"Larry Blanchard" wrote in message
news
On Sat, 30 May 2009 11:01:05 -0500, dpb wrote:

But yet the SSA administers Social Security with an almost negligible
amount of overhead. A government program can work efficently, but the
devil is in the details.
...

Yeah, so efficiently they have thousands on the roles that have been
deceased, some for decades (GAO investigation I heard reported not long
ago)...

I don't doubt there's some fraud going on, but unless you can cite the
source I doubt it's in the thousands. And I mentioned low overhead which
you didn't seem to question.

I doubt it too. I'd think it is probably in the tens of thousands. Really,
I do. Then the ones fraudulently collecting disability is probably triple
that number. Read the last line in this .

http://therecordlive.com/article/Bey...c heats/52994
U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady (R-The Woodlands) met today in Houston with
officials from the Social Security Administration ahead of a congressional
hearing next week to examine fraud in the federal disability program. Brady,
who requested the hearing of the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Social
Security, says scammers may be draining up to $11 billion from the Social
Security Disability Insurance Trust Fund that helps more than seven million
disabled Americans.

"We have a responsibility to taxpayers and the truly disabled to make sure
these precious dollars are not lost to fraud and those trying to game the
system," said Brady, a member of the Social Security panel.

Brady met Monday with Patrick O'Carroll Jr., inspector general of the Social
Security Administration, and leaders of the Houston Co-operative Disability
Investigative (CDI) unit which includes team members from the Social
Security Administration, the Inspector General's office, the state
disability agency and Harris County law enforcement.

Since the Houston unit was formed in 2000, the team has successfully
terminated 1,003 cases, saving taxpayers nearly $90 million. The unit
investigates disability fraud in applicants faking impairments as well as
those concealing work payments or medical improvements while receiving
disability payments.

O'Carroll told the congressman that 14 tax dollars are saved for every
dollar Congress allots to investigate disability fraud allegations. The
Social Security Administration is required to conduct continuing disability
reviews on each case.

In one particularly egregious case from last year, a dead man was actually
put in a wheelchair and brought to a check-cashing store in New York so one
of his friends could cash his check (Source: Reuters 1/9/08).