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“Improper payments” are payments made by the government to the wrong person, in the wrong amount, or for the wrong reason. Although not all improper payments are fraud, and not all improper payments represent a loss to the government...more
In FY 2011 the Administration adjusted the FY 2009 and FY 2010 government-wide error rate, amount, and amount avoided because HHS, in consultation with its Inspector General, refined its error rate in its FY 2011 annual report…more
Need more information on improper payments? We have a list of useful improper payment resources—including agency specific data, laws, and implementing guidance—that are often requested by agencies and the public.
| Program | Improper Payments |
|---|---|
| Medicare Fee-for-Service | $28.8B |
| Medicaid | $21.9B |
| Unemployment Insurance (UI) | $13.7B |
| Medicare Advantage (Part C) | $12.4B |
| Supplemental Security Income (SSI) | $4.6B |
| Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDI) | $4.5B |
| Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) | $2.5B |
| National School Lunch Program (NSLP) | $1.7B |
| Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Part D) | $1.7B |
| Pell Grants | $1B |
| Rental Housing Assistance Programs | $1B |
Federal agencies recaptured $1.26 billion in overpayments to contractors in fiscal year (FY) 2011, an increase of over 80 percent compared to FY 2010. This amount includes approximately $460 million recaptured through agency payment recapture audits—a significant effort—and $800 million recovered through the Medicare Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) program. In total, the Federal government has recaptured $1.95 billion in FYs 2010 and 2011 combined.