Support For GAO Report On Organizational Rep Payees

     From the Ripon Advance:

U.S. Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) welcomed federal recommendations and urged their adoption to strengthen the U.S. Social Security Administration’s (SSA) monitoring of and reliance on organizations like non-profits or nursing homes that help beneficiaries manage their benefits.

“SSA should adopt these recommendations promptly,” said Rep. Reed and U.S. Rep. John Larson (D-CT), ranking member and chairman, respectively, of the U.S. House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee, in a joint Oct. 4 statement.

The new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, Social Security Benefits: SSA Needs to Improve Oversight of Organizations that Manage Money for Vulnerable Beneficiaries, makes nine recommendations for SSA, including that the agency assess requiring background checks for organizational payees; and establish timeframes for, and conduct revisions of the accounting form required annually for most organizational payees, according to the lawmakers’ statement. ...