GAO: Social Security isn’t ready for baby boomers

Staffing and budget constraints combined with an increase in retirement and disability filings by the aging baby boomer population pose significant challenges for the Social Security Administration, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office.

The number of employees at SSA field offices fell from 28,790 in 2005 to 27,534 in 2008, representing a 4.4 percent drop, the report (GAO-09-24) stated. This was largely because of retirements and inadequate appropriations from Congress, auditors said.

Despite the smaller staff, the amount of work produced at the field offices decreased only 1.3 percent during the same period, largely because SSA deferred lower priority tasks, transferred work from busy offices to those with lighter loads, and redirected some employees from their usual responsibilities to meet critical needs, GAO said.

But, the loss of staff still appears to have taken a toll in the form of longer customer wait times and poor phone service, according to the report. These factors might have contributed to a 3 percentage point decrease in SSA's overall customer satisfaction rating, from 84 percent in fiscal 2005 to 81 percent in fiscal 2008, according to GAO.

Additionally, SSA faces a mounting backlog of work that will likely be exacerbated by a rise in retirements and disability filings, the report noted. The agency anticipates its annual workload will increase by about 1 million annual claims by 2017, GAO stated. The agency also has predicted that 44 percent of its staff will retire by 2016.

In September 2008, SSA unveiled a strategic plan aimed at improving services for disability claimants and retirees. For instance, the plan seeks to increase online filing of retirement applications. But the strategy fails to provide adequate details on how the agency will address the needs of the retiring baby boomer generation, the report noted.

"While the plan includes a goal of significantly expanding the use of electronic services, it is not clear how this will mitigate SSA's increasing workload," GAO said.

Auditors recommended that SSA develop a service delivery plan that describes how it will improve quality while managing a growing workload amid resource constraints. The plan also should establish standards for field office waiting times and phone service to help identify and improve offices with poor service, the report stated.

In a response, Commissioner Michael Astrue said SSA would develop a single plan that documents its efforts to address projected budgetary, staffing and workload challenges. At a minimum, he said, the report will include a comprehensive strategy for expanding electronic services, increasing centralization for processing telephone and claims workloads, and improving field office services.

"We have been working on many fronts to increase our productivity to enable us to process more work without increasing staffing levels," Astrue wrote. "Many components within the agency contribute to this effort and there is a great deal of coordination between components as well as executive oversight."