From Emergency Message EM-25051:
... Prior to September 28, 2024, technicians used email as the sole means to communicate with customers to initiate an Upload Documents request. eSignature/Upload Documents had required technicians to obtain customer consent prior to sending emails requesting document submissions.
Effective with the release on September 28, 2024, eSignature/Upload Documents will no longer require the collection of customer consent in TED for email messaging.
Additionally, text messaging will be added as a communication option in TED. Technicians must collect customer consent before sending text messages. ...
The public for the most part prefer face to face interviews but due to the lack manpower the agency has to find other means in order process claims. I don’t believe a text or email from the agency would get an immediate reply due to the rise of identity theft. Sometimes a call in letter or a phone call can the job done much faster. The bigger question is if the public is relying too much on online transactions for simple tasks.
ReplyDeleteYour comment seems inconsistent with the data, which show most people are electing to handle their hearings and other transactions by phone or online interactions rather than in person visits. And isn’t it better to have people handle the easy routine stuff online so that staff can be available to walk through the harder stuff?
Delete@1:23 - most people communicate by texts and emails now, not snail mail. If a claimant files for benefits and we need a form or evidence it’s way better to just text them than hoping one of our brilliant letters makes it to their house. The odds of a fraudster coincidentally sending a fake SSA link right someone files for benefits seems highly unlikely.
ReplyDeleteThe benefit is the ability to be in an interview with a claimant, tell them we need wages or some other non-certified evidence, send the link, and the person uploads. Now we have proof within minutes rather than days/weeks for the mail. Also works for certain forms, too.
ReplyDeleteHelped someone the other day at the front counter. Their employer doesn’t give printed paystubs any more. But he had PDF from their online system Sent him the document request and within minutes had a years worth of paystubs. He was happy he didn’t have to find a place to print the documents.
I think this texting is for very limited purposes--it allows SSA to send a claimant or beneficiary a link so that they can upload documents to SSA through a mySocialSecurity account. For a tech-savvy claimant, especially one who lives far from a field office, this will be nice--especially if it provides some proof that a document was submitted. I don't think it will save time for field office staff compared to processing documents that are faxed, mailed, or brought in person, but hopefully it's no worse than those other methods. Also it's worth noting that this is only for first parties--the claimant can upload this way but reps can't (and my understanding is that documents uploaded through Appointed Representative Services are hard for field office staff to see). Not sure if Upload Documents is available to rep payees, parents/guardians for child claims, or other third parties who aren't appointed reps.
ReplyDeleteTED is a bloated, badly coded piece of crap. The one well thought out feature is Upload Documents - very useful for both SSI CS's and claimants especially for initial claim/PERC/RZ situations.
ReplyDelete