BOSTON — Investigators uncovered more than $2.3 million in welfare fraud in the most recent quarter, according to state Auditor Diana DiZoglio’s office.
The office’s Bureau of Special Investigations looked into more than 1,235 cases during the final quarter of the fiscal year, from April 1 to June 30, and identified at least 176 instances of public assistance fraud, about 80% of which was in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, previously known as food stamps.
The bureau, which has the power to investigate welfare fraud, said benefits paid from the food stamp program amounted to more than $1.9 million of the fraudulent activity in the previous quarter. At least $245,858 in fraudulent activity was related to MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program, the agency said.
Another $138,081 was uncovered in the state’s primary cash assistance program, known as Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children, DiZoglio’s office reported.
Of the $2 million in welfare fraud, federal and state courts have so far recovered only $103,142 in restitution, the auditor’s office said.
In the previous fiscal year, the auditor’s office uncovered more than $12.3 million worth of welfare fraud from about 780 cases that were looked into by investigators.
DiZoglio said the bureau’s investigations are “making government work better by identifying fraud, waste, and abuse of tax dollars so that residents actually in need have access to support and services.”
In fiscal 2022, the auditor’s office uncovered more than $13.5 million worth of welfare fraud from about 600 cases that were investigated.
That was a 120% increase in the dollar value from a year earlier, when investigators uncovered about $6.1 million in fraud.
Demand for food stamps and other public assistance has risen amid the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, and has remained high amid inflationary costs.
As of April, more than 111,000 people in Massachusetts were receiving basic welfare benefits from the state’s main cash assistance program, according to the latest state data.
Meanwhile, an additional 1 million people were getting food stamps as of March, according to the latest federal data. That’s more than double the pre-pandemic average of about 450,000 recipients.
Under current law, a recipient is limited to receiving welfare for two years in any five-year period. A family of three in the program collects roughly $593 per month.
In the fiscal year that gets underway July 1, the state plans to spend more than $300 million on cash assistance programs for welfare recipients.
The state has tightened its welfare fraud rules in recent years following previous audits showing widespread abuse, including the names of dead people being used to claim benefits. The penalty for welfare fraud is up to 10 years in prison, in addition to repayment of the money.
Advocates for the benefits programs point out that welfare fraud only accounts for a fraction of the cash assistance the state provides every year. They argue that the money devoted to investigating fraud would be better spent on expanding benefits for the needy.
Christian M. Wade covers the Massachusetts Statehouse for North of Boston Media Group’s newspapers and websites. Email him at cwade@cnhinews.com.