At one time if a document was scanned in color and submitted to Social Security's Electronic Records Express (ERE) system the document would remain in color in ERE. When medical records arrive in my office in a fuzzy state I have been scanning them in color not because the documents were in color but to try to make them more legible once uploaded to ERE. Documents scanned in color have a higher resolution than documents scanned in black and white. Does ERE still retain documents scanned in color in their native format or does it now degrade them to black and white?
While I'm at it, has the resolution ERE is using changed? Maybe it's my eyes but it seems like ERE records have gotten more difficult to read. I'm wondering if documents I'm uploading in a normal black and white resolution are being degraded to a lower resolution.
You might ask why Social Security would intentionally degrade documents uploaded to ERE. The answer is that higher resolution documents take up more storage space. When they're transmitted they take up more bandwidth. Storage space and bandwidth are important to network managers. Document legibility isn't of so much concern to them since they don't have to read the documents.
I have never seen a document in color
ReplyDeleteI concur with Charles' concerns. I'm not as far into the technicalities of resolution, etc., but it appears to me also that the quality of electronic records has deteriorated since we first got onto ERE. Aloof managers may have their considerations, BUT, it defeats the very purpose of having records in electronic form if you can't read the darn things! I'd like to see that issue addressed by the IT managers at SSA.
ReplyDeleteI submit documents in color by taking photographs to ODAR to be scanned on their color scanner and then uploaded to ERE. They come out in color and can be effective demonstrative evidence.
ReplyDeleteEvery color document I have ever uploaded reverts to black and white once it's exhibited. Why would a billion dollar computer system have the room to handle color? It cannot even handle punctuation when doing an online appeal.
ReplyDeleteI work in a DDS-QA Unit and have noted a steady decline in the quality of the print on the scanned MER. Some of it you just can't read.
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