OPINION:
One year ago this week, Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. After four years of mismanagement, woke policies and record inflation, President Trump inherited a nation that was not meeting the needs of the American people.
No one felt that insecurity more acutely than our seniors and the most vulnerable.
When they needed the Social Security Administration most, the agency’s services were difficult to access and slow to take action. Callers to the national 800 number waited an average of 30 minutes, more than 60% of calls went unanswered, and, unimaginably, the website listed service hours instead of being available 24/7. When Mr. Trump returned to office, he promised to make America greater than ever before, and he is fulfilling that promise when it comes to Social Security.
As commissioner of Social Security, working alongside Mr. Trump, I am transforming SSA with a digital-first approach and equipping the agency with technology that enables operational excellence. The result: better and faster service for the more than 330 million Americans with a Social Security number.
New technology and more efficient processes have reduced call wait times from 30 minutes to single digits. Americans now have anytime, anywhere access to their personal “my Social Security” accounts after we eliminated the 29 hours of weekly website downtime. The disability claims backlog is down by more than 30% from an all-time high under the previous administration.
In the past year, we have reduced the initial disability processing time by 40 days and the hearing processing time by 30 days. In all, we are saving Americans more than 30 million hours annually.
SSA under Mr. Trump is moving with breakneck speed for the American people. Beyond a digital transformation, Social Security sent more than 3.1 million Social Security Fairness Act payments totaling $17 billion to eligible beneficiaries five months ahead of schedule. Mr. Trump signed the historic Working Families Tax Cuts, which will let nearly every senior keep more of their hard-earned Social Security benefits.
Mr. Trump has forged a movement to tackle waste, fraud and abuse across the federal government. SSA added more than 12.4 million individuals age 120 and older to the Death Master File, and the agency partnered with the Department of Homeland Security to update the records of 275,000 individuals who no longer hold legal status, ensuring that those who are ineligible for benefits don’t receive them.
Although SSA has had an exceptional year, one of the biggest challenges was countering the false narratives perpetuated by partisan pundits and politicians. Headlines from legacy media outlets startled Americans, telling a false story of decline and destruction at SSA.
This summer, I met with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, after she waged a fearmongering campaign questioning Social Security’s improvements and the validity of our data. She was unwilling to recognize the notable progress at the agency, and, as a result, I welcomed an independent review of the agency’s performance data.
The results of an inspector general’s report proved it: Her attacks were unfounded. The report affirmed the incredible work being done by the SSA workforce to deliver the customer service Americans deserve.
The future of Social Security isn’t without obstacles, but under Mr. Trump’s leadership, I am continuing to transform SSA into a model of excellence — an organization that operates at peak efficiency and delivers world-class service to every American. In the coming years, we will build on our improvements and make it even easier for Americans to get service online, in offices and over the phone.
We will always meet people where they want to be met. We have kept every single field office open and increased our phone capacity. We are expanding the number of digital users with “my Social Security” accounts and will continue our innovative, digital-first strategy to serve every single American.
President Trump is following through on making America greater than ever before, and he is keeping his commitment to protect and strengthen Social Security. As we wrap up an incredible year, I look forward to continuing to bring innovative technology and commonsense solutions to keep Social Security great for generations to come.
• Frank J. Bisignano serves as the 18th commissioner of the U.S. Social Security Administration.
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