My mother passed away on May 17, we went to get her Social Security for May and they had already withdrawn it back. What do I do?

You are not responsible to pay your mother's debts as she has no estate. When they bill her you send it back "deceased; no estate". Some states have laws that make children responsible for care of elders; they are almost NEVER used for anything but cases where the children have great wealth. This is all assuming you have no signed yourself as responsible for your Mom's debts. This is what happens with Social Security, so that part is not unusual. The Nursing Home will be well aware that your Mom had no estate, as you cannot get medicaid if you do have such. So sorry for your loss.

Mom died in May. The check received in May is Aprils check and should not have been taken back. You need to call SS and tell them they pulled too early. Tell them u closed the acct and if they can mail a check.

Mom should not receive her check in June because that check is for May and she died in May.

This is why I allowed Moms NH to become her payee for SS. If there was a problem, the NH had to deal with it. You do not pay the NH. If Mom has no money she has no money.

So sorry for your loss. I lost my mom at the end of April. It’s an adjustment to process all of our emotions.

I hope you get this issue with your mom’s social security worked out.

I copied and pasted this from the web:
"There are a couple of things to keep in mind. For starters, a person is due no Social Security benefits for the month of their death.
“Any benefit that’s paid after the month of the person’s death needs to be refunded,” Sherman said.
With Social Security, each payment received represents the previous month’s benefits. So if a person dies in January, the check for that month — which would be paid in February — would need to be returned if received. If the payment is made by direct deposit, the bank holding the account should be notified so it can return benefits sent after the person’s death."

Imho, you are not responsible for your mother's nursing home bill.

That’s what they do….. they did that when my mom died

It's true, SS is paid a month late. January check pays in February. So SS logic has never made sense to me, but you don't get to keep death month check - even if you die on the last day of the month.

I doubt you signed any promissory to pay for her care, so probably not responsible. The only thing that will come in to play is what is left in her estate. A house or other property that did not count when she applied for Medicaid. Whatever is left in the estate can be reviewed by Medicaid for potential pay-back for what state paid for her NH bed.

So Mom died in May - she is not eligible for the May check.

All your mom's bills should be paid through her assets. If she has no assets, you should not be liable for the bill. If you are harassed by the nursing home, consult with a lawyer that specializes in elder care.

This happened to me and I later got a letter it would be paid to the estate. I do not think the can pay the individual account after death.

Her estate now owes the NH and any other debts . DO NOT PAY OUT OF YOUR OWN MONEY! If you pay out of your own money this may legally make you liable for the debt.

Sadly this is how SS works. It is a real issue for me that they need to deal with. SS funds are indeed paid in arrears, just like your paycheck when you are working. For example, you work this week and get paid next week (or whatever pay period your company uses, always behind.)

So, if someone dies in the month of May, as your mother did, the June payment, which IS for the month of May, is taken or expected to be paid back by SS. It doesn't matter if you die on the first day or the last day of the month. This, for me, is the equivalent of working 2 or 3 days one week and being denied pay the next week because you died mid week. So many people rely on those funds as there is nothing else. Some could use it for burial/cremation services. At the least it should be prorated. There were sufficient funds for mom's care and she had a pre-need burial paid for, so it didn't impact us and I was aware of the take-back, but it DOES irk me because so many need those funds.

I was aware of this lovely "feature." My mother died mid month, so I didn't expect to see payment, but the FH didn't report it right away and the payment showed up (I have alerts on everything.) I knew it would be taken back, so I left it alone (special Rep Payee account, only funds were SS.) It disappeared rather quickly. What was even MORE annoying was to receive a letter from SS, dated THREE DAYS AFTER the funds were withdrawn, demanding payback. Their envelopes are postage paid, so I sent nasty mail back to them stating they already took the funds thank you very much. Bad enough to lose your mother, but then to have this erroneous demand arrive after the fact (multiple mailings arrived, most with some lame condolences, but to demand repayment when they already took it was really too much!!!)

As for paying the NH - I am a little perplexed that the NH payment for April was relying on SS funds in June. Certainly the June SS funds would be for the month of May, but why is April not paid yet? Whether or not they expect payment would be in the terms agreed to (Medicaid, NH.) If there are no "estate" funds or assets, then unless you signed something guaranteeing payment, there's not a lot they can do. They can ask. They can demand. But if you didn't sign as guarantor of the payments, they are SOL. Don't pay a dime.

Shannon, have you been able to work this out.