The Social Security Administration responded to a warning from Senator Elizabeth Warren about long wait times at the agency.
Since President Donald Trump took office, the SSA has touted its improved wait times for beneficiaries, following several technology updates.
Warren wrote on X: “The Trump administration is LYING about how long people are stuck waiting for help with their Social Security benefits. I pressed the Social Security Commissioner and got him to agree to an independent investigation.”
Why It Matters
Social Security serves over 70 million Americans, including retirees, the disabled, and survivors, making the accessibility and responsiveness of its services crucial for millions who depend on timely benefits.
Ongoing issues with customer service, particularly prolonged call wait times, can directly impact the ability of vulnerable populations to access their benefits.
What To Know
The SSA announced earlier this summer that wait times on its national 800 number had gone down from 30 minutes to single digits. Also under Trump’s administration, the SSA said it cut field office wait times by 30 percent and restored around-the-clock access to the Social Security online portal.
The improvements arrived after the SSA underwent major restructuring, including the loss of around 7,000 jobs under the Department of Government Efficiency.
Warren previously called out the SSA for allegedly misconstruing its wait times to the general public.
In a letter to SSA commissioner Frank Bisignano, Warren wrote, “The SSA is failing to provide policymakers and the public with accurate information about the extent of the problem, using convoluted calculations to obfuscate the real data, or withholding information entirely.”
The senator called for an inspector general-led public audit of the agency’s reporting procedures for phone wait times. She also thanked Bisignano for agreeing to such an audit but did not specify a timeline.
The SSA responded to Warren’s repeated concerns in a post on X: “FACT CHECK: During Commissioner Bisignano’s meeting with Sen. Warren, he presented improved customer service metrics and welcomed an independent review of the data. The reality is SSA employees are serving more Americans at quicker speeds.”
This is after Warren posted, “The Trump administration is LYING about how long people are stuck waiting for help with their Social Security benefits. I pressed the Social Security Commissioner and got him to agree to an independent investigation.”
“Commissioner Bisignano’s vision is straightforward: a Social Security Administration that is easier to access, faster to respond, and better prepared to meet the challenges of tomorrow,” a spokesperson for the SSA told Newsweek.
“This vision is rooted in his distinguished 40-year career successfully leading the world’s largest financial institutions and financial technology companies through significant crises and complex modernization efforts. Under President Trump’s leadership and his commitment to protect and preserve Social Security, Commissioner Bisignano is strengthening Social Security and the programs it provides for Americans now and in the future.”
What People Are Saying
A spokesperson for the SSA told Newsweek: “Despite unfounded claims, SSA’s dedicated workforce is delivering a significantly improved customer experience. At the beginning of the year, the SSA workforce was comprised of approximately 57,500 employees. The current SSA workforce as a whole stands at about 52,000 strong. Commissioner Bisignano has pledged to have the right level of staffing to deliver best-in-class customer service.”
“The impact of Commissioner Bisignano’s strategic transformation of SSA is clear: the average speed of answer for the National 800 Number has dropped from 30 minutes last year to single digits; average field office wait times have decreased by 30 percent; the SSA website now enables Americans with 24/7 access and management of their benefits after the elimination of 29 hours of previously scheduled weekly downtime; and 3.1 million Social Security Fairness Act payments totaling $17 billion were sent five months early.”
Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: “No one should be angered by the SSA’s shift to become modern in customer service through better use of its online platform. At the same point, the wait times for calls, a major factor in how recipients get their questions answered, have been heavily disputed. While the administration continues to cite how dramatically wait times have decreased, their data includes callers who opt for a callback and a shorter waiting period in that metric. The fear is the numbers being presented are not an accurate reflection of customer service with a reduced workforce.”
What Happens Next
As the call wait times remain heavily disputed by the SSA, lawmakers and beneficiaries themselves, the independent review will likely reveal the most accurate information.
The SSA will also transition to fully digital payments at the end of September, discontinuing paper checks as a payment method, following an executive order signed by Trump in March.
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