The agency recently said that some customer service requests will need to be handled in-person.
Two prominent interest groups representing some retired Americans called on the Social Security Administration (SSA) to reverse a recent decision that requires some customer service requests to be handled in person rather than remotely.
Earlier this week, acting Social Security Administrator Lee Dudek announced that some recipients who are unable to provide their identity via Social Security’s website will have to do it in person at one of the agency’s offices. The move was done in a bid to combat “fraudulent activity” and to provide “stronger identity proofing procedures,” and starting March 31, that policy will go into effect.
In response, AARP, formerly the American Association of Retired Persons, said in a statement that the move would be onerous for some retired people receiving Social Security payments, namely for rural residents who would have to travel long distances to go to an office in person.
AARP said that it wants the SSA “to reconsider this decision, emphasizing that such changes should be implemented with transparency and input from the people they impact most” because “limiting service options will only make it harder for Americans to get the help they need.”
Separately, AARP Vice President Nancy LeaMond wrote to Dudek that “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.”
“In addition to the undue hardship this will cause, we are concerned that this hasty new process will lead to scammers using the confusion the agency has created around this rollout as a way to exploit and prey on Americans,” she added.
Pushback from Democrats also came quickly after Social Security’s announcement. A group of 62 House Democrats wrote Wednesday to the agency’s acting commissioner Dudek, to express concern about how the changes could hurt older beneficiaries in remote areas and people with limited internet access.
“Requiring beneficiaries to seek assistance exclusively online, through artificial intelligence, or in person at SSA field offices would create additional barriers, particularly for those who live far from an office,” they wrote. “We strongly urge you to consider the individuals who may be harmed.”
In announcing the changes, Dudek said that SSA will allow individuals who do not or cannot use the Social Security web portal to start their claim for benefits via telephone. “However, the claim cannot be completed until the individual’s identity is verified in person,” the statement said.
“The agency therefore recommends calling to request an in-person appointment to begin and complete the claim in one interaction. Individuals with and without an appointment will need to prove identity before starting a transaction,” Dudek added.
He also said SSA will require nearly every employee to work in the office five days per week, which he said will ensure that maximum staffing is available to support the identity requirement. Meanwhile, SSA said it will monitor the situation and make any adjustments if necessary.
Another group representing retired people, Social Security Works, was similarly critical of Dudek’s announcement in posts this week.
“This will make it far harder for the American people to claim their earned benefits. It could even cause major delays, and ultimately collapse the system, by overwhelming the field offices,” the group wrote in a post on X on Tuesday, also alleging that the Elon Musk-fronted Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is “forcing harmful changes” at the agency.
The group was critical of Musk and DOGE’s efforts to root out abuse, fraud, and waste inside Social Security databases. It said that more than 99 percent of Social Security payments are legitimate and not fraudulent.
Last month, Musk wrote on the platform that DOGE discovered there were millions of people aged 120 and older, with some aged over 300 years, that were still marked by the SSA’s system as eligible to receive benefits. That prompted a statement from Dudek, who said that those people aren’t necessarily receiving benefits.
The Epoch Times contacted the SSA for comment Thursday in response to AARP’s calls.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.