A California woman, Barbara Smith, was mistakenly declared dead by the Social Security Administration, causing her Medicare to be discontinued, bank account to be frozen, and benefits to be withheld. Despite her efforts to prove she was alive, Smith faced a bureaucratic nightmare until she finally reclaimed her benefits. The incident highlights the potential for errors in government databases and the difficulties individuals face when battling such mistakes.
Barbara Smith recently was declared to be dead by the Social Security Administration, although she is very much alive. Her benefits were subsequently terminated, creating, among other things, a financial mess, she says. She holds her card in her Costa Mesa home on Tuesday, December 31, 2024. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)So imagine Smith’s shock when she recently discovered that her Medicare was discontinued. And that her bank account was frozen.
And that the Social Security Administration wanted to claw back several months of benefits — all because she was dead.“I’m lucky enough to be able to pay for my prescriptions, but what if this happened to some poor little old lady? What would they do? They won’t even talk to you to tell you what happened. What am I supposed to do, write to Trump?” After hours on hold with Social Security and a trip to the local office — “They had me write a paper to say I was alive and took a picture of my driver’s license,” she said — her Social Security benefits have been restored. The Schools First Credit Union has thawed her once-frozen account. But she’s still waiting for Medicare to acknowledge her continued existence (we’ve reached out to officials several times to nudge them along there) and she’d sure like someone to explain to her what, exactly, happened. Did someone key in an incorrect digit on the Social Security number of a Barbara Smith who actually did die?There are thousands upon thousands of Barbara Smiths in the United States, and dozens of them died in September. So maybe there was some mix-up there? Patricia Raymond, spokesperson for Social Security, said privacy laws preclude the agency from discussing the specifics of an individual’s case. But, overall, she says her agency does a smashing job. “Approximately 3.1 million deaths are reported to the Social Security Administration each year and our records are highly accurate,” she said by emai
SOCIAL SECURITY MISTAKEN IDENTITY BENEFITS MEDICARE BUREAUCRACY
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