Historic Settlement to Restore SSI Benefits for Over 2 Million Amid Pandemic Hardships

Social Security Administration Agrees to Waive Overpayments and Refund Beneficiaries in Response to COVID-19 Challenges.

In a landmark settlement, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has committed to rectifying overpayments affecting over 2 million Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients, many of whom are disabled, by automatically waiving charges and issuing refunds for errors made during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The resolution emerges from a nationwide class-action lawsuit, Campos v. Kijakazi, filed in 2021. The suit accused the SSA of inappropriately reducing or halting SSI benefits amid the pandemic, citing the agency's inability to process critical paperwork and the closure of its field offices for over two years as key factors.

Impact on Beneficiaries:

This legal action stems from numerous instances where SSI recipients, such as a woman penalized due to miscounted funds for her adopted child with disabilities, faced unjust benefit reductions. The suit, brought forward by the New York Legal Assistance Group, Justice in Aging, and the law firm Arnold & Porter, represents millions impacted during this period.

Michelle Spadafore, director of the Disability Advocacy Project at the New York Legal Assistance Group, highlighted the settlement's significance, emphasizing its role in correcting injustices faced by SSI recipients due to uncontrollable circumstances.

Practical Outcomes:

The agreement mandates an automatic credit restoration for nearly a quarter-million SSI beneficiaries. Additionally, the SSA will distribute guidelines by late February, ensuring consideration of COVID-19-related factors in overpayment cases from March 2020 to April 2023. Furthermore, the agency will inform over 2 million beneficiaries assessed with overpayments in this period on waiver requests and relevant COVID-19 factors by spring 2025.

The Social Security Administration has opted not to comment on the settlement.