An SSA-1099, also known as a Social Security Benefit Statement, details income from Social Security payments. The Social Security Administration mails SSA-1099s every January to U.S. citizens and residents who received benefits the previous year so they can include the information on their tax returns.
The Social Security Administration does not recognize power of attorney as conferring authority to manage another person’s benefits. Nor is it sufficient to have your name on your mother’s bank account or be her authorized representative. To manage a parent’s Social Security, you have to be appointed a representative payee by Social Security.
It seems a straightforward proposition: When you apply for Social Security benefits, the Social Security Administration (SSA) wants to be sure you are who you say you are and not, say, an identity thief using stolen personal data to claim benefits in your name.
The Social Security Administration handles a lot of the paperwork for Medicare, but not all. Here's where to head if you need the following services. Note that wait times on each agency's toll-free number — Social Security at 800-772-1213 and Medicare at 800-633-4227 can be long.
Funeral directors can report deaths to the Social Security Administration (SSA) in most cases. Social Security provides a form for this purpose. In addition, vital-statistics offices in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., have implemented Electronic Death Registration, a web-based system that aims to deliver death information to the SSA with greater speed and accuracy.
