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Social Security plans to close field offices, says Morristown resident

Posted 12/12/14

To the Editor: Recently it was brought to my attention that the Social Security Administration has a plan in process to close field offices across the country. This plan is titled Vision 2025. SSA …

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Social Security plans to close field offices, says Morristown resident

Posted

To the Editor:

Recently it was brought to my attention that the Social Security Administration has a plan in process to close field offices across the country. This plan is titled Vision 2025.

SSA aims to eliminate the field office structure of service and force millions of Americans to go online for information and to file for benefits that they have worked for and earned. If allowed to proceed, hundreds of offices nationwide will be closed.

Prior to closing offices, SSA does not seek any input from Congress, the public, SSA employees, local institutions, or anyone in the community.

In the past two decades 80 field offices have been closed and hours of operation have been reduced by 28%. Although jobs have been lost and hours of serving the public have been reduced the management structure has been left untouched costing taxpayers millions of dollars for people and buildings that perform no direct public service.

The New York region has had more offices closed than any other in the country. If our office in Ogdensburg is closed the only option Vision 2025 would offer beneficiaries and applicants who need assistance would be a computer terminal despite the fact that millions of older Americans do not use computers or have access to broad band and would have great difficulty navigating the complex online program.

I urge you to contact our US Senators Schumer and Gillibrand and voice your opposition to Vision 2025. Call Senator Charles Schumer at 423-5471 and Senator Kristen Gillibrand at 376-6118.

Michele Whalen

Morristown