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Oversight

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Representative Payee

Disability Rights Iowa has a grant from the Social Security Administration (SSA) to conduct reviews and educational visits of representative payees to verify that payees are using benefits properly on behalf of beneficiaries and carrying out payee responsibilities and duties correctly. Through this program, DRI has the unique opportunity to identify payees with histories of abuse or neglect of persons in their care through its services, programs and direct contacts with beneficiaries. The review process, the payees to be reviewed, the educational visits to be conducted, and the number of payees for both reviews and educational visits are specified by SSA. DRI’s reviews ensure that payees fully understand their duties and responsibilities, and are on the right track with respect to recordkeeping and reporting. Through this program, DRI monitors the rights, safety and wellbeing of beneficiaries to ensure their needs are being met and they are free from abuse and financial exploitation.

In March 2018, legislation was passed by the U.S. Senate to increase oversight and protection for some of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens. The bill, called the Strengthening Protections for Social Security Beneficiaries Act (H.R. 4547), increased independent oversight of the Social Security Administration’s Representative Payee Program.

Resources to Learn More about the Representative Payee Program

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Frequently Asked Questions

This resource explains what the Representative Payee Program is and how it helps Iowans with disabilities.

General FAQ

Meet the Representative Payee Team

Jen is a white woman with brown shoulder length straight hair that has blonde highlights in her bangs. She is wearing a pink v neck blouse and is standing in front of a white wall.

Jen Winchell

Representative Payee Program Director

Click to learn more about Jen
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Jami Johns

Representative Payee Lead Reviewer

Click to learn more about Jami

DRI receives funding from the Social Security Administration to provide oversight of representative payees and their services to beneficiaries, as well as giving them support to better understand their role and responsibilities. This document is funded through a Social Security grant agreement. Although Social Security reviewed this document for accuracy, it does not constitute an official Social Security communication.

We developed this website at U.S. taxpayer expense.