Oct 9, 2012

No End Of Controversies With Death Master File

     From the New York Times:
A shift last year by the Social Security Administration to limit access to its death records amid concerns about identity theft is beginning to hamper a broad swath of research, including federal government assessments of hospital safety and financial industry efforts to spot consumer fraud. 
For example, a research group that produces reports on organ-transplant survival rates is facing delays because of the extra work it must do to determine whether patients are still alive.  ...
For a decade, the Social Security master file routinely included records provided by the states. But last year, after reports that the widespread availability of death records was facilitating identity theft, the Social Security Administration determined it had been improperly releasing the state records as part of the public master file....
Mark Hinkle, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said researchers simply would have to collect the data from the states.
“I don’t want to sound offensive,” Mr. Hinkle said. “But our job is to administer the Social Security program, and administering a death list really isn’t in our core set of workloads. The bottom line is that we have to follow the laws and administer the programs we’re supposed to administer.”

Oct 8, 2012

ALJ Dodds Passes

     I regret to report that Administrative Law Judge Ralph Dodds of Raleigh has passed away.

ERE Down

     I have received multiple reports that Social Security's Electronic Records Express service is down this morning. It was supposed to have been down for repairs until 5:00 a.m. Come on, guys -- most of the country doesn't take off for Columbus Day!

Oct 7, 2012

Updated Fee Payment Numbers

     Below are updated numbers on payments of fees to attorneys and others for representing Social Security claimants, primarily disability claimants. These fees are processed by the Social Security Administration but come out of the back benefits of the claimants involved. The attorneys and others who receive the fees pay a user fee for the costs of withholding and paying these fees.

Fee Payments

Month/Year Volume Amount
Jan-12
29,926
89,749,312.99
Feb-12
43,946
134,207,416.10
Mar-12
47,376
139,571,577.57
Apr-12
38,239
113,225,483.07
May-12
37,648
112,446,283.39
June-12
43,816
128,559,225.66
July-12
33,342
97,458,955.82
Aug-12
41,441
119,484,061.59
Sept-12
38,393
115,676,630.23

Oct 6, 2012

Social Security Checks Stolen From The Mail?

    According to a Memphis television station, a group of Social Security checks has been stolen from the U.S. Postal Service. Not delayed or misplaced but stolen. The report is that the Postal Inspector General is saying that it does not yet know what happened to the checks and is investigating.

Oct 5, 2012

I Don't Think What The President Said Is Close To Being Accurate

    President Obama, speaking at Wednesday nights' Presidential debate:
You know, I suspect that, on Social Security, we've got a somewhat similar position. Social Security is structurally sound. It's going to have to be tweaked the way it was by Ronald Reagan and Speaker -- Democratic Speaker Tip O'Neill. But it is -- the basic structure is sound.
     Social Security supporters reactions included words and phrases such as "very distressing", "serious damage", "jaw dropped" and "dumbfounded."

Oct 4, 2012

Further Reductions In Field Office Hours

     From the Federal Times:
Social Security Administration field offices are again trimming the hours they are open to the public due to tight budgets, a top administrator told employees in a Wednesday email.
Starting Nov. 19, all 1,233 offices will close to customers 30 minutes earlier, Mary Glenn-Croft, deputy SSA commissioner for operations, said in the email. As of Jan. 2, the offices will close to the public at noon on Wednesdays, she said.
This is the second time the agency has been forced to trim office hours because of budget considerations. SSA trimmed public office hours at its offices by 30 minutes in August 2011. ...
SSA spokeswoman Kia Green said the shift is “part of normal operations” under the six-month continuing resolution signed last week by President Obama. That stop-gap spending bill leaves SSA operating with “significantly” less money than either the agency or the Obama administration requested, Green said.

What Does Interfund Borrowing Do To The Retirement And Survivor's Trust Fund?

     The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released a report on Social Security's finances. It's old news but I did see an answer to a question that I've had. Under current law the Disability Trust Fund will run out of money in 2016. The solution to this problem is simple and inevitable. Congress will allow borrowing between the Retirement and Survivor's Trust Fund and the Disability Trust Fund. It's been done before. It would only be temporary since the problem is temporary. Once the baby boom population ages a bit further, the problem goes away. There may or may not be changes in disability benefits to accompany interfund borrowing but interfund borrowing is going to happen. My question has been what does interfund borrowing do to the date that the Retirement and Survivor's Trust Fund runs out of money. The answer is that it changes that projected date from 2038 to 2034.