Social Security Administrator Responds After Senator's Warning

Newsweek

3 days ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
New Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano has fired back at Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren over her criticism of the agency's changes and customer service in recent months.
He defended the changes implemented under the Trump administration, saying the agency is "experiencing a customer service turnaround after four years of long wait times and record backlogs under the Biden administration."
Why It Matters
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has become the center of a national debate over the future of one of America's most vital safety net programs. Recent leadership and technology changes have prompted warnings from lawmakers, labor unions, advocates and former officials that millions of beneficiaries could soon face delays or interruptions in their monthly payments.
At stake is the reliability of Social Security for more than 70 million Americans, especially older adults and people with disabilities, as the agency modernizes and manages its workforce under intense political scrutiny.
Critics have focused their warnings on the rollout of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, office closures and staffing cutbacks, with Warren, of Massachusetts, previously raising alarms about access to benefits, transparency and program solvency for current and future retirees.
A Social Security Administration (SSA) office in Washington, DC, March 26, 2025.
A Social Security Administration (SSA) office in Washington, DC, March 26, 2025.
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
What To Know
A group of senators including Ron Wyden, Democrat from Oregon; Bernie Sanders, independent from Vermont; Kirsten Gillibrand, a New York Democrat; and Warren previously sent a letter to Bisignano, demanding answers on the SSA's recent adoption of AI-driven customer service tools.
The senators raised concerns about problems reminiscent of past missteps, including a failed fraud-detection chatbot that reportedly yielded only two potential fraud claims from 111,000 attempts and recent disruptions to benefit access linked to the agency's technology changes.
"This lack of communication from your agency undermines its efforts to improve services by sowing chaos and confusion, which breeds distrust in the agency and its leadership," the senators said.
The letter also requests details on the AI system implementations and their impact, setting a response deadline of July 18.
Bisignano on Monday issued a response shared with Fox Business, defending the agency's reforms and recent track record.
"The SSA is experiencing a customer service turnaround after four years of long wait times and record backlogs under the Biden administration," Bisignano said in the letter reviewed by Fox ahead of its release.
"While I welcome your recent interest in customer service at SSA and the myriad of correspondences you sent my predecessor and me since President Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025, I'm struck by how little you corresponded with the agency to express concern about deteriorating customer service during the previous administration," Bisignano wrote to Warren.
The SSA provided updated performance data last month: The average response time for phone calls dropped to 6 minutes from 30 minutes in the prior fiscal year; field office wait times decreased to 23 minutes; and removal of online service downtimes has benefited an additional 125,000 users in a single week, according to the agency's findings.
"Across all of our service indicators, the evidence is clear: better management is improving the customer experience on the phones, in the field offices, and online. Nothing in the data supports the irresponsible allegations of mismanagement and a customer service crisis at SSA," Bisignano said in his letter.
But not everyone is certain those numbers reflect actual wait times for Social Security recipients.
"A simple search reveals average wait times now exceed one hour, even though the SSA dashboard still shows 18.5 minutes," Kevin Thompson, CEO of 9i Capital Group and host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek.
"Much of that data excludes the volume of callback requests—many people are opting for callbacks instead of waiting on hold, and those are coming 1.5 to 2 hours later, if at all."
Changes at the SSA developed under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formerly led by Elon Musk.
DOGE's initiatives, including substantial staff cuts, access to Social Security databases and shifting most services online have sparked bipartisan concern.
Former SSA Commissioner Martin O'Malley warned that these measures could soon interrupt Social Security payments, a break from tradition in over 80 years of continuous benefit delivery.
"Ultimately, you're going to see the system collapse and an interruption of benefits, within the next 30 to 90 days," O'Malley said in March.
Newsweek reached out to Warren's office for comment via email.
What People Are Saying
Alex Beene, financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek: "With the current dispute on Social Security customer service wait times, it's more of a situation of "he said, she said." The recent news releases from the administration have focused on faster wait times and more cases being resolved. However, Senator Warren points to concerns her office has received over some of that data not being accurate, and Social Security field employees being highly stressed in maintaining the additional workload they've been asked to cover."
Thompson also told Newsweek: "Like many of us, Warren wants to see accurate, honest data. We all support modernizing the program, but it's hard to reconcile claims of modernization with staff reductions and quiet efforts to push people into early retirement or resignation."
What Happens Next
Beneficiaries experiencing issues are urged to contact the SSA directly or reach out to congressional offices for assistance. Further updates are expected as lawmakers receive responses and new technology initiatives reach additional agency offices nationwide.
"The suggestion of a meeting between legislators and the SSA could resolve some of these lingering questions over whether the new procedures to customer service are really decreasing wait times to the extent claimed or not," Beene said.