Fraud unit

West Virginia is projecting state and federal savings of $1.2 million over the next few years from the first six months operation of a new disability fraud unit. According to the Attorney General’s Office, the Charleston Cooperative Disability Investigations Unit is a partnership between the attorney general and the Social Security Administration. Similar units operate in 31 other states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The Charleston unit opened in December. It investigates suspicious or questionable Social Security disability claims and helps resolve questions of potential fraud. In many cases a determination is made before benefits are ever paid.