Social Security Issues $2,000 Payments Amid $13.6B Overpayment Recovery

In August 2025, the Social Security Administration (SSA) is distributing monthly benefit payments to approximately 67 million Americans, including retirement, disability, and survivor benefits. Payment dates are staggered based on recipients' birthdates, with those born between the 1st and 10th of the month receiving payments on August 13. However, some beneficiaries will notice smaller checks this month due to the SSA withholding 50% of benefits to recover overpayments, following a report that found $13.6 billion in overpayments from 2020 to 2023, primarily caused by unreported income or changes in medical status. Beneficiaries had a 90-day window to dispute or request adjustments for overpayment recovery, which ended in late July. Additionally, Social Security will announce its annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) on October 15, a critical update for recipients facing inflation, calculated using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). While the COLA aims to preserve purchasing power, some debate exists over whether the current CPI-W method accurately reflects retirees' inflation experience.