Social Security Administration (SSA) Archives

Trump Shutdown Could Snag Social Security, Medicare

In normal times, a government shutdown --- while unfortunate --- would not be cause for immediate alarm for people on Social Security and Medicare. But these are not normal times. The Trump administration has made the shutdown more perilous for the most vulnerable Americans because of its campaign to undermine the delivery of both programs --- not to mention the President’s recent threat to cut benefits.

NCPSSM2025-10-15T15:31:31-04:00October 1st, 2025|Categories: COLAs, Congress, Democrats, Medicare, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump, Trump Administration|

Social Security Comish Would Consider Raising Retirement Age

Despite Trump’s pledge not to cut Social Security, administration officials keep letting the real agenda slip out. First, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hinted that privatizing Social Security was on the table. Now, Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano says he’s open to the idea of raising the retirement age. (The current full retirement age is 67; congressional Republicans have floated proposals to raise it as high as 70.) In an interview on Fox Business News last week, host Maria Bartiromo asked Bisignano if he’d “consider raising the retirement age,” to which the commissioner replied, “I think everything’s being considered.”

NCPSSM2025-10-15T16:03:12-04:00September 22nd, 2025|Categories: Congress, Rep. John Larson, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

Bisignano’s Un-Truthy Letter to the People — or “Fact-Checking the Frankster”

The Trump administration continues to gaslight the American people about its interference in the workings of the Social Security Administration (SSA). So it's time for another fact-check. The Trump administration and DOGE savagely cut staff, closed field offices, and erected barriers for beneficiaries attempting to access their earned benefits --- as part of a phony hunt for ‘fraud’ (which, in fact, is extremely rare). Now, Commissioner Frank Bisignano is misleading the public by claiming that these actions have ‘improved’ customer service, when they have, in fact, made things significantly worse. On the 90th anniversary of Social Security in August, SSA posted an 'un-truthy' letter from Bisignano to the American people on its website. We asked our director of government relations and policy, Dan Adcock, to knock down the false claims by Trump’s Social Security commissioner:

NCPSSM2025-09-02T11:17:11-04:00September 2nd, 2025|Categories: DOGE, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump, Trump Administration|

DOGE ‘Very Badly’ Mishandles Americans’ Social Security Data

Back in February, we warned that DOGE was compromising Americans’ personal information by accessing sensitive Social Security data: “Seniors, their families, and people with disabilities most certainly cannot trust Trump and Musk with their crucial federal benefits — or their personal data.” – Max Richtman, NCPSSM President, 2/3/25 This week, our fears were confirmed. For no justifiable reason, DOGE team members uploaded the personal information of hundreds of millions of Americans to “a vulnerable cloud server,” according to a whistleblower within the Social Security Administration (SSA).

NCPSSM2025-10-15T16:18:54-04:00August 28th, 2025|Categories: DOGE, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump|

Trump Marks Social Security’s 90th Anniversary by Spreading Misinformation

Social Security turned 90 this week, a milestone that should have been celebrated with reverence. However, the Trump administration marked the occasion by perpetuating misleading claims about its handling of the program. From manipulating statistics to spreading untruths about immigrants, this administration is playing a dangerous game with one of America’s most cherished federal programs. Manipulating Metrics to Rewrite Reality As our president, Max Richtman, reminds us, “We wish we could simply celebrate, but the 90-year history of Social Security shows that we must always defend the program from those who would privatize or outright eliminate it.” Richtman emphasizes, “Social Security is part of the fabric of American life and must be preserved for the future.”

NCPSSM2025-08-18T14:13:43-04:00August 15th, 2025|Categories: Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump|

Trump/DOGE Actions Fuel Surge in Social Security Claims

More Americans are suddenly filing for Social Security earlier than planned --- and it isn’t necessarily because they’re eager to retire. Interference in the Social Security system by Trump, Musk and DOGE has triggered a wave of public panic about the future of the program. For many, it’s created a sense of urgency to claim benefits before any other harmful changes are made. According to CBS News, early Social Security claims have surged by 17% this year compared to the same period in 2024. If this trend continues, annual filings are on track to reach 4 million. This spike comes amid the slashing of workforce and resources at the Social Security Administration under the guise of hunting for ‘waste and fraud.’

NCPSSM2025-06-06T18:13:48-04:00June 6th, 2025|Categories: Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump|

Trump Wants to Reclassify Social Security Staffers as Political Appointees

The Trump administration is again targeting the Social Security Administration (SSA) with changes that could undermine its mission. President Trump seeks to replace career civil servants at federal agencies (including SSA) with politically loyal appointees, using a classification known as “Schedule F.” This reclassification is designed to boost the president's control over career federal staffers by removing their civil service protections and making them easier to fire.

NCPSSM2025-04-24T11:00:13-04:00April 23rd, 2025|Categories: Elon Musk, President Biden, President Trump, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

Martin O’Malley Makes the Case Against Trump, Musk & DOGE on Our Podcast

On Friday, April 4, our “You Earned This” podcast will feature a special guest: former Maryland Governor and Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley. It’s a conversation that everyone who cares about the future of Social Security should hear. O'Malley, who led the Social Security Administration (SSA) during the final year of Joe Biden’s presidency, brings a voice of consternation --- and determination to the national conversation. His message is clear: Social Security is under attack, and the consequences for millions of Americans couldn’t be more dire.

NCPSSM2025-04-04T16:12:27-04:00April 3rd, 2025|Categories: President Trump, Social Insurance, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

7 Questions for Trump’s Social Security Commissioner Nominee

President Trump’s pick to head the Social Security Administration, Frank Bisignano, will have his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday morning. The financial services CEO and Republican donor has been waiting in the wings since the Trump administration took over in January. In the meantime, Elon Musk and his DOGE squad have invaded the Social Security Administration (SSA) and wreaked considerable havoc on the agency --- alarming seniors’ advocates and a sizeable swath of the general public. In the absence of a confirmed commissioner, Acting SSA chief Leland Dudek has abetted Musk and DOGE every step of the way, allowing them access to the sensitive personal data of 73 million Americans for no justifiable reason, radically reducing the workforce that serves Social Security customers, closing field offices, and slashing services on the agency’s 1-800 phone number that seniors rely on. He claims to be “following orders” from President Trump and Elon Musk. Dudek threatened to "shut down" SSA after a federal judge ruled against the agency's decision to grant Musk and DOGE access to beneficiaries' private data. Bisignano has no appreciable experience in public service in general --- or Social Security in particular --- but Trump wants him to run one of the federal agencies that most closely touches Americans' lives every day. We don't know much about what Bisignano thinks of Social Security or what he will do to the program if confirmed.

NCPSSM2025-03-24T17:55:00-04:00March 24th, 2025|Categories: Bernie Sanders, President Trump, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA)|

Former Social Security Official Says Musk/DOGE Caused “Trauma and Chaos” at SSA

Laura Haltzel is the first former Social Security Administration (SSA) official who was present for the Trump administration’s takeover of the agency to speak out publicly in an on the record interview. In her first interview since leaving SSA, Haltzel told Entitled to Know that Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) “traumatized” SSA employees — and created “gross inefficiencies” in the system. Haltzel resigned her post as Associate Commissioner Office of Research, Evaluation and Statistics on February 28, accepting an early retirement offer that the administration extended to all SSA employees.

NCPSSM2025-03-13T18:32:08-04:00March 13th, 2025|Categories: Elon Musk, Social Security, Social Security Administration (SSA), Trump|