Wrongly declared dead, 83-year-old tries to revive Social Security status
Wrongly declared dead, 83-year-old tries to revive Social Security status
An 83-year-old Kenosha woman was mistakenly declared dead by the Social Security Administration (SSA) following the death of her husband.
KENOSHA, Wis. - It was hard enough losing her partner of 62 years. Then, an 83-year-old Kenosha woman had to prove that she didn't die, too.
Death in the family
The backstory:
It's been nearly six months since Pat Christensen's family tree lost a limb. Her husband, Ronald, died on December 28.
In Southport Park in Kenosha, Proko Funeral Home planted a tree in honor of Ronald and the others laid to rest in 2024. In May, Christensen attended the planting ceremony.
"She was really happy to be here (for the service)," said Rebecca Zuehlsdorf, Christensen's daughter. "And, that she was a part of it."
Mistakenly declared dead
What they're saying:
Christensen is feeling the weight of loss, but she's had other burdens to bear. Shortly after her husband's death, she learned that SSA had declared that she'd died, too.
"They said I was deceased," Christensen told Contact 6. "I don't even like to think about that."
Pat Christensen
Zuelsdorf says a declined Medicare payment in January first alerted the family to the problem. Zuehlsdorf had driven her mom to an eye appointment.
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"The nurse (or) receptionist came up and whispered to me that her insurance wouldn't go through," recalled Zuehlsdorf. "They said, "they have her marked as "deceased."
Reviving her status
Stunned, Zuehlsdorf called Medicare and then the SSA, spending hours on hold.
"Sure enough, Social Security not only had only had my dad marked as 'deceased' but marked my mother as 'deceased'," said Zuehlsdorf. "It was such a shock."
Rebecca Zuehlsdorf
Reviving Christensen's vital status wasn't simple. Christensen got a rush appointment at a SSA office in Kenosha. An official form from the visit states, "Mrs. Patricia Christensen was in our office on 1/16/2025 and is very much alive."
"We thought we had that all straightened out," said Zuehlsdorf.
Missing payments
Dig deeper:
It wasn't. In February, the family noticed that Christensen's SSA payment was missing. Zuehlsdorf made another call to SSA.
"They had her marked in a "suspended status," said Zuehlsdorf.
Zuehlsdorf says the agency claimed there'd been a mistake, but it would fix the problem. SSA reinstated Christensen's status and released three payments. Everything seemed back on track, but it wasn't.
In April, Christensen's SSA payment went missing, again. She got a letter stating that her payments had been suspended a second time.
Contact 6 steps in
What they're saying:
Frustrated, Christensen encouraged her family to try Contact 6.
"I told (my daughter) to call you," Christensen told Contact 6 reporter, Jenna Sachs. "Because I've seen you on television. You help with things."
After Zuehlsdorf wrote to the consumer segment, its associate producer got the family a direct contact at SSA.
"I could talk to her right away without all these hold times," said Zuehlsdorf.
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Zuehlsdorf says the SSA employee informed her that it did send her monthly payment. Chase Bank had sent it back, prompting the suspension.
"Because they had her marked as deceased," explained Zuehlsdorf.
The resolution
What we know:
Contact 6 reached out to Chase Bank. A spokesperson for JPMorganChase said in an email:
"We confirmed that we received a death notification for Ms. Christensen from the SSA and verified that the notification was reported to us in error. The error has been corrected, and all blocks were released."
SSA resent Christensen her missing payments. Chase accepted them.
"I could not have done this without you guys," said Zuehlsdorf.
In June, Zuehlsdorf emailed Contact 6, again, to say the money "is officially in her account this morning! Thank you!"
It's the end of one story, but Christensen is grateful that it's not the end of hers.
"It was bad enough to go through it with (my husband). Then, to have (SSA) think that I'm gone," said Christensen. "I'm not. I'm here!"
SSA response
SSA told Contact 6 that privacy laws prevent them from commenting on this case.
The Source: Information for this report comes from interviews with Rebecca Zuehlsdorf and Pat Christensen, along with letters sent to Christensen by SSA, Medicare and Chase Bank. Zuehlsdorf provided a copy of a form filled out by an SSA employee. Information also comes from emails with Chase Bank and SSA.