Patty Duke, 62, Will Wait to Claim Social Security

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In later life I switched jobs from private industry which paid into SS to a state job which did not. Even though I paid for years into SS, this offset regulation will take much of what I thought I would receive from SS. What a rotten deal. I'm not asking for compensation for years that I did not contribute, but only for the years I contributed. Apparently, you cannot draw from two govnment sources, even if you paid in. You can bet I will apply for my SS at 62 and keep on working forever.

Rena of NV 11:14PM January 16, 2009

Please take me off you list I been retired since 1993 even went back to I'm disabled and do not need to hear anythig on retiment so please do not send me any more stuff now leave me a
lone THANK YOU When I took the survey I told them I was retired now you need to re-do your program that will understand when they say retire that they are.........

SHIRLEY J. HORN of KY 3:48PM January 16, 2009

I AM APPALLED AT HOW OUR COUNTRY CAN JUST TOSS ITS RETIREES ASIDE AS IF WE'VE NEVER WORKEDA DAY IN OUR LIVES !! I WILL BE RETIRING WITHIN THE NEXT 3 YEARS AND I WOULD'VE HOPED THAT I COULD INTERACT WITH A LIVE HUMAN BEING AS I MOVE INTO THIS NEW AREA OF MY LIFE. HAVING A MACHINE TO TALK TO JUST DOESN'T SERVE MY PURPOSES ! CIRCUMSTANCES HAVE CHANGED, LIFESTYLES HAVE CHANGED AND OUR GOVT DOESN'T WANT TO STEP UP TO THE PLATE ! VITAL AND IMPORTANT JOBS LIKE THOSE IN THE SSA DEPARTMENT ARE MORE NEEDED NOW IN THIS GENERATION THAN EVER. THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO CUT EXPENDITURES. PEOPLE NEED THEIR JOBS AND WE THE PEOPLE NEED THEM TO HELP US DO OURS. RE-HIRE THOSE WHO HAVE PLEDGED TO DO MORE THAN THEY SHOULD, FOR LESS THEN THEY SHOULD. GIVE SOME MEANING TO US AS SENIORS AS WE ENTER THE MOST CHALLENGING TIME OF OUR LIVES !

MARY ANN GOMEZ of NY 1:29PM January 16, 2009

This is ludicrous. I'm 54 and technically astute compared to many. I was unemployed for three weeks in 2008 and due to a computer error, I could not collect one week of unemployment. After that experiece, I'll file for social security in the SSA office that's inadequately staffed to handle the 10,000/day load. I figured we should get something for our money. Let the newspapers pick up the stories of old people packing little-staffed offices and falling asleep as they wait hours for to collect a few bucks of the thousands of dollars we all put in.
If someone happens to notice I'm missing from my dilapidated nursing home, at least they'll know where I've been stuffed.

Sheri D. of NY 12:15PM January 08, 2009

I think online applications are a great way to make sure applicate provide all the information they need to provide. The forms will have to be very comprehensive and the instructions very detailed. In my four years working for the Social Security Administration most of the problem cases were created by people not reporting important information - income, illegitimate children etc... Many of the cases I worked on were tangled messes. Unless the online process covers all these situations there will many more tangled messes in the future and plenty of work for SSA employees to sort out. The goal should be to make 100% sure the problem cases are being resolved correctly the first time. That means getting rid of employees who, because of mistakes, cause more work than they actually perform.

Doug of NY 9:26AM January 08, 2009

Part of a letter I wrote to the SSA Commissioner before my retirement from SSA in May, 2008:
"I have decided to retire May 2, 2008 from my position as a T2 TE(technical expert) in the Elizabeth, NJ District Office. Obviously, my decision was based on a combination of factors, but most personally, I feel I cannot continue with an agency that is disappointing me so much. Most people approach retirement with a sense of happiness and anticipation; my retirement decision is permeated by sadness, resignation, guilt and stress.
Sadness and resignation because I feel SSA no longer shares my values. SSA cannot profess that it cares about people and excellent public service when it does not provide the resources to the field to do the job in the way the job demands. Politicians may say “cut the staff by 20%; let them do the job of 2 or 3 people. In the field at our office, we have been doing the job of 4 to 5 people since the 1990’s.
Guilt and stress because SSA has no credible plan for its’ future. It has no plans to replace me, a senior interviewer, mentor, trainer, and adjudicator, nor my colleagues, including those who were our service representatives, our clericals, our receptionists or our mail clerks. SSA may believe and say the internet is our future, but we in the field know the truth. The truth is that while claimants and third parties may file disability and retirement claims via the internet, we in the field are responsible for every aspect of their uninformed work. The truth is, that although the baby boomers or their children may use a computer, they do not know the import of their choices on the claims that they file. The truth is the baby boomers have more marriages, therefore more spouses, more ex-spouses, deceased spouses, more children, more stepchildren, and more disabled children than their predecessors. The truth is, our policies are so complex (think FRA, EXR, SDW, getting a SS card or changing your name) and Congress has mandated so many workloads that I’ve labeled “Beyond Our Mission” (think garnishment for child support, prisoner provisions, warrants for fugitive felons, verifying immigration status, foreign country claim filing, paying attorney fees, means testing Medicare premiums, establishing subsidy for Part D) that for those of us who actually care about policies and care about claimants, the tasks become overwhelming and our spirit sinks further. The truth is our claimants need claims representatives, service representatives and government employees who care about them and their claims, not a website they navigate on their own."
So, SSA's answer is to have a PR blitz to encourage baby boomers, the one's who need our help the most, and the one's who have paid in so much to SS over their working lives, "go it alone"- from their home computer, with no involvement or input from SSA employees. It is an outrage.

Jessica Linzer Simpson of NJ 4:55PM January 07, 2009

If she earns more than the pittance they allow you to make before your "full retirement age" she will have to pay it all back anyway. Big government telling you when you can or can't take the benefit you worked your entire life for. WHY?

Bob of NY 4:49PM January 07, 2009