Anti-Fraud Efforts Clear Priority Following SSA, OIG News

It’s clear that program integrity is a top priority following the Social Security Administration’s and the SSA Office of Inspector General’s recent announcements. On April 1, the SSA reported creation of a new fraud prevention unit based in New York. The SSA OIG also highlighted the April 2 announcement that 15 defendants have been prosecuted for fraud in Maryland since October 2012.

These activities follow on the heels of SSA’s fiscal year 2015 budget request that clarifies most of the proposed increase will go toward program integrity. The federal agency plans to add up to seven new Cooperative Disability Investigation (CDI) units. As discussed during recent Congressional hearings on the SSA program, the agency expects to point more funding and resources to opening CDIs and Continuing Disability Reviews (CDRs), during which current SSDI recipients’ cases are reviewed to determine whether they continue to qualify for Social Security disability benefits.

With attention on program integrity for SSDI, the challenge remains to continue emphasizing the critical need for claims to be reviewed and handled efficiently for individuals with disabilities waiting in the backlog.