Sen. John Kennedy, R-LA, interviewed with Katie Pavlich on NewsNation about a bill recently signed into law that aims to stop the federal government from sending money to dead people.
Kennedy said that Donald Trump’s administration is stopping the federal government from sending money to dead people.
Trump signed the bill, S. 269, the “Ending Improper Payments to Deceased People Act,” which aims to permanently allow the sharing of death data to prevent and recover improper payments, on Feb. 10.
The bill allows the Social Security Administration to share the Death Master File – a record of deceased individuals – with the Treasury Department’s Do Not Pay system.
A 2015 Inspector General Report identified 6.5 million people listed as living who were listed as being over 112 years old.
The change will help agencies better identify and stop improper payments, Kennedy told Pavlich.
The law also authorizes the Treasury to compare SSA death data with data held by other federal entities and share relevant matches with any paying or administering agency authorized to use the Do Not Pay system.