Above menus show some of the key functions in processing Benefit Payments.
Benefit Payments can be processed for any type of Benefit, once the Application or Claim is approved. The Pay Frequency of Benefits can differ for each Benefit and/or for each Beneficiary Group.
For each Benefit Pay Cycle, a standard set of steps will be followed to ensure Payment is processed correctly from the system.
All critical steps have a Trial step which allows the user to simulate the process and see the outcome, run reports and verify results prior to moving forward with doing the actual transactions and committing them to the live database.
Running the Benefit Payment Trial Process will give the user the calculated Benefits which are expected to be paid in that particular Benefit Pay Period for the selected Benefit and Beneficiary Group.
Following the Trial Process Run, the user can produce a Trial Register which gives the user detailed reports, and the ability to run all types of relevant reports that allows the user, reviewer and/or auditor to check any information and compare any data that needs to be verified to make sure the right Beneficiaries are set to receive the correct Benefit Amounts for the exact Benefits to which they are entitled as per the approved Benefit Claims.
Once the Benefit Payment Trial Register has been reviewed, the user will be able to generate Trial ACH Files or other Direct Bank Deposit Files which follow the standard format required by local banks. The user will also be able to produce the Trial file for the Cheque Register which will show all the Cheques that are about the be printed. Again, the user will be able to verify everything and ensure the correct bank information is to be used and Cheques are being issued to the correct people as per the requests and original settings in the system.
The system will also produce the Trial GL Transactions so all GL entries which will result from the Benefit Payment Process can also be reviewed and verified in advance to ensure they are accurate and using the correct GL accounts.
The purpose of all the various Trial Steps is to ensure that the user is able to review everything and ensure that all transactions are 100% accurate before anything is fully executed. During this process any mistakes that are caught can easily be corrected and the Benefit Amounts can be recalculated by the systems once the underlying data elements which caused the inaccuracy are corrected.
After careful review of all Trial Registers, Check Registers and GL Reports the user can move on to the Final Processing steps, which will result in the actual payment of the Benefits and updating of all tables and history for the transactions.
The user will start with Benefit Payment Final Processing, which will calculate the actual amounts that are being paid to the various Beneficiaries now. These amounts and details will be identical based on what was calculated in the preceding Trial Process.
Next, the user will produce the Final Register for review and approval before moving on to the actual ACH file generation or the Final Check register.
Once these steps are completed, the user will print the Checks that were listed in the Check Register, these Checks will be printed based on the format chosen in the original setup for Checks to be printed in this particular environment.
Now that Benefit Payments have been issued using the ACH file and Checks have been printed, the Final GL Posting file will be created for import or direct posting to the GL application that is in use.
After this step, the user will generate the Beneficiaries Social Security Benefit Payment Statement which will update the statement with the latest payments in it.
After this the user will close the Benefit Payment Period and the next period immediately following this period will be opened by the system so the user can start preparing for payments again in the new Period.