Elon Musk Says “Vampires” Accumulating Social Safety: A Reality Verify
Elon Musk has as soon as once more courted controversy claiming that “hundreds of thousands of vampires” have been accumulating Social Safety advantages. He alleges the US Social Safety database consists of hundreds of thousands of individuals over 100 years outdated – some as outdated as 300 – fraudulently receiving funds.
In a submit on X, Musk wrote, “In accordance with the Social Safety database, these are the numbers of individuals in every age bucket with the loss of life area set to FALSE! Perhaps Twilight is actual and there are lots of vampires accumulating Social Safety.”
In accordance with the Social Safety database, these are the numbers of individuals in every age bucket with the loss of life area set to FALSE!
Perhaps Twilight is actual and there are lots of vampires accumulating Social Safety ???????? pic.twitter.com/ltb06VX98Z
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 17, 2025
Musk’s declare aligns with statements from President Donald Trump, who lately steered at a Florida press briefing that “hundreds of thousands and hundreds of thousands” of centenarians are nonetheless receiving Social Safety advantages, calling it an instance of presidency incompetence, AP reported.
Nevertheless, each Musk’s and Trump’s claims have been debunked.
Reality Verify
A 2024 report from the Social Safety Administration (SSA) Inspector Common confirmed that some funds have been mistakenly made to useless folks. However these accounted for lower than 1 per cent of the $8.6 trillion paid in advantages between 2015 and 2022.
One huge motive for the confusion is the SSA’s outdated COBOL-based system, which does not deal with dates correctly. Lacking or incomplete birthdates get a default reference level, generally over 150 years outdated. A 2023 SSA report additionally confirmed that “nearly none” of those mistakenly listed people have been really receiving funds.
The SSA additionally has strict guidelines to forestall fraud. Since September 2015, it has routinely stopped funds to anybody listed as 115 years or older.
The Actual Numbers
The SSA has information of 18.9 million Social Safety numbers belonging to folks born in 1920 or earlier not marked as useless. However this doesn’t imply they’re nonetheless alive or receiving funds.
In early 2024, the US Treasury recovered $31 million in mistaken funds despatched to useless people – a tiny fraction of the $8.6 trillion paid out in advantages over the previous decade.
The SSA expects to recuperate $215 million over three years by its ongoing fraud detection efforts.
Coverage consultants warn that deceptive claims about “hundreds of thousands” of centenarians receiving advantages might create confusion about Social Safety’s precise monetary challenges.
Social Safety Commissioner Quits
Michelle King, Performing Commissioner of the Social Safety Administration (SSA), has stepped down from her function.
Following her departure, President Trump has appointed Leland Dudek to guide the company on an interim foundation whereas Frank Bisignano, his nominee for SSA Commissioner, undergoes vetting by the Senate.
The White Home has not given a direct motive for King’s departure, however stories level to inside tensions over entry to delicate Social Safety information.
In accordance with Nancy Altman, president of the advocacy group Social Safety Works, King resisted makes an attempt by the Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE) to entry the SSA’s Enterprise Information Warehouse – a system containing private and monetary data on hundreds of thousands of People.
Altman instructed CBS Information, “She was standing in the best way, and so they moved her out of the best way. They put somebody in who presumably they thought would cooperate and provides them the keys to all our private information.”
Considerations about DOGE’s entry transcend Social Safety. Experiences say the division has already tapped into Treasury cost programs and is now attempting to entry IRS databases. Specialists warn that if DOGE will get full management of Social Safety information, it might be a significant privateness threat.
