AMAC Magazine Exclusive – By Gerry Hafer
Honoring mature Americans has been integral to AMAC’s organizational mission since its formation. A central way to accomplish this has been the delivery of credible, reliable, and timely information on issues vital to America’s seniors. With this in mind, our focus from the very beginning has been to help our constituency understand the programs most critical to their well-being. Without question, Social Security is a cornerstone in this mission, representing for many the most critical part of their retirement planning.
Our members are aware of the success we’ve realized with our AMAC Foundation Social Security Advisory Service, a program that has delivered careful guidance to tens of thousands of seniors served by this vital support program. Likewise, our members are aware of the active role we’re playing toward a solution to Social Security’s very real funding crisis, exemplified by our Social Security Guarantee’s 15-point plan to preserve and modernize Social Security for current and future generations. Putting our thoughts on the table for Congressional consideration clearly exhibits AMAC’s action-oriented posture on matters affecting older Americans.
Reaching Out to the Social Security Administration
Beyond these key activities, though, we’ve also begun to build a close working relationship with the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) that will enhance our ability to ensure that seniors and their dependents receive more of the assistance and information they need. AMAC representatives have met directly with SSA leadership on multiple occasions to map out mutual avenues of direct collaboration, and we’ve begun to work with SSA staff to build these avenues into productive tools for the benefit of those we serve.
Most recently, our combined efforts with SSA have resulted in the production of a focused section on our amac.us website designed to serve as a guide to a variety of key Social Security areas. This guide, accessible at amac.us/ssa, delivers a variety of fundamental information about Social Security, from highlighting the areas key to the program’s ability to promote retirement security to providing specific tools for use in establishing personal accounts.
The guide includes a tool to determine individuals’ knowledge level about basic Social Security, and it is supported by “video walkthroughs” and a series of frequently asked questions addressing Social Security fundamentals. The guide provides direct linkage to the creation of personal Social Security accounts as well as detailed information tailored to financial advisors and retirement planners.
Overall, this step is a valuable addition to AMAC’s Social Security tool kit and a welcome step in our relationship with SSA!
Combining Forces
Adding the SSA page to our website represents a well-timed expansion of AMAC’s education outreach capabilities. In addition to periodically partnering with SSA to deliver announcements about new or revised policies, this operating collaboration brings to the AMAC constituency a flow of “how to” type tutorials direct from the source as well as access to specific educational offerings and policy updates from SSA’s Communications staff.
The new website section is a complement to our education outreach efforts, broadening the range of media outlets already in place. In conjunction with AMAC Newsline’s Social Security section, the steady release of new educational offerings from our AMAC Foundation, and the Social Security updates provided daily via our Social Security Report website, we view the SSA partnership as a great step forward in our mission as a trusted resource for Americans 50+. In fact, the new website section offers a direct portal for site visitors to contact AMAC’s Social Security Advisory staff with questions concerning their individual situation.
“Providing best-in-class service to every American we have the privilege to serve is what drives us every day,” reports AMAC CEO Rebecca Weber, “and connecting directly with the staff at SSA will unquestionably aid us as we continue to do just that.”
Watch the FREE Social Security Webinar – Plus, explore the Social Security Resource Guide and more!
Visit amac.us/ssa
