La lucha contra el fraude en la seguridad social a la luz de los nuevos principios de actuación de la administración pública

Résumé

This article analyzes the current crisis in the sustainability of Social Security, explicating the most important factors that threaten the viability of the public benefits that are recognized today. After presenting the data that evidences the current crisis, we study the solutions and measures that are most often sought in existing scientific thought. Having done so, we then focus on the least argued question, namely identifying and preventing work fraud in the Social Security system. The concept of fraud is defined as requiring the real purpose of defrauding, in contrast with the mere failure to comply with the law and the obligations of the Social Security system. We examine not only the causes that produce fraud, but also the principal measures adopted to quantify it and to root it out. In addition, we identify the most important types of fraud against the Social Security system, and we indicate as well the preventive measures and initiatives that may be adopted to reduce its occurrence. At present, there is a recent set of Laws that promote new “ad intra” and “ad axtra” relations among the different branches of Public Administration. These Laws can be of decisive help in the fight against fraud: Law 19/2013 of public accountability, access to information and good government; Law 39/2015 of administrative procedure common to the branches of Public Administration, and Law 40/2015 of the judicial regimen for the public sector. These Laws are analyzed and valued in the context of new administrative proceedings. Finally, and to conclude, we present proposals and conclusions that will serve to improve, in significant ways, the results of measures adopted to fight against existing fraud of the Social Security system