Social Security Checks May Be Affected Soon: Find Out Why

What Happens if the US Defaults on its Obligations?

The United States is facing a congressional impasse over raising the debt ceiling, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has warned that Social Security payments could be interrupted if the country defaults on its obligations. Yellen recently projected that the federal government will hit its debt limit by as early as June 1, and if the government reaches its debt limit, it wouldn’t be able to pay all of its obligations.

What Does This Mean for Social Security Recipients?

According to data provided by the Social Security Administration, the agency will make some $1 trillion in Social Security payments to about 67 million people, with the majority being retirees. Some 48.6 million recipients are retired, while 7.6 million are disabled, and another 9.8 million are survivors and dependents, the data reveals. July’s first Social Security payment is slated for July 11 for Americans with birthdays on the first through the tenth of the month. Subsequent payments for people born later in their respective months will get payments on July 18 and July 25, respectively, according to the payment schedule (pdf).

What’s Being Done to Address the Impasse?

This week, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) held talks amid the debt ceiling impasse, but neither side has appeared to budge. Republicans say they won’t raise the debt limit without federal spending cuts in return. But Democrats said that the ceiling should be raised without any preconditions, saying that negotiations over cutting spending should be separate.

During a Senate Appropriations hearing in March, Yellen said her job as secretary of the Treasury is to make sure that bills are paid. She did not indicate what payments would be prioritized—including Social Security. “Prioritization is default by another name,” she told members of a Senate panel. “Not paying any of our bills is default. When you think about the pain that it would cause to Social Security recipients, to food stamp recipients, to vendors who have supplied services, to the government who have their own payrolls to meet, to be told they are not going to.”

While officials say it would be unprecedented for the United States to default, top congressional leaders and Biden have said in recent days that the country won’t default on its obligations. However, the impasse remains, and the fate of Social Security payments hangs in the balance.