Social Security delays launch of new nationwide caseload system

The Social Security Administration is delaying its rollout of new systems to centralize claims processing and appointment scheduling and pivoting to a pilot approach, according to internal emails obtained by Nextgov/FCW. 

SSA had intended to debut these new systems early this month. They were expected to be a major shift in how the agency operates, moving from processing claims locally to a national system.

The optics of such a change factored into SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano’s decision to delay the rollout of the new systems — “particularly where customers may expect access to their local office,” read an internal email sent Monday. 

It also outlined the importance of the agency moving slowly to make sure the effects on customer experience are fully understood before the National Appointment Scheduling Calendar and National Workload Management system are implemented broadly. Bisignano had touted the plans as coming improvements to staff just last week in an internal email.

The new case management system was going to centralize claims processing by replacing local workload systems with a centralized system that automatically would distribute work from a nation-wide pool to the next available technician based on their availability and skillset, according to an internal document viewed by Nextgov/FCW.

The move from claims processing happening locally to nationally had caused anxiety among SSA staff about the future of field offices, especially given that SSA is aiming to drastically cut down the number of people it receives for appointments in its field offices, as Nextgov/FCW has previously reported. 

The changes also presented logistical challenges, like how to deal with state-specific rules if claims were going to be distributed to employees centrally, instead of handled geographically.

SSA was still working out the kinks just weeks before the systems were to debut. An internal FAQ, dated March 24, stated that a process to handle how to transfer physical documentation for a claim in a field office other than the one handling the claim was still being worked out.

The scheduling system was intended to shift appointment scheduling to a national system, too, offering appointments to customers based on national availability, not the availability of local field offices. 

It was meant to allow customers to schedule initial claim phone appointments online, as well as change how employees scheduled appointments on their end. Eventually, the goal is for the system to become the central scheduling tool for the agency, although the rollout was set to start with scheduling initial claim phone appointments only.

SSA said that these changes would better match up workloads with open capacity, improve appointment timeliness and allow the agency to see workloads centrally. 

The decision to pilot the changes will allow the agency to test if the expected efficiencies are realized and “ensure we maintain customer confidence” before a wider launch, the email announcing the change said. Details on the pilot are forthcoming, it said, after the agency has spent months preparing for the national rollout.

An SSA spokesperson told Nextgov/FCW that the implementation of internal-facing technology would start this year. 

“Customers will not notice any changes aside from expanded appointment availability. Field offices are, and will always remain, our front-line, serving the more than 330 million Americans with Social Security numbers,” they said.

“This is one of the digital-first changes we are implementing that will empower field office staff to focus on what they do best, resolving customers’ needs in-person with care, accuracy, and efficiency, while directing more complex cases and time-intensive tasks to specialized teams in a centralized environment,” they continued. “Leveraging our national scale, improved workflows, and modern technology, SSA continues to focus our strategy and goals to match our customers’ evolving service preferences.”

Although centralizing and standardizing work at SSA had potential advantages, it likely wouldn’t make up for the staffing shortages the agency is dealing with after losing over 7,000 employees last year, Kathleen Romig, director of social security and disability policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, previously told Nextgov/FCW. 

The day after the agency announced the change, its chief of field operations, Andy Sriubas, was replaced by Tom Holland, who had been serving as the agency’s chief financial officer. Sriubas is now in a new role as the chief of strategy and marketing. Sean Brune, who has long worked at SSA in technology leadership roles, is now SSA’s chief financial officer.