Millions of Americans, who depend on Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), often experience stress due to delays in processing their claims. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is now focusing on Health Information Technology (Health IT) to expedite the disability determination process. Health IT allows the SSA to electronically access medical records from healthcare providers, streamlining the process evaluation of disability applications. Each year, the SSA processes over 3 million new disability applications, with the collection of necessary medical records taking up the most time and costing over $500 million to taxpayers. With records received through Health IT, the SSA claims to quicken the identification of disability allowances by 50%.

The SSA is concentrating on deploying this technology more effectively to hasten decisions and improve service for people critically in need, said Acting Commissioner Lee Dudek. Faster decisions on applications for SSDI or SSI could mean the difference between financial stability and falling behind on essential expenses. Health IT could play a significant role in this situation, as it can suitably pull records from medical providers, verifying an applicant’s disability status more quickly thereby eliminating unnecessary delays. It reduces the providers’ need to manually fax or mail documents. In addition, the SSA aims to increase its partner organizations, currently at 266 organizations across 50 states, representing approximately 46,000 healthcare providers.

Meanwhile, around 7.4 million Americans receive SSI benefits as of April 2025 - many of them also qualify for SSDI. These programs provide vital support for individuals who are either blind, disabled or over age 65 with limited income and resources. Concerning payment schedules, SSDI and retirement payments are staggered throughout the month based on birth dates while SSI is paid on the 1st of each month. Despite these, the SSA is working on major changes to its operations. The changes aim to make the disability claims process efficient, user-friendly and less complicated for applicants, providers, and taxpayers. By cutting red tape and adopting secure digital solutions, the agency seeks to better serve the country’s most vulnerable residents.

The SSA, just like the California Employment Development Department (EDD), wants to ensure better services for all. Those who need information from the EDD, such as how to check the EDD payment status, contact edd, or even learn how to get ahold of edd customer service, can visit eddcaller.com for detailed and comprehensive guides. From assisting with getting a hold of Paid Family Leave to how to reach out to an Agent at EDD, this robust platform helps individuals navigate through EDD’s services. With technology continuing to modernize service delivery, platforms such as eddcaller.com are proving essential in helping users interact with administrative services.