Lifestyle

Janet Made One Call to Social Security. Then the Government Listed Her as Dead: “I’m Not Deceased”

By Mike Harper · November 14, 2026

Janet Roush did what she thought she was supposed to do.

Hours after her husband, Larry, died of cancer, the central Florida widow picked up the phone and called the Social Security office to report his death and file for benefits. That is how WKMG News 6 in Orlando described it in a 2019 report by investigator Mike Holfeld.

By the end of that call, according to the station, the agency’s records showed that both of them had died.

“I said I’m talking to you. I’m not deceased,” Janet told News 6.

News 6 reported that Larry, an 87 year old retired Ohio steelworker, died on January 28. The couple had been married 52 years. Janet told the station that the employee on the phone seemed to understand that she was alive and her husband was not, and wrote it all down, but that when the final entry was made, both of them were listed as deceased.

The error hit fast. According to the report, the Social Security checks were all Janet had to pay her bills, and the payments stopped. She also lost access to her bank account. For nearly a week, as News 6 put it, she was technically no longer among the living.

She was grieving at the same time. The station reported that the couple’s two children had died in earlier years, leaving Janet on her own. She described the stretch since the mistake as “hell on earth,” apologizing for the language as she said it.

News 6 said the Social Security office could not meet with her until April 2, so she called the station for help. Within 24 hours, the station reported, the agency’s regional office in Atlanta said it had reached out to Mrs. Roush, and her account was reopened.

“You gave me my life back,” she told Holfeld. The station later reported that her bank account had been reopened and she could pay her bills and buy groceries again.

How common is this? In a March 2025 press release, the Social Security Administration said more than three million deaths are reported to it each year and that its records are highly accurate. The agency said less than one third of 1 percent of those reports are erroneous deaths that need to be corrected.

The agency also acknowledged what Janet went through. It said an erroneous death report can be devastating to the person and their family, and that benefits are stopped in the short term, which can cause financial hardship until the error is fixed.

If it happens to you, the SSA says in its frequently asked questions to visit your local Social Security office as soon as possible. Bring at least one current, original form of identification, such as a passport or driver’s license. The agency says it cannot accept photocopies, notarized copies or expired documents. Once the record is corrected, the SSA says it will offer a letter called the “Erroneous Death Case, Third Party Contact” notice that you can give to banks, doctors and others.

When a spouse dies, it can also help to write down the date and time of your call and the name of the person you spoke with, and to watch your bank account and any mail from the agency in the weeks that follow so a mistake gets caught early.

This article is for general information and is not financial or legal advice. Janet Roush’s story and quotes are from WKMG News 6’s 2019 report; Social Security figures and steps are as stated by the Social Security Administration. This article was produced with the assistance of AI and fact-checked against the sources cited by LightWave Reports.