(CBS News ) -- People who are listed as over 100 years old in the Social Security system are "not necessarily receiving benefits," the new head of the agency said Wednesday, contradicting claims that tens of millions of dead people over that age are receiving checks.
Instead, those individuals "are people in our records with a Social Security number who do not have a date of death associated with their record," said Lee Dudek, the new acting Social Security Administration commissioner who was placed in the role by President Trump, in the Feb. 19 statement.
The clarification comes after Mr. Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk claimed on social media and in press briefings that people who are 100, 200 and even 300 years old are improperly and routinely getting benefits.
Because Social Security records are not public, it's not possible to independently verify Musk's claim. However, the Social Security Administration automatically stops payments to people who are older than 115 years old, an agency rule that has been in effect since September 2015.
Musk, whose Department of Government Efficiency is seeking to root out fraud, waste and abuse, issued a slew of posts on his social media platform X on Monday night, including: "Maybe Twilight is real and there are a lot of vampires collecting Social Security."
To be sure, there are instances of overpayments and fraud within the Social Security system. A July 2024 report from Social Security's inspector general stated that from fiscal years 2015 through 2022, the agency paid out almost $8.6 trillion in benefits, including $71.8 billion -- or less than 1% -- in improper payments. Most of the erroneous payments were overpayments to living people.