An internal Social Security Administration (SSA) memo sent earlier this month suggested that a proposed change that requires claimants to prove their identity online could cause “challenges for vulnerable populations” and strain the agency’s resources to the breaking point, according to a report in Popular Information.
The March 13 memo, signed by Acting Deputy SSA Commissioner Doris Diaz, lays out a series of proposals that it claims would mitigate “fraud risks” and suggests people who make benefit claims over the phone should be subject to “internet identity proofing.”
For those with no internet access or who are unable to use the proposed online identification system, they “will be required to visit a field office to provide in-person identity documentation,” the memo reads.
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The memo acknowledges this would create “challenges for vulnerable populations.” Many Social Security claimants are elderly or disabled and have less access to digital resources.
Diaz estimates SSA offices would need to process an additional 75,000 to 85,000 in-person visitors per week under the proposed policy, acknowledging it could unleash havoc on SSA operations, risking “service disruption,” “operational strain,” and “budget shortfalls.”
Popular Information noted that SSA offices—which handled a combined 119,000 daily average visits as of 2023—are unlikely to be able to handle the influx of visits, given they are already unable to accept walk-ins and wait times for appointments are longer than a month.
This memo was produced after the Washington Post reported that the SSA was considering eliminating the ability to make claims over the phone entirely. Last week, the SSA reversed its position after that report was published.
Meanwhile, the policy is being floated as SSA is planning to terminate up to 7,000 workers—more than a tenth of its workforce—as part of government-wide purges of federal employees by the Trump administration.
The Department of Government Efficiency—the Elon Musk-led task force in charge of the administration’s cost cutting efforts—has listed dozens of SSA offices on its website for closure.
Musk, a White House advisor and President Donald Trump’s chief benefactor in the 2024 election, has made numerous false claims that Social Security fraud is a widespread phenomenon.
A 2024 report by the SSA inspector general found less than one percent of payments over a seven-year period were “improper.” Most of those improper payments were made in error or because the agency didn’t update its records, meaning the amount of fraud is considerably less.
The SSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.
