Big changes are on the way, and they will affect how the public deals with Social Security.
Benefits will not be reduced, and virtually all California offices are expected to remain open. However, critics claim that new policies will make it more difficult to obtain personalized service.
The Trump administration wants to reduce what it sees as excessive waste and fraud in the system, which provides benefits to 6.3 million California residents.
Trump insists that he will not cut benefits.
“I am not going to touch Social Security, Medicare, or Medicaid.” Our goal is to eliminate fraud. “Everybody wants us to expose the fraud,” he said earlier this month.
However, the administration can and has begun to change the way Social Security works.
“The administration exerts significant control over the program through regulatory actions, budget allocations, and policy decisions.
Shannon Benton, executive director of the nonpartisan Senior Citizens League, stated that these indirect actions could reduce the value or availability of benefits without the need for formal legislative changes.
There is concern about what motivates administration officials’ views on the program.
Last week, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on the “All-In” podcast, “Let’s say Social Security did not send out their checks this month.” My mother-in-law, who is 94, would not call to complain.” She’d figure “something got messed up, and she’ll get it next month.”
He continued, “A fraudster always makes the loudest noise, screaming, yelling and complaining,”
Rep. Ami Bera, a Democrat from Sacramento, was appalled. “Social Security provides a lifeline for millions of seniors. “For many, it is their sole source of income,” he stated on X. “Missing a payment could mean unpaid rent, skipped meals and financial hardship.”
What’s changing at Social Security?
Here’s a quick guide to where things stand:
▪ Verifying your identification.
If you want to make changes or apply for new benefits, new policies could be important.
For as long as anyone can remember, people could verify their identities by calling the agency.
Starting next Monday, the process will require you to visit a Social Security office or go online. That will cause problems for many people, according to Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, a nonpartisan advocacy organization.
The freshly implemented rule will “force seniors and people with disabilities to navigate a needless technical hurdle in applying for their earned benefits,” said Mr. Johnson.
The Social Security Administration sees the policy change as an important tool for combating fraud.
“The updated measures will further safeguard Social Security records and benefits against fraudulent activity,” according to a statement from the agency.
▪ Closing offices.
One field office in Carlsbad, California, is on the list of potential lease terminations, but the government has proposed selling dozens of offices across the country.
Critics of the administration are concerned that in-person service will become increasingly difficult. According to Richtman, many people in need of assistance are not technically skilled and may not even own computers or smartphones.
Therefore, “they would have to call SSA via the already overburdened phone line to set up an appointment, and travel in person to an SSA field office at a time when the agency is closing field offices across the country and radically reducing staff.”
According to The Bee, the majority of the leases are for small, remote hearing sites that are located near another Social Security or federal facility.
“Because most hearings are conducted virtually, we no longer require as many in-person hearing locations. The Social Security offices where the lease for a small remote hearing site was terminated will remain open to serve the public, according to the agency.
It stated that other lease terminations were frequently scheduled to be closed or consolidated into other locations.
Will employees be available?
▪ Employees in the office.
According to Social Security officials, almost all employees, “including front-line employees in all offices throughout the country, must work in the office five days a week.”
This “ensures maximum staffing is available to support the stronger in-person identity proofing requirement,” according to a statement from the agency.
The company pledged to “continue to monitor and, if necessary, make adjustments, to ensure it pays the right person the right amount at the right time while at the same time safeguarding the benefits and programs it administers.”
▪ Overpayments.
There are numerous reasons why people are paid too much. They include not only fraud but also changes in marital and employment statuses, among other things.
Social Security had previously withheld 10% of any overpayments detected, but beginning this week, new overpayments will be subject to a 100% withholding rate on monthly benefits.
“The agency strives to pay the right person the right amount at the right time, and the majority of beneficiaries receive accurate payments. “When an overpayment occurs, the agency is required by law to seek repayment,” the agency stated.
The withholding rate for current beneficiaries who received an overpayment before Friday will not change, according to the agency. If the 100% overpayment proves to be a financial burden, beneficiaries should contact the agency.
▪ Shutdown.
Social Security is not being shut down.
On Thursday, Acting Commissioner Lee Dudek threatened to do so, sparking a firestorm.
After a federal judge temporarily prohibited the Department of Government Efficiency, which is driving the federal cuts, from obtaining personal information from Social Security, Dudek told the Washington Post that everything at the agency is personal data.
“Unless I receive clarification, I’ll simply begin to shut it down. “I don’t have much of a choice here,” he explained.
Later, he backtracked, telling the newspaper, “The president is committed to keeping Social Security offices open to serve the public.” Dudek claimed he was “out of line.”
DOGE is eager to reduce government spending, and budget cuts may have an impact on beneficiaries, according to Benton of the Senior League.
A smaller budget “could result in delays in processing claims, issuing benefits, or providing services, affecting the timely receipt of benefits. A slower process could put financial strain on beneficiaries, especially those who rely on timely payments, she said.
