Social Security Administration

www.ssa.gov

Overview

To most people, the Social Security Administration is little more than the clockwork marvel that mails that monthly check to millions of retirees or tells you how popular your name was on any give year.

But to reporters, this mammoth federal agency is known as much more.

Social Security bureaucrats spend the bulk of their time running two of the nation's largest welfare programs: Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income. Between them, they provide money and medical care to more than 13 million disabled Americans, including many in your coverage area.

In 2009 alone, nearly 51 million people will receive about $650 billion in Social Security benefits. Soaring costs, rising caseloads, chronic fraud problems and appeal routes that take years offer some of the best stories for regional reporters. The key in finding such compelling stories, however, is working around Washington's age-old bureaucratic system.

Location

Press Contacts

The Social Security Administration. SSA's main press office in Baltimore will try to answer questions but can be slow and seems to have trouble getting responses from the people who actually know what is going on. There is no official timeline for calling reporters back, according to one press officer, but the office's four press staffers can take up to a day or more to get back to you.

Press Office: 410-965-8904, press.office@ssa.gov

Mark Lassiter, press officer, is in charge.

Mark Hinkle, deputy press officer

Dorothy Clark, senior public affairs specialist

Kia Green, public affairs specialist

Be advised that you don't always have to call the main office if you need a PR answer. The SSA has 10 regional offices and you can call directly any of the communications directors of these areas. All names and numbers are located on the press office web page, http://www.ssa.gov/pressoffice/natlpocontacts.html.  The office also posts monthly social security stats so you can get updated information on beneficiaries.

Tips on Covering the SSA

If you come across the name of a specific employee you would like to interview, don't call him or her directly. You'll probably just slow the call-back process. Unless you have an extremely grounded relationship with a SSA employee, you will not be able to avoid the press office. SSA employees, like those of many government agencies, faithfully give the press office a heads up when contacted by reporters. SSA press claims you won't hurt your relationship with the office if you try to go your own route. But you likely will be waiting longer for your answer because your request must move through the proper chain of command.

If you have to contact the organization, the best way to get in a simple request is to call. For more technical questions or those requiring detailed answers, try emailing press.office@ssa.gov. Whatever you can do to help the press office better understand your aim, the better your response. This also avoids having to call back and wait again. Mark Lassiter is the main press officer.

The better SSA stories are going to come from working sources centered around the agency. For example, local attorneys are often more than happy to put you in touch with SSA applicants that are stuck in a appeals back log. This makes an especially good story if you can find out how many claimants in your area have died or lost their homes while awaiting a decision from the agency. Work with a reporter in your home newsroom or schedule your own reporting trip to talk to these applicants.

Also, try searching for Government Accountability Office reports, http://www.gao.gov/, or the Social Security Advisory Board, www.ssab.gov. The SSAB is an independent government agency that has released its own reports commenting on disability issues. The board's staff also will provide additional state-by-state statistics upon request.

The National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives is another good source. This is a trade group for many lawyers, which usually are a good bet when trying to tap into a little SSA drama. The web site is, www.nosscr.org, and the phone number is 1-800-431-2804.

You can contact executive director Nancy Shor at 201-567-4228, or director of government affairs Ethel Zelenske at 202-457-7775. The NOSSCR also has a good Frequently Asked Questions page that helps with some basic disability questions and is good for background. One quirky story might be to find out the outrageous claims people make for SSA disability benefits.

Don't leave out the future beneficiaries of Social Security. The agency has reported that nearly three of 10 today's 20 year-olds will be disabled before reaching 67. What is the SSA doing for them?

Also, your local member of Congress can be helpful too. Staff often spend a lot of time helping constituents with Social Security woes, so lawmakers have a stake in trying to make the system better. Contacting local unions will take a little more work, but produce good results. Nearly every segment of the SSA work force is represented by a union.

Does this agency's information need updating? programs@nationalpress.org