Social Security Administration now requiring in-person office visits, citing fraud
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
People looking to file a claim for a Social Security benefit application may now need to make a trip to their local Social Security office following new rules that require identities to be proven in person.
Under the new rule, people who can't prove their identities through their "my Social Security" online account must make an in-person appointment at a Social Security office. This rule also stops people and beneficiaries from proving their identity or changing their bank account information over the phone.
According to the SSA's website, people can still update basic information on their account, pay deposits, apply for benefits and replace their Social Security card online.
This change comes after Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency announced plans to cut around 7,000 SSA jobs, around 12% of the agency's staff. According to CNN, the in-person requirement is expected to increase field office visits by between 75,000 and 85,000 people per week nationwide, resulting in longer wait times and delays in application processing
President of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 61 Todd Copley confirms that with the recent layoffs, the agency will not be able to handle the increase in visits.
"If you lay off all these employees, then a slow system is going to get even slower, so anybody that is wanting to get to talk to anybody in the Social Security Department is going to be near to impossible," Copley said.
Frank Koch, a Social Security disability and supplemental security income lawyer, said Wednesday that legal assistants at his firm have noticed the wait times have increased in the past few weeks.
"When people have to come in in-person, they have to go through security, that takes time, then it's often, there are things that can be handled online that you don't need to do in person," Koch said.
The agency head says the change is meant to decrease Social Security fraud.
"For far too long, the agency has used antiquated methods for proving identity," acting Commissioner of Social Security Lee Dudek said. "Social Security can better protect Americans while expediting service.”
Koch disagrees with the decision, adding that Social Security fraud is an extensive process to pull off.
"From what I understand, Social Security has different identifying questions for people when they call in to make sure they're talking to the right person," Koch said. "If somebody is going to file an application for Social Security disability, they're also going to need to get all their medical records and for somebody to make up their identity in their medical records is just as implausible."
According to the Office of the Inspector General for the SSA, from the 2015 through 2022 fiscal years, SSA paid almost $71.8 billion in improper payments, less than 1% of its overall payments. According to the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, property-casualty and health insurance fraud rates are each higher than SSA fraud at around 10% and at least 3%, respectively.
Koch said he is also concerned about accessibility for people with a busy work schedule, living in rural areas or those who may not have reliable transportation.
"The people that I represent are usually people who are in physically poor condition or mentally, not in the best of conditions," Koch said. "They don't have transportation necessarily, especially in the rural areas, they don't necessarily have access to the internet so being able to call and talk to somebody over the phone will make a big difference for them if they can't do that anymore."
Koch said he's worked with people who live up to 90 miles away from a Social Security office. For example, Moberly's nearest SSA office is 41 minutes away in Columbia, costing over $76 for an Uber ride.
"People are going to fall through the cracks, it's going to be very problematic for most people, at least in our community," Koch said.
To schedule an appointment, people must call their local office.
