Social Security’s new in-person identification requirement angers retirees and advocates
The Social Security Agency plan calls for face-to-face identity checks on millions of new and existing recipients while closing government offices has sparked anger among lawmakers, advocacy groups and plan recipients who fear that the government will place unnecessary obstacles in the face of an already vulnerable population.
The new requirements will affect anyone who needs to verify their bank information with an institution, as well as families with children who have access to Social Security benefits and cannot verify children’s information on the SSA website. They aim to combat fraud and waste within the system, which President Trump and his administration officials claim are broad.
The agency announced Tuesday that starting from March 31, those who cannot correctly verify their identity with the agencyMy Social Security“Online services will be required to visit the agency’s on-site office in person to complete the verification process. They also recently announced that social security on-site offices across the country will be closed.
Of the 47 SSA live offices listed on the White House Government Efficiency website, it is called DogeAccording to the Associated Press’s analysis of the data, 26 plans have been closed this year, and will take effect as early as next month.
This change, in addition to the upcoming closure of on-site offices nationwide, has a plan Reduce agency employees Advocates say that with massive layoffs, it could lead to huge delays in services. Nancy Leamond of AARP said eliminating phone verification “will lead to more headaches and longer waiting times to address regular customer service needs.”
Leamond, chief advocacy and participation officer of AARP, said the news was “not only surprising, but also an unrealistic fast track.”
“SSA needs to be transparent about changes in its services and seek opinions from older people who will be affected. Because the delay in social security caused by such changes can all mean real financial hardship.”
Institution leaders said Tuesday that the agency will begin training frontline employees and management on the new policy in the next two weeks.
The Democrats’ regression came soon. A group of 62 House Democrats wrote to Leland Dudek, the agency’s acting commissioner, on Wednesday to express concerns about how the changes can harm older beneficiaries of people with limited internet access.
“Requesting beneficiaries to seek assistance exclusively online through AI, or in person at the SSA field office will create additional barriers, especially for those who are far away from the office,” they wrote. “We strongly urge you to consider individuals who may be harmed.”
A social security person, Sandi Bachom, 80, of New York, said she was afraid of the change.
“What if I didn’t get that check?” she said. “I don’t have family. Everyone is dead. No one can take care of me.”
Retired documentary producer Bachom praised Social Security for “Save My Life” after losing his six-figure advertising job and getting stuck in a tough time.
White House: “We are looking for seniors”
White House spokesman Harrison Fields told the Associated Press that the purpose of the change is to “stop fraud vulnerability.”
“We’re looking for older people,” Fields said.
Dudek said in announcing the change that the agency sees $100 million in direct deposit fraud every year. However, in May 2023, a congressional testimony from an SSA inspector general official said: “From January 2013 to May 2018, fraudsters will aim for $33.5 million in benefits redirected for 20,878 beneficiaries” and made unauthorized direct deposit changes through the agency’s website.
The agency allocates approximately $1.6 trillion in elderly and disability benefits annually.
For some recipients, the end of telephone service identification can be dramatic, including families with children needing access to the SSA office because children cannot open an online account through the My Social Security online service.
“This will make it more difficult for the American people to claim their benefits. This could even cause significant delays by overwhelming the field office and eventually collapse,” said Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Engineering.
Altman, an advocacy group, believes that the ultimate goal of the government is to privatize the social security system.
Travel issues for low-income elderly people
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said he was worried that “our oldest Kentuckians, who live on fixed income (fixed income without resources) have to travel for hours to answer basic questions.”
“Why? Because they don’t want them to do that, they want to be able to pull them away. That’s not right,” Democrats said. “These people are eligible and the federal government has an obligation to have enough offices, calls or other resources to finally process applications there and answer people’s questions.
“What I worry about is that what Elon Musk is trying to do is break the government, not solve the government.”
Musk’s ministry of government efficiency has embedded staff from agencies in search of ways to narrow the federal government. Musk pushed for debunking theory about social security and described the federal welfare program as a fraudulent act of “Ponzi scheme.”
New Yorker Bachom, who has arrived in the middle of the month on her monthly Social Security check, said people she know were shocked by the steps the government has taken.
“We’re all frightened,” she said. “And, at this age, we don’t have to be robbed of us.”
