Social Security Reform: Preventing Payments To Deceased Recipients

If you have ever joked that “the government will keep paying somebody forever,” Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy is basically replying: "Not anymore.”

A new federal law is aimed at cutting off Social Security payments that keep going out after someone has died, which can lead to fraud when a friend, relative, or whoever gets their hands on the money.

This week, President Donald Trump signed Kennedy’s Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act, which updates the Social Security Act and lets the Social Security Administration share its Death Master File with the U.S. Treasury Department. Treasury can then help stop payments that should not be going out.

The “Dead People Checks” Problem Explained

Kennedy put it bluntly in remarks shared by Louisiana Radio Network: “We’re no longer paying dead people, and having their friends or relatives or whomever cash the checks.”

The key issue, according to Kennedy, was that Social Security needed congressional approval to share the master list of deceased recipients with other agencies. A temporary version of this sharing arrangement existed first. This new law makes it permanent.

Why Washington Finally Moved on Something Obvious

Kennedy says the temporary program already proved the point, and he did not hide his frustration: “It’s a long story, and it was frustrating, to provide for a temporary sharing. They wanted to try it out first. Well, it worked…Duh.”

He also cited the stakes, saying the federal government sent $1.3 billion in improper payments to deceased people in 2023. Kennedy’s quote landed like a punchline, followed by the taxpayer reality check: “Not million. Billion. The federal government sent $1.3 billion dollars to dead people.”

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Kennedy says the temporary law saved at least $330 million in improper payments since December 2023, and supporters argue this is one of those rare fixes that is simple, practical, and worth the paperwork.