Government getting out of check printing to save money
Paper checks for Social Security are about to be a thing of the past:
You have til Friday, March 1st to choose how you get your benefits, or the government will decide for you
Friday, March 1st is the deadline to change, if you're receiving any kind of Social Security, retirement benefits or disability payments, by check.
Starting with April payments, the government will no longer be printing checks. Linda McNally, who oversees Senior Services for the Salvation Army Syracuse says it's to save money, but also because it's more secure to get direct payments.
If people receiving paper checks do no make a decision on their futures, the government will opt to put the payment on a debit card. People can choose direct deposit into a bank account instead.
McNally says there will be some exceptions, but mostly for people living in rural areas where debit cards would cause a hardship.
The changeover affects very few people. Benefit requests since 2011 have already been set up electronically.
If you need to make the change, you can call (800) or TTY (800) McNally says a 'real human being' answers and is very helpful.
