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The Big Money Show panel discusses alarming new analysis that shows Social Security and Medicare are headed for insolvency and warns that retirees face major benefit cuts unless Washington acts quickly.
some Social Security beneficiaries will receive their monthly benefits a little earlier than usual in February and March due to a quirk of the calendar.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) usually disburses the payments Supplemental Security Income (SSI) the first day of a given month. The SSI program provides monthly payments to eligible seniors who have little or no income, as well as those with disabilities, which is different from standard Social Security retirement benefits.
When the first of the month falls on a weekend or federal holiday, SSI payments for that month are made on the last business day of the previous month to ensure that recipients have received their funds before the new month begins and face possible expenses.
This scenario occurred in early January, with benefits paid on December 31st instead of January 1st because New Year’s Day is a federal holiday, and will occur again over the next two months when SSI benefits are disbursed.
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SSI benefits will be paid before the usual dates of February 1st and March 1st, as these dates fall on a Sunday this year. (Mark Felix/The Washington Post)
February SSI benefits will be paid to recipients on Friday, January 30, because February 1 falls on a Sunday this year.
Those benefit payments are not expected to be affected if Congress cannot agree on a funding deal to avert a government shutdown that would begin Saturday morning.
March SSI benefits will be paid on Friday, February 27, because March 1 is a Sunday.
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Social Security benefit checks are not expected to be interrupted in the event of a government shutdown. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
SSI payments are usually made through direct depositalthough beneficiaries without a bank account or who wish to receive the funds through a different mechanism can obtain them with Direct Express cards.
SSA decided to discontinue paper checks at the end of September after a Trump administration order earlier this year that mandated the transition of all federal payments to electronic transfers, such as direct deposit to bank accounts or transfers to debit cards.
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Social Security is eliminating paper checks and offering ways for beneficiaries to enroll in direct deposit. (iStock)
SSA data showed that as of September, more than 68 million Americans nationwide were receiving Social Security benefits. Of this number, about 390,000, or around 0.6%, were receiving paper checks.
The SSA website offers methods by which beneficiaries can sign up for direct deposit through the My Social Security platform, or by phone through SSA or the Department of Revenue’s electronic payment solutions center.
