YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY

YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY
By DAVID BROWN

More than one million people have applied for Social Security retirement benefits on-line at www.socialsecurity.gov .

Mr. Brown is District Manager of the Social Security Administration's Downtown New York Office. Dewey Bales of West Chester, Ohio became the millionth person to successfully use Social Security's on-line services to apply for retirement benefits. Every day, more and more people make the choice to go on-line instead of standing in line to apply for benefits.

After all, one million retirees - and counting - can't be wrong.

According to a recent survey, Social Security's on-line retirement benefit application once again ranked at the top of all Federal Government Web sites in customer satisfaction. Social Security's "Application for Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Costs" finished second, with several other Social Security on-line services making the top 10.

In addition to completing the retirement application, many business transactions with Social Security can be handled quickly and securely right over the Internet. If you just visit our Web site at www.socialsecurity.gov/onlineservices you will find that you can:

- file for retirement, disability and spouse's benefits; - check the status of your benefit application;

- if you already receive monthly benefits, you can change your address and phone number;

- sign up for direct deposit of Social Security benefits;

- use benefit planners to plan for your financial future and then use the convenient benefit calculators to figure your monthly benefit amounts;

- find the Social Security office closest to your home; and - request a replacement Medicare card.

Also, if you are just looking for Social Security information, you can go on-line to find out almost anything you need to know about the Social Security program. Information is available on subjects ranging from how to get a Social Security number for a newborn to how to go back to work while receiving disability benefits.

Remember, more than a million successful retirees have proven that you can't go wrong with Social Security's on-line retirement benefit application. Be part of the next million. Find out more by visiting www.socialsecurity.gov.