D.O.G.E, the Department of Government Efficiency led by Elon Musk, is still pushing to cut staff, shut down field offices, and limit phone services at the Social Security Administration, which sends checks to around 70 million Americans every month. The Wall Street Journal reported that the agency is getting ready to scale down key services, even though more people are retiring as the baby boomer generation gets older. Two big changes are hitting at the same time: staff cuts and fewer phone options. According to an internal memo sent by Doris Diaz, acting deputy commissioner for operations, as many as 85,000 more people could start walking into field offices every week because of these changes. That’s on top of people already complaining about long wait times and a messy 800-number phone system that barely works. These cuts come as the agency is already dealing with increased demand from retirees and beneficiaries. D.O.G.E cuts phone services and triggers longer wait times On March 31, the agency will stop letting people file for retirement, disability, or survivor benefits over the phone. People won’t even be able to change their direct deposit info by phone anymore. They’ll have to go online or visit a local office. Leland Dudek, acting Social Security commissioner, said these changes are meant to prevent fraud and make sure “the right payment is to the right person at the right time.” He also admitted that the move will lead to more in-person visits over the next two months. “We’re going to adjust our policy and our procedures to adapt to that volume,” Dudek said on a call with reporters. Right now, about 250,000 people call the agency’s 800-number every day. Only 47% of them get through to a real person. That number used to be closer to 60% just last year. Callbacks now take over two hours on average. Bill Sweeney, senior vice president at AARP, said “customer service has been going downhill for years. It’s going to get worse.” Dudek also said that field office employees will get new training over the next two weeks to handle the flood of new walk-ins. But walk-ins aren’t really a thing anymore. Maria Freese, senior legislative representative at the National Committee to Preserve Social Security & Medicare, said most offices are no longer accepting unscheduled visitors. People need to call the 800-number to make appointments. That change was approved by the Biden administration. In February, just 45% of people who tried to schedule an in-person or phone appointment got one within 28 days. And even that number is expected to drop now. Kathleen Romig, who works as the director of Social Security and disability policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, questioned why phone identity verification was being eliminated while still being allowed online or in person. She warned that these new hurdles will especially hurt people without internet or those living far from a field office. D.O.G.E pushes deeper cuts, field office shutdowns, and staff layoffs The agency currently has about 57,000 employees, but D.O.G.E is planning to cut that number down by 12%, which would leave just around 50,000 workers nationwide. For context, the agency had 68,000 employees in 2010. On top of that, nearly 50 field offices are expected to shut down. The watchdog group Social Security Works said some of the locations targeted for closure “don’t seem to exist,” raising questions about how the list was made. There’s more: Elon Musk and President Trump have both made claims that the Social Security system is full of fraud. Howard Lutnick, Commerce Secretary, went as far as saying during a podcast interview that delaying checks might be a good way to catch fraudsters. “They would make the loudest noise screaming, yelling and complaining,” Howard said. Illinois’ Democratic Governor JB Pritzker said “they’re killing these programs from the inside. The result of which is, we don’t know what they are doing to tear down the scaffolding that holds Social Security together.” Even Sue Gentry, a 65-year-old from Florida, reportedly said she’s been worried about her benefits since she experienced disruptions two years ago. “Everybody worries about what they are doing and whether they’re trying to break the system,” she said. D.O.G.E has also been trying to get access to systems that hold Americans’ personal information. But a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order stopping them. After that order, Dudek threatened to shut down the entire agency but later took that back. The situation is even more tense because the program’s money is running out. If Congress doesn’t act, the Social Security trust fund will run dry in 2033, leading to an automatic 21% cut in benefits. Warren and Wyden confront Trump nominee over D.O.G.E actions On Monday, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ron Wyden, both Democrats, sent a letter to Frank Bisignano, the man nominated by President Trump to lead the Social Security Administration. They asked him if he supports privatizing any part of the agency, whether he’ll reverse the layoffs, and if he’ll stop the closures. They also questioned whether he would roll back the new rule forcing people to verify their identity in person. Warren and Wyden pointed out that Fiserv could “theoretically benefit” from a privatized Social Security system. They also said they’re worried about Elon’s private equity connections and warned that these firms may follow the typical plan of “extracting anything of value before selling the remains for parts.” The Senators said in their letter that D.O.G.E’s efforts could “hollow out” the agency and “deprive Americans of Social Security benefits they earned and need.” They also wrote that Elon, who called Social Security the “biggest Ponzi scheme of all time” during a February interview with Joe Rogan, is now leading the privatization push. Warren and Wyden said the Trump administration and D.O.G.E are trying to make the agency fail on purpose so they can justify turning it over to the private sector. That’s the exact same idea President George W. Bush tried in 2005, but it didn’t go anywhere. Now it’s back. Currently, the Social Security Administration puts payroll taxes not immediately needed for benefits into Treasury bonds. If those funds were invested in the private market, returns could be higher — but it would also be way riskier. That’s part of what’s driving the privatization debate all over again. On Tuesday, Warren, Wyden, and other senators will question Bisignano during his Senate confirmation hearing. They want clear answers about the future of the Social Security Administration under President Trump, Elon Musk, and D.O.G.E. Cryptopolitan Academy: Coming Soon - A New Way to Earn Passive Income with DeFi in 2025. Learn More
