The claim: The Social Security Administration will allow workers in the country illegally to claim benefits
In a post rapidly gaining traction on Facebook, a user warns that if not “stopped,” the Social Security Administration will soon eat into the fund to provide benefits for some immigrants.
“SOCIAL SECURITY ADMIN plans to pay SS benefits to ILLEGALS from your SS TRUST FUND! Must be STOPPED!” the March 3 post reads. It has been shared over 2,300 times.
The creator of the post, Connie M. Giordano, said that a group called the Seniors Coalition sent her a letter with this claim.
It makes sense why there may be concern about excess demands on the Social Security fund: It provides 1 in 4 Americans with 90% of their income or more, and over 50% of income for half of all seniors, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. But experts have predicted that with the aging of baby boomers, the fund could run out of its reserves by 2034, leaving beneficiaries with smaller monthly payments.
However, the claim is baseless.
Far from draining Americans’ Social Security resources, immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally contribute much more to the program than they claim each year. Though there are ways they can claim benefits through illegitimate or expired Social Security numbers, that practice is not widespread.
In addition, there are no proposed changes, either from the Social Security Administration or the Biden administration, that would change the way…
