High-Error Programs
Of the 79 risk-susceptible programs
in 2010, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designated 14
programs as “high-error”. OMB designates a program as high-error based
on improper payment information in agencies’
annual performance and financial reports.
The criteria for determining when a program is high-error are found in
OMB
guidance 
.
The high-error programs are those programs that reported roughly $750 million or more in
improper payments in 2009, which did not report an error amount in the current reporting year but
previously reported an error amount over the threshold, or which have not yet established a program
error rate and have measured components that were above the threshold. 11 out of the 14 high-error
programs made up 94% of all reported improper payments. OMB will identify the 2011 high-error
programs in February 2011.
Select a program from the list below to view program details:
| Program | Agency | Total Payments (outlays) | Improper Payment Amounts | Improper Payment Rates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medicare Fee-for-Service | Department of Health and Human Services | $326.4B | $34.3B | 10.5% |
| Medicaid | Department of Health and Human Services | $239.0B | $22.5B | 9.4% |
| Unemployment Insurance (UI) | Department of Labor | $156.0B | $17.5B | 11.2% |
| Medicare Advantage (Part C) | Department of Health and Human Services | $96.4B | $13.6B | 14.1% |
| Supplemental Security Income (SSI) | Social Security Administration | $48.3B | $4.8B | 10.0% |
| Retirement, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (RSDI) | Social Security Administration | $659.6B | $3.2B | 0.5% |
| Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) | Department of Agriculture | $50.4B | $2.2B | 4.4% |
| National School Lunch Program (NSLP) | Department of Agriculture | $8.9B | $1.5B | 16.3% |
| Rental Housing Assistance Programs | Department of Housing and Urban Development | $30.0B | $0.9B | 3.1% |
| Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) | Department of Health and Human Services | $8.9B | NR | NR |
| Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) | Department of the Treasury | $64.2B | NR | NR |
| High Cost Program of the Universal Service Fund | Federal Communications Commission | $4.6B | NR | NR |
| Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Part D) | Department of Health and Human Services | $58.8B | NR | NR |
NR: No data has been reported for the current period
Note: All amounts are in billions of dollars
