The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) continues its efforts to remove deceased individuals from the Social Security database.
On Monday, DOGE reported that it had identified over seven million individuals in its Social Security records as having passed away, as shared in a post by the temporary federal agency on X. The announcement indicated that the individuals removed were all over 120 years old, and the agency aims to identify an additional 5 million individuals in the Social Security database as deceased.
Former President Donald Trump and DOGE’s head, Elon Musk, have previously made inaccurate claims suggesting that millions of deceased individuals are receiving benefits from Social Security.
Most recently, during President Trump’s address to Congress on March 3, he reiterated this assertion.
“One person is recorded as being 360 years old. More than 100 years older than our nation,” Trump stated before Congress. “But we’ll uncover where that money is going, and it won’t be pretty.”
While millions of deceased individuals are recorded in the Social Security database, most are not actually receiving benefits, according to a 2023 report from the Office of the Inspector General.
The inspector general’s report highlights that removing these individuals from the database will incur significant costs. As of December 2024, Social Security records indicate 89,106 individuals over the age of 99 were receiving benefits.
DOGE’s initiative to recognize individuals as deceased is part of the agency’s broader mission to reduce federal spending by $1 trillion by September 2025.
Former President Trump had previously mentioned that one of the agency’s objectives is to return 20% of the savings achieved by DOGE to taxpayers in the form of potential stimulus checks.
