(NEXSTAR) – The Social Security Administration (SSA) is wrestling with a "record-breaking backlog" of cases that has led to roughly $1.1 billion in improper payments, according to a new report by the SSA Office of the Inspector General (OIG).

The OIG, which works to improve efficiency and effectiveness in the SSA's programs, looked at both wrong payments and so-called pending actions that were left unresolved at processing centers between the fiscal years 2018 and 2023.

The longer that underpayments or overpayments went on without correction, the more the mistakes mounted. The OIG said the average processing time for an improper payment in their sample was 698 days.

“Customer satisfaction has been an ongoing........

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