WASHINGTON — The Social Security Administration is again making changes to its policies on verifying the identity of applicants. According to CNN, the agency has decided to end a newly instituted policy for determining fraud thanks in part to a backlog it has helped create in applications being processed.
The now-canceled policy called for the agency to hold retirement benefit applications for three days in order to look for fraud. As a result, the pause on processing applications combined with dwindling staffing levels and record enrollment led to a backlog of some 575,000 applications.
SSA leaders announced the decision to end the policy in an email sent to workers, reviewed by CNN.
The change is the latest in a series of reversals made by the agency as it searches for ongoing “waste, fraud, and abuse” alleged by President Donald Trump’s administration.
In March, the SSA announced it was going to require in-person visits for applicants who could not prove their identity online through the “my Social Security” platform. The plan would also require existing beneficiaries to visit an office in order to make change to direct deposit information if they could not do so online.
That plan was nixed less than two weeks later after the agency received backlash from Americans, lawmakers, and advocates, who said it would cause undue stress. Critics argued the plan would hurt those who aren’t computer savvy or live far away from a SSA office.
A new policy was announced that would only require in-person visits for anyone applying for Retirement, Survivors, or Auxiliary (Spouse or Child) benefits or anyone who needs to change their direct deposit information for any benefit. Before that policy went into effect, the SSA again changed course, and said it would continue to allow for ID verification and other services to be completed over the phone.
However, as part of the new plan, an “anti-fraud check” system was to be implemented to search for fraud.
“Individuals that are flagged would be required to perform in-person ID proofing for the claim to be further processed,” the SSA said in an announcement last month. “Individuals who are not flagged will be able to complete their claim without any in-person requirements.”
CNN reports that internal documents show that out of 110,000 claims, only two of them were labeled as having a high probability of being fraudulent. However, the anti-fraud checks have delayed processing of claims by 25%.
An email sent by Stephen Evangelista, Social Security’s deputy commissioner for operations revealed that of the 575,000 backlogged claims, about 140,000 of them have been waiting at least 60 days to be processed. A significant number of people have filed for benefits dating back to the fall, SSA data shows.
But as applications mount, Trump and his administration are continuing efforts to cut staffing levels. The SSA previously announced an estimated 3,000 employees took buyouts earlier this year, with more cuts expected. The agency is expected to cut about 12%, or 7,000 employees of its staff overall.
Still, Evangelista is pushing workers to increase their productivity amidst the changes.
“I am calling for a sprint – a focused, concerted effort in all offices beginning today and lasting through the end of May – to address this growing backlog of pending retirement and survivor claims,” Evangelista wrote in his email to employees.
Evangelista asked his employees to increase the number of claims they clear each day by 10% for the rest of the month, CNN reports.
Source: Social Security Administration makes another change to application process, how will it
