Social Security Joins TEFCA Network to Improve Disability Decision Processing
Date:
Dear Colleague,
We are taking an important step to improve how we serve your clients by joining the Trusted Exchange Framework and Common Agreement (TEFCA) network. By selecting eHealth Exchange as our Qualified Health Information Network (QHIN), we will be able to securely access additional national exchange networks, helping us obtain electronic health information faster and more efficiently to support disability benefit decisions.
Our partnership with eHealth Exchange began with our first live exchange in 2009 and now supports millions of secure data exchanges each year. Through the eHealth Exchange and Carequality networks, we are connected to healthcare organizations, hospitals, practices, and providers nationwide. This relationship helps us obtain electronic medical records more quickly while maintaining a strong focus on trust, transparency, and measurable impact.
We are currently testing our connection to the eHealth Exchange QHIN and expect to be live on the TEFCA exchange by early spring 2026. This digital-first approach will allow us to better target our information requests and significantly reduce disability claim processing times. In many cases, secure electronic exchange can cut processing time by more than 50 percent, leading to faster decisions and more timely access to benefits for the people you serve.
We encourage healthcare organizations, hospitals, practices, and providers interested in learning more about exchanging health information with us to visit the Health Information Technology webpage.
We remain committed to using technology and trusted partnerships to improve service delivery and help Americans access the benefits they need when they need them most. We appreciate your continued partnership and look forward to keeping you informed as this important initiative moves forward.
Sincerely,
Nick Perrine
Chief Communications Officer
External.Relations@ssa.gov