There’s been a lot of buzz around recent changes and announcements from the Social Security Administration (SSA)—and frankly, it’s getting confusing. If you’ve been hearing mixed messages about call wait times, paper checks, and staffing changes, you’re not alone. Here’s what’s really happening and what you need to know.
Social Security Praises Itself—But People Are Still Struggling
The SSA has released several press releases recently, celebrating what they say are improvements in customer service. They’ve claimed that:
- They completed 3.1 million payments from the Social Security Fairness Act five months ahead of schedule.
- Average call wait times on the 800 number are down to 13 minutes.
- 90% of calls are now resolved through automated options or convenient callbacks.
- Initial disability claims backlog has dropped by 25%.
- Disability hearings are at a historic low.
But these announcements don’t match what many people are actually experiencing. Real callers are still reporting long wait times, getting stuck in automated menus, and hanging up in frustration without speaking to a real person.
Have you tried calling Social Security lately? We’d love to hear about your experience.
Staffing Issues & Service Gaps
To help ease some of the burden on the national phone lines, the SSA recently moved about 1,000 employees from local field offices to the national 800 number. This increased phone staff by roughly 25%. But not everyone is convinced this was a good move.
Jessica LePoint, president of Council 220 of the American Federation of Government Employees, explained:
“The 1-800 number, they do offer a critical role at the agency, but it’s triage, whereas customer service representatives actually clear work for the agency. So, it’s going to create a vicious cycle of work not getting cleared, people calling for status on work that’s just sitting because the claim specialists now are going to have to pick up the slack of the customer service representatives that are being redeployed to the teleservice centers.”
Essentially, while phone calls might be answered a little faster, the complex work that actually resolves Social Security claims could start falling behind.
Will SSA Stop Sending Paper Checks?
A few months ago, the SSA announced that it would stop sending paper checks after September 30, 2025. That plan would have affected about 520,000 people who still rely on receiving their benefits by mail.
After a meeting with Senator Elizabeth Warren, SSA Commissioner Frank Bisagnano reversed that decision—at least for now. He stated that people who still need paper checks will continue to have access to them.
However, Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, cautioned against taking this announcement at face value. She said:
“SSA’s policy for about a decade has already been to limit paper checks only to people who need them. So we are not sure what Bisagnano means. What is his definition of people who need them, and how does that compare to the criteria that SSA has used for years?”
The concern here is that SSA may still quietly restrict access by redefining who “needs” a paper check. So, if you can set up direct deposit, it may still be a good idea to do so, even if the immediate pressure is off.
What Else Senator Warren Got Done
Senator Warren didn’t stop at paper checks. Her meeting with the SSA Commissioner also led to several other important outcomes:
- An independent audit of customer service will be conducted. This audit will look at real-world metrics like call wait times, the number of dropped calls, how often callers are transferred to the wrong department, and how many people actually get their issues resolved.
- Audit results will be made public, so we can all see how SSA is really doing.
- No reclassification to Schedule F, a job category that would make it easier to fire federal workers. SSA committed not to use that classification.
- No plans to rehire laid-off employees, but SSA also said they don’t intend to lay off more staff at this time.
- Admitted responsibility for false information that was sent out in an earlier letter about benefit changes. This letter was not reviewed by the Office of General Counsel and SSA has no plans to send a correction.
Relief Recap
SSA says it won’t eliminate paper checks yet, but access could still be limited. Staffing issues continue to affect both phone and in-person service. An independent audit of SSA’s customer service is on the way, and transparency will be critical in the months ahead.
