If you need to file an appeal with the Social Security Administration, a new artificial intelligence-based (AI) system will soon be part of the process. The appeal process includes an informal hearing, with audio recording, before an administrative-law judge.
The SSA recently announced that by the end of March it will finish rolling out its new Hearing Recording and Transcriptions (HeaRT) system to improve hearing recordings.
According to the SSA, the new system “replaces an antiquated and bulky hardware system in each hearing office with a software-only solution that records and produces transcripts for each case at the hearings level.”
The new system uses generative AI to produce the transcripts, which does not rely on recording hardware.
As a result, there should be fewer hearing delays or cancelations related to equipment failure or technical issues, the SSA says. The agency also states that it will save around $5 million per year by using the new system.
HeaRT can be used with all hearing formats, whether they are in person, over the telephone or via video. The SSA estimates that around a half-million people will benefit from the new software annually.
The SSA says its administrative appeals operation is “one of the largest administrative judicial systems in the world.”
Americans have the right to appeal any decision the SSA makes about them — such as whether someone has a disability that qualifies them for disability benefits, or whether someone’s income and assets are small enough to qualify them for Supplemental Security Income. As part of the appeals process, administrative law judges conduct hearings and issue decisions.
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