored by Senators Kennedy (R-LA), Wyden (D-OR), and Peters (D-MI), the bill builds on Kennedy’s success to prevent payments in all programs. Senator Peters emphasized saving taxpayer dollars. The measure awaits House approval and President Trump’s signature, promising ongoing recoveries that reward fiscal responsibility over endless government bloat.

State Medicaid agencies face new IT burdens and funding risks, incentivizing them to align with reforms. This progress counters past mismanagement, ensuring benefits serve the living and upholding conservative values of accountability and individual liberty.