5 Ways AARP Is Fighting to Protect Social Security Right Now

We’re mobilizing our members, calling for answers and opposing harmful customer-service cuts

By Emily Paulin, www.AARP.org

Published March 26, 2025

The Social Security Administration (SSA) has recently unveiled big changes to how it will operate, announcing a plan to scrap some over-the-phone application services, make cuts to its workforce and close many of its regional offices.

AARP is sending a clear message that Social Security must be protected. We’re taking action to ensure that all older Americans can safely access the benefits they have earned and get questions answered in the ways that are best for them.

“In an ever-changing, and often confusing, political and media environment, AARP is fighting on behalf of our members to protect Social Security,” said AARP’s John Hishta, senior vice president of campaigns. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to ensuring that older Americans continue to see no disruption in their payments and receive the information they need to stay informed and take action on changes at SSA.”

AARP, which advocates for more than 100 million Americans age 50 and older, has adopted an “all-hands-on-deck approach,” Hishta says. We are engaging with SSA leadership and lawmakers, educating decision-makers and the public on the importance of Social Security to older Americans and the toll customer-service cuts could have, and encouraging our members to join our fight. AARP activists have sent more than a million emails and calls to Congress in the past few weeks, voicing their concerns about recent SSA changes.

Join AARP’s fight to protect Social Security

You’ve worked hard and paid into Social Security with every paycheck. But recently, we’ve heard from thousands of worried Americans.
Join us in sending a loud and clear message to lawmakers.

Nearly 69 million Americans currently receive benefits from SSA, and 183 million workers pay into the program. Social Security is the primary source of income for many older Americans.

Here’s how AARP is fighting to protect Social Security.

1. Defending against cuts to customer service

On March 18, the SSA announced that at the end of the month, those applying for and receiving Social Security will no longer be permitted to confirm their identity over the phone. Instead, they’ll be required to complete the application process in person at a local office or online.

On March 26, the SSA updated that announcement, delaying the change by two weeks to start April 14 and moving to allow select groups, including those applying for Social Security Disability Insurance, to still be able to apply by phone. 

In a response the same day, AARP called the two-week delay “a good first step” but noted that “merely delaying implementation is not enough."

"SSA should take a deliberate approach to its proposed changes to customer service that seeks public input, follows a clear communication plan, and allows a reasonable timeframe for compliance," wrote AARP’s Nancy LeaMond, executive vice president and chief advocacy and engagement officer.

In an earlier letter to SSA Acting Commissioner Leland Dudek, AARP had already expressed strong opposition to the change and urged the agency to rethink the requirement.  

“Asking tens of millions of Americans to jump through new hoops and prove their identity in the next 13 days to access the customer service they have paid for is deeply unacceptable,” LeaMond wrote.  

LeaMond also issued a statement pointing out that the change will result in longer wait times and challenges, especially for rural Americans who may need to drive for hours to fill out the paperwork.

“SSA's announcement not only comes as a total surprise but is on an impractical fast track,” she wrote. “SSA needs to be transparent about its service changes and seek input from the older Americans who will be affected because any delay in Social Security caused by this change can mean real economic hardship.”

2. Calling on Congress to act

AARP is also urging Congress to intervene when it comes to the cuts to phone services for Americans receiving Social Security. On March 24, we sent letters to the U.S. Senate Finance Committee and the U.S. House Ways & Means Committee pushing Congress to “exercise its oversight authority, hold hearings, and intervene before this change causes serious harm to the millions of older Americans and people with disabilities who rely on Social Security.”

3. Mobilizing our members

AARP is urging our members to call on Congress to keep Social Security strong. We want lawmakers to know that you want Social Security to remain responsive and accountable to the Americans it has a responsibility to serve. On March 3, we created an easy way for AARP members and the public to contact Congress. As of March 24, more than a million messages have been sent.

Learn How AARP Is Fighting for You

AARP is your fierce defender on issues that matter to people 50-plus, including Social Security. Read More about how we fight for you every day in Congress and across the country.

4. Ensuring Social Security can meet the needs of older Americans

On Feb. 27, the SSA announced plans to slash its workforce by 12 percent, from about 57,000 employees to 50,000, and to reduce its number of field offices from 10 to four. But staffing levels at the agency are already at historic lows, which have contributed to a customer service crisis of long waits on hold on calls to the SSA’s helpline and delays in disability decisions.  

LeaMond released a statement noting that AARP has called for better customer service for decades, and that the SSA must ensure further improvements.

“It is a matter of basic respect that people should be able to receive timely and correct answers to questions that can irrevocably impact their financial future,” she wrote. “We are urging Social Security to be clear on how they are going to improve customer service and make sure the phones are being answered by fully trained representatives who can accurately answer Americans' questions.”

5. Raising your concerns with decision-makers

In February, as the SSA announced that it would be cutting staff and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) started work at SSA, thousands of AARP members voiced concerns about the possibility of delayed payments, long wait times for customer service and the safety of personal data.

AARP reached out in a letter to the SSA to get answers on these topics and more. Continued discussion and transparency “will be key to reassuring the American people — especially millions of older Americans — that their earned benefits, personal data, due process rights, and essential services remain protected,” wrote AARP’s Bill Sweeney, senior vice president for government affairs.

The SSA acting commissioner replied to us March 4, saying that the agency was committed to improving customer service even as it moves to cut costs and reduce its workforce.

For more than 65 years, AARP has sought to protect Social Security and ensure its future viability. We have fought hard against arbitrary cuts to the cost-of-living adjustment, against congressional proposals to create fiscal commissions that could target Social Security to deal with budget deficits, to prevent turning Social Security’s guaranteed benefits into risky private accounts, and to ensure that those on Social Security could get economic stimulus payments without having to file separately.

We have spearheaded efforts to combat SSA’s customer service challenges and advocated for Congress to approve adequate funding for the SSA to deliver benefits and services properly and promptly to its growing number of customers.

We’re continuing that advocacy now.

Visit our Social Security webpage for the latest news. Explore our Navigating Social Security hub for answers to both basic and complicated questions about Social Security. AARP’s Social Security Calculator can provide estimates of future benefit payments and information on how to maximize them.

Emily Paulin is an editor at aarp.org who covers nursing homes, health care, and federal and state policy. Her work has also appeared in Broadsheet, an Australian lifestyle publication.