Every year, May is designated as Older Americans Month,  a time to recognize the contributions of older Americans, highlight aging trends, and reaffirm commitments to serving the older adults in our communities. Normally, this national observance is led with gusto by the Administration for Community Living, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, whose mission is to serve the needs of the aging and disabled populations and improve access to health care and long-term services.  On the Older Americans website (https://acl.gov/oam/2025/older-americans-month-2025 ), ACL offers dozens of ways local communities can get involved, creating special events, stories, posters, social media and other activities.

But this year is very different.

Amid these monthly festivities, Health and Human Services has announced a controversial plan to radically shrink and restructure ACL, integrating critical programs into other HHS agencies and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. At the same time, the Trump administration is making major changes in the Social Security Administration (SSA), as part of its DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) initiative aimed at sharply reducing the size of the federal workforce and eliminating “waste, fraud and abuse” across the Executive Branch. At SSA, the plan is to cut thousands of jobs, “optimizing its workforce towards direct public service.” The agency asserts that these job cuts will not impact benefits; its rule changes and the use of technology will improve services, result in cost savings and operational efficiencies, and help prevent fraud.

Let’s hope so.  But for now, the upheaval at the agency is raising considerable angst for retirees—and people getting close to retirement. At a recent town hall meeting on Long Island attended by several hundred participants, I could sense the anxiety—and occasional anger—at the uncertainty caused by changes at the agency. People are scared about what they’re hearing: long call wait lines; potential delays in check distribution; SSA website outages; and sudden changes in policies.

Where, then, do we go from here? I realize that almost any discussion of the Trump administration’s fast and furious first 100 days runs the risk of becoming highly politicized. Still, we need to find a way to level-set the discussion in a methodical, rational way.

          I.                    What Benefits Does Social Security Provide Today?

Despite its share of critics, the Social Security system, which turns 90 years old this year, remains the nation’s most important social insurance program. It’s “social,” meaning it’s a universal program where everyone pays into the system; the benefits are monies that beneficiaries have earned, not a handout. And it’s an insurance program, designed to help protect people against future financial risk.

Here's a snapshot of the program, which supports millions of Americans through retirement, disability, and survivor benefits:

·         70 million Americans per month receive a Social Security benefit, totaling $1.7 trillion annually. About 52 million retired workers and dependents receive an average monthly benefit of $1,975. Over 7 million disabled workers and dependents receive an average monthly benefit of $1,581.

·         Social Security benefits represent about 31% of income of people over age 65. It provides at least half of income for about four in 10 beneficiaries, and more than 90% of income for one in seven beneficiaries.

·         Social Security is also the nation’s largest anti-poverty program, keeping about 20 million older Americans and 1 million children out of poverty. It plays a vital role in reducing poverty in every state.

·         Social Security is particularly important for older women and people of color. Women tend to earn less than men, take more time out of the paid workforce, live longer, accumulate less savings, and receive smaller pensions. Black and Latino workers benefit substantially from Social Security because, on average, they have higher disability rates and lower lifetime earnings than white workers.

·         Social Security also plays a vital role in stimulating economic activity, contributing $1.4 trillion annually to the U.S. economy. Individuals use their benefits for a wide range of goods and services, boosting sales for local retailers, small businesses and large corporations.

     II.                  What’s the Impact of the Current Administrative Disruption?

Workforce Reduction. It looks like the DOGE plan  calls for 7,000 job cuts at the agency. This amounts to a 12% reduction in the SSA’s workforce of 57,000 employees, at a time when its staffing is already at a historical low and the number of applicants is rising. In a recent news release, the agency acknowledged that so far it has processed the completion of over 3,000 voluntary separations and about 350 deferred resignations; about 2,000 employees in support positions have agreed to be reassigned “on a flow basis to the offices in most need of staffing resources.”

These workforce reductions reportedly include half of the agency's information technology personnel—a worrisome move, since it affects the people who manage everything from benefit applications to backend systems that deliver payments. What makes this brain drain of SSA tech staffers even more problematic is that it’s taking place at the same time the agency is undertaking several initiatives to implement new technologies, including a massive effort to replace SSA’s aging IT infrastructure in a matter of months. Experts warn that this move could cause major disruptions to benefit delivery.

Office Closures. While DOGE may have proposed closing numerous Social Security offices as part of its cost-cutting efforts, the agency insists it “is NOT permanently closing field offices,” only underutilized hearing office space. That said, a plan circulating within the agency reportedly includes a goal to “further reduce footprint” in 2026 and beyond.

Waste, Fraud and Abuse (WFA).  SSA officials, like others in this DOGE-driven environment, often cite efforts to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse (the three terms always seem linked, like three ugly siblings). While everyone wants to root out fraud, it seems that instances of actual fraud are relatively rare; the majority of improper payments result from administrative errors or unintentional mistakes. A report earlier this year by the SSA’s Office of the Inspector General found that from 2020 to 2023, only about 3% of improper payments, nearly $102 million annually, were due to fraudulent activities. And in fiscal 2024, the OIG reported that about $71.8 billion, or roughly 0.84% of $1.5 trillion, were improper payments, often stemming from factors such as beneficiaries failing to report income changes.

So, when President Trump claimed in his speech before Congress in March that millions of senior citizens over age 100—including 130,000 more than 160 years old—were collecting Social Security checks, that’s false. (According to agency records, 89,106 people over age 99 received retirement benefits in December.) Wherever the president got his numbers from, the agency says it is working to improve the accuracy of death data, and “no instances have arisen to date where an implausible old individual whose record SSA updated actually contacted the agency for reinstatement.”

Access to Personal SSA Data. Social Security officials have claimed that DOGE staffers working at Social Security need access to databases with people’s personal information for the anti-fraud projects they’re working on. However, federal judges have issued orders restricting DOGE's access to sensitive Social Security data, citing concerns about potential harm and the lack of need for such access. The agency holds sensitive personal records on nearly everyone in the country, including school records, bank details, salary information and medical and mental health records for disability recipients. Last week, the Trump administration filed an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, asking to clear the way for DOGE to access Social Security systems containing personal data on millions of Americans. The appeal followed a divided decision from the 4th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday that continued to block DOGE from accessing the information.

                          III.                SO WHAT DO WE DO NOW?

This is really a two-part question, short term and long term. Short term, we need to find a path through this current period of uncertainty. Granted, the agency is implementing measures aimed at reducing improper payments and enhancing “program integrity,” including updating technology systems, improving data sharing with other agencies, strengthening identity proofing requirements and refining processes for detecting and preventing errors. But it’s also cutting staff and budgets and reorganizing the agency at such a breakneck pace that it’s not clear whether the goal is to fix it or break it.

At the recent Long Island town hall, former Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley said he believes that things are going to get worse: Wait times will get longer; intermittent disruptions in website and digital services will get more common. DOGE “wants to traumatize the federal workforce,” he says, and the resulting turmoil will further complicate access for people who depend on these systems for survival.

 In such an environment of instability, the best way for individuals to protect themselves against problems with phone or in-person services is to make sure they have online access to the agency by creating a personal My Social Security account, says Mark Miller, a nationally recognized retirement and aging expert who focuses on Social Security and Medicare issues.

It’s also important for people to speak up, Miller adds, to let their legislators know what they want. And what most people want is to keep their benefits and stop the chaos. And don’t make decisions behind DOGE doors; do it in the light of day. Congress needs to step up, not only providing oversight and ensuring transparency in assessing the changes being made to SSA, but in leading the public debate over the long-term future of this 90-year-old program.

Many younger workers are already skeptical that the program will be there for them when they retire, believing that Social Security is going broke. Not so. But if nothing is done to make fixes to the program in the next 10 years, current benefits are likely to be cut by about 17%. (Around the same time, ironically, the Census Bureau projects that the number of people aged 65 and over will exceed the number of people under 18 for the first time.)

Why the dire projection? Well, historically, the program has built up surpluses in the Social Security Trust Funds, but these are now being used to supplement incoming payroll tax income.

Because of lower U.S. birth rates and a growing population of retirees, the number of workers is not growing as fast as the number of beneficiaries. As a result of these factors, the Social Security system is facing financial imbalance, where benefits paid are outpacing income from payroll tax revenue. So, by 2035, the trust fund is projected to run out of reserves, meaning that Social Security would not be able to pay full benefits to all recipients—if no changes are made to the program.

There are a number of proposed fixes, ranging from increasing the payroll tax cap to adjusting the retirement age or modifying benefit formulas. However, any such changes must be made carefully, ensuring that the most vulnerable populations are protected. The situation we face today is more than a policy debate; it is a question of our values. Are we committed to supporting aging Americans, the disabled, and the survivors of deceased workers? Or are we willing to risk their well-being in the name of administrative overhauls and cost-cutting measures? As lawmakers debate the future of the program, they must center the needs of the people it serves and recommit to strengthening—rather than dismantling—one of the most successful social insurance programs in U.S. history. The nation’s retirees, disabled workers, and future beneficiaries deserve nothing less.

—Ron Roel