ORLANDO, Fla. — The Cox Media Group (CMG) investigative team and KFF Health News spoke Tuesday at the annual Goldsmith Prize Ceremony from the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. Winner of the 2024 Goldsmiths Prize.
CMG and KFF Health News were recognized for their joint reporting titled “Overpayment Abuse.” In this series, we exposed how the Social Security Administration (SSA) regularly sends overpayments to recipients, then SSA recovers them by reducing or stopping their monthly checks.
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Awarded for the first time this year, the Goldsmiths Special Prize for Reporting on Government covers how government and public policy implementation work, how and why they fail, and how problems can be solved most effectively and efficiently. This award recognizes investigative reporting.
“We are honored to receive this prestigious award because it reflects CMG's commitment to local news and investigative reporting,” said Marian Pittman, president of content at CMG. . “The team's relentless efforts to uncover the truth behind complex government policies and their implementation have led to tangible change within SSA and directly to the millions of people affected by overpayments. It will bring benefits.”
Read: Hundreds of thousands of people face overpayment claims from Social Security
CMG's Local TV Markets and Washington News Bureau investigative teams each made significant reporting contributions, collectively broadcasting more than 100 stories in 2023.
Our reporting partnership with KFF Health News, a nonprofit online platform that distributes content through media partners across the country, helps increase the impact of our investigations, reaching millions of television viewers and online readers. Ta.
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“This series shows that these mistakes have had a significant impact on millions of people, including those with little or no ability to repay the government, with some losing their homes, cars and savings. We exposed it,” said Drew Altman, president and chief executive. Executive officer of KFF Co., Ltd. “This is why KFF reports on systemic issues like this through our news service, to shine a light on how people are affected by policies and issues.”
The award comes just two weeks after the new head of the Social Security Administration testified before Congress on major policy changes aimed at reducing overpayments and limiting clawbacks that have left many people in dire financial straits. later awarded.
Read: There is a fix: New SSA commissioner optimistic about program solvency
Testifying at two Senate hearings on March 20, Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley said he was taking several steps to address the issue. O'Malley said the agency would stop the “upside-down cruelty” of seizing 100% of recipients' monthly Social Security checks if they don't meet repayment requests.
Instead, authorities will seize 10% of recipients' monthly benefits to recover the debt.
Read: Couple faces foreclosure after Social Security Administration delays in determining benefits
Additionally, the burden of proof will shift from the beneficiary to the agency as to who caused the overpayment, the beneficiary or someone at the agency, O'Malley said.
Click here for comprehensive coverage of the SSA story and click here for other important field and investigative reports that have protected thousands of consumers.
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