Jun 12, 2024
There's Enough Damn Problems Without This Crap!
May 11, 2024
Does This Make You Feel Better?
Apr 3, 2024
Tidbits On The 800 Number And Overpayments
WPXI, a television station in Pittsburgh, has been covering Social Security's overpayment problems. Here's some excerpts from a recent story they've run:
... We sat down with the new Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, Martin O’Malley. ...
One of the most significant changes went into effect last Monday. It ensures anyone facing a new overpayment has at most,10 percent of their check withheld to recoup overpayment debt, not the 100-percent claw back the agency had been using; however, for the millions of people already facing overpayments, it’s not automatic. Due to staffing challenges, the solution is for beneficiaries to request a waiver or an adjustment by calling 1-800-772-1213. ...
11 Investigates decided to try that 1-800 number. The wait time when we called it was ‘greater than 60 minutes.’ We didn’t clog up the line by waiting to talk to a representative, but we did notice you can now request a call back instead of waiting on hold. ...
Commissioner O’Malley says you can file a waiver as many times as you want. If a beneficiary requests a rate lower than 10 percent to be withheld to recoup overpayment debt, it will be approved if the money can be repaid within 60 months or five years. ...
I had not heard about a call back feature for Social Security's 800 number. That might be an improvement. What experiences are others having with this?
My guess is that the reporter misunderstood O'Malley or that the Commissioner misspoke about filing waiver requests as often as one likes. That requires clarification.
Dec 21, 2023
"We Will Need Sufficient And Sustained Funding"
From The Sacramento Bee:
Trying to get through to Social Security on its 800 number? Be very, very patient. Wait times have been averaging roughly 35 minutes. In September, the latest data available, the average time on hold was 34.7 minutes. The shortest average wait so far this year came in May, 28.8 minutes. The longest was in March, 39.8 minutes. ...
Reps. Ken Calvert, R-Corona, and Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, have introduced the “Stuck on Hold Act,” which would require the Social Security Administration and Department of Veterans Affairs, which has also experienced customer service issues, to tell callers the estimated wait times. If the wait is longer than 15 minutes, the agency would give the consumer the option of receiving an automated call back when it is their turn in line. The agencies would have up to a year to put the new system into effect. ...
At Social Security, “We are doing what we can to improve phone service,” said Darren Lutz, an agency spokesman, who cited the hiring of new phone agents ... . The agency has moved to a new phone system, which Lutz said “allows us to receive more calls and provides callers with estimated wait times, and will soon provide an option for some callers to receive a call back instead of waiting in a queue. “ Social Security plans more improvements, he said, though ”to improve our phone service we will need sufficient and sustained funding.“ ...
Aug 31, 2023
Speech Analytics Technology In Use At SSA
Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG) has issued a report on Controls over the Social Security Administration’s National 800-number Service During the COVID-19 Pandemic. It should surprise no one that the controls started off rough and got better with time. What I found interesting is information about a method the agency is using to evaluate telephone service:
... Speech analytics is a method, separate from service observation, designed to improve the efficiency and quality of service 800-number employees provide to the public. SSA’s speech analytics technology, which it began using in April 2017, converts recorded 800-number calls to a text format. SSA uses it to pinpoint patterns for further research and analysis via manual process. Employees in the Office of Customer Service and/or teleservice centers apply such criteria as words, phrases, or duration of calls to search the converted text to identify calls that should be referred to regional management for further evaluation. Calls can be identified through speech analytics based on the use of derogatory terms, a disconnected call that did not assist callers, and employees not responding to callers during the call. ...
Jul 7, 2023
Dropped Calls
From The Social Security Administration’s Telephone Service Disruptions, a report by Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG):
Jul 3, 2023
Average Speed Of Telephone Answer
From The Social Security Administration’s Telephone Service Disruptions, a report by Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG):
Click on image to view full size. Yes, it’s a confusing way to present the data. What were they thinking? |
Jun 30, 2023
Telephone Service Disruptions In 2021 And 2022
From The Social Security Administration’s Telephone Service Disruptions, a report by Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG):
Click to view full size |
Jun 28, 2023
Social Security's Telephone Service Is Terrible
From The Social Security Administration’s Telephone Service Disruptions, a report by Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG):
SSA's telephone systems experienced an increasing number of service disruptions at the end of 2022 as it maintained operations under the temporary Unification platform. From May 2021 through December 2022, 40 telephone service disruptions occurred on the national 800-number and field office systems. The majority of these disruptions occurred from October through December 2022 and involved the 800-number. These disruptions resulted in dropped calls, increased wait times and, in some instances, unavailable automated services. Wait times increased as SSA employees could not take calls during several of the outages. Further, such functionalities as the “estimated wait time” and the “call back assist” features, which callers used to avoid waiting on the telephone to speak with an SSA employee, were no longer available to callers. The rate of unanswered calls for those who opted to speak with an employee during each of the service disruptions ranged from 32 to as high as 80 percent. ...
I'll pull out some eye-catching charts from this report in coming days.
Apr 19, 2023
Rolls Royce Service For OIG; Little Service For The Public
Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG) operates its own hotline for the public to use in reporting waste or fraud. Think about that. Why does OIG have its own separate hotline? Why not use Social Security's regular 800 number? The teleservice center employees are certainly capable of taking down basic information and forwarding it to OIG. I think we know the reason. The crappy service on the general 800 number would be unacceptable for OIG.
At the moment, OIG is advertising the availability of a contract for handling its hotline. Here's one of the criteria that OIG expects a contractor to meet: "At a minimum, the contractor’s systems must handle all incoming calls, and the contractor must achieve at least an average 95% answer rate for all calls offered and a maximum average wait time of one (1) minute after call offer." The OIG contractor has to be able to "handle all incoming calls"? The agency's general 800 number certainly can't do that. A 95% answer rate? Not imaginable for the general 800 number. A maximum average wait time of one minute? Are you kidding me? It's more like 15-20 minutes for the general 800 number.
Why are we funding excellent call center services for OIG but those needing to file a claim or to talk with someone about their pending case get horrific service? I'm all in favor of getting fraud reports from the public but I'm also in favor of the public getting decent service from the Social Security Administration.
Oct 7, 2022
Service Sucks At Social Security
From a long piece by Lisa Rein in today's Washington Post:
May 13, 2022
A Report On Social Security's Operating Budget
The Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress produces reports to aid Congress in carrying out its duties. They've recently issued a report titled Social Security Administration (SSA): Trends in the Annual Limitation on Administrative Expenses (LAE) Appropriation Through FY2021 that's worth a look. It tells you everything you ought to know, even though for most people the subject, like the title of this report, seems dreadfully boring.
Let me first explain this LAE business. Since most of Social Security's administrative budget comes from the Social Security's trust funds rather than general revenues, technically the agency doesn't get an appropriation but instead is given a limit on how much it can draw from the trust funds for its administrative expenses -- a Limitation on Administrative Expenses or LAE.
The main story that I take from this report is that Social Security's workload has gone up while its LAE has gone down. That's not good for those who have to deal with the agency.
Let's talk about the workload first. Here's a chart showing the number of claimants drawing benefits from 2010 on:
You can see that since 2010 there's been a big increase from 58 million receiving benefits to 70.2 million receiving benefits.
Here's a chart showing what's happened to the LAE, apart from the amount specifically dedicated to program integrity, in constant dollars since 2010:
Apr 8, 2022
First Report On Field Office Reopening
From WHEC:
For the first time in two years, people could just walk into the Social Security office downtown to try to get someone to help them.
For five months, we've documented all kinds of problems and delays with the agency's phone system and operators, but Thursday the doors opened and we found someone who really needed the access.
I stood on Main Street asking people who walked in without an appointment—how did it go? Some said it was fine. Others were still frustrated. And then I saw a little 7-year-old girl walk out with her mom and considering where they came from, the offices opened at the right time.
Jenna is 7 years old. She and her mother Yurina and escaped from Ukraine.
"I'm helping my friends," Viktor Kachaluba said. "They come from Ukraine, like refugee."
This mother and daughter recently came into the United States through Mexico. They came to the Social Security office when it opened today in the hopes of getting a number. ...
Within two hours of opening, about 50 people came to the office and I watched more arrive every minute.
People waited in the lobby to get escorted to the second floor.
"I just needed my social security card," Deshawn Terry said. "And the phone lines were tied up so I just decided to come down."
"Yes, I've called numerous times," Ann Randall said. "I've been on hold, ringing for hours." ...
If you work in a field office, how is reopening going so far?
Apr 1, 2022
Help Please
For some time now I've been posting the Caseload Analysis Report issued by Social Security's Office of Hearings Operations (OHO). To their credit, OHO has been voluntarily releasing it.
I'm sure that other Social Security components produce similar reports. I'd like to see some of them. I can request them under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) but it would help if I knew what the reports are called. I'd be interested in the names of the operational reports for the Disability Determination Services (State Agency Operations Report?), Field Offices, Teleservice Centers and Payment Centers. The names of the reports can't be some closely held secret. Can anyone help me with just the names of the reports?
It's hard to imagine any harm to the agency in the public having a better idea of the agency's operations. It might be of help in obtaining an adequate operating budget.
Mar 22, 2022
Priorities
From David Weaver writing for The Hill:
Elites in America often marvel at the supposed ignorance of the American people, who, when surveyed, overestimate how much is spent on foreign aid. However, it is possible the public understands something the elites do not: Service from the government is often so bad that there must be something wrong with domestic spending.
Congressional appropriators recently provided more money for the country of Ukraine ($13.6 billion) than they did for administering Social Security ($13.3 billion). ... Congress rapidly approved the president's request for Ukraine funding and even added an extra $3.6 billion.
Funding for the Social Security Administration (SSA), which runs the largest and most important program in the United States? That's different. Congressional appropriators decided to cut the President's FY 2022 request by about $1 billion, which will result in severe hardship for Americans, particularly Americans from low income and minority communities, who will now not be able to access benefits.
It's possible to laud assistance to Ukraine and still wonder what's wrong at home.
Since 2010, SSA's operational budget has fallen in real terms by 13 percent while the number of beneficiaries it serves has grown by 21 percent.
The effects of underfunding an agency with a growing workload are not particularly surprising: large backlogs (one million Americans are currently waiting for a disability determination from SSA), a collapsing service infrastructure (SSA's phone systems are physically breaking down under the volume of calls), and furious members of the public who, in the most difficult times of their lives, cannot get help. ...
Mar 12, 2022
Does Anybody Care?
Mar 11, 2022
Contractor Problems Contributing To Social Security Phone Issues
Social Security's telephone systems have been down this week. It's been essentially impossible to call in. I don't get the impression that the agency is all that concerned about this. They haven't even put out a press release. Maybe by this point the difference between nearly impossible and impossible have become so slight that it hardly matters to them any more.
There's an employee union podcast on reopening at Social Security, specifically at the teleservice centers, which says that there are MAJOR technical problems with new telecommunications contractors which are significantly affecting agency telephone service. There's a fair amount of whining on the podcast that would appeal only to union members but mixed in is real info on the agency's telephone problems. Talk about strategies to make sure agency employees can work in their pajamas everyday, forever, isn't going to win the union many friends nor are many likely to buy into the notion that Covid will still be a dire public health threat by late this month when agency employees start returning -- part-time -- to their offices. However, my point in posting this is the information in the podcast about the serious technical problems.
Note that no matter how bad the contractor problems may be, Social Security lacks the manpower to answer its phones anyway!
Mar 8, 2022
The First Step -- Admitting You Have A Problem
A tweet from Social Security:
We are currently having problems with our local offices and 800-Number phone systems. You may experience service issues, including poor call quality, dropped calls, and long wait times. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience and we appreciate your patience.
Mar 7, 2022
OHO Phone Outages
I have received multiple reports of telephone outages at Social Security's hearing offices in several states today. Telephone hearings are going forward, however. We can't call in but can agency employees call out?