From Newsweek:
Former Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley is warning that benefit payments could soon be delayed for millions of Americans, citing deep staffing cuts and internal chaos at the Social Security Administration (SSA) under the Trump administration.
Speaking at a public forum in Long Island on Monday, O'Malley said he believes an interruption in payments could be imminent.
"I truly believe there's going to be some interruption of benefits for some period of time, and I believe that will probably happen in the very near future," O'Malley said, according to Long Island Press. "I've never hoped I was wrong so much in my life." …
22 comments:
I think at some point they will mess up. However, we aren't there yet and all O'Malley is doing is making things worse with this scaremongering.
The breaking point will be when they start messing with SSA systems. There are already some weird but inconsequential issues going on, like how mySSA accounts have been up and down, and also how they have been showing incorrect payment dates for weeks now.
He's been banging this drum for a while. It's like those economists that have successfully predicted 100 out of the last 10 recessions; they count on you only remembering their hits and not their misses.
If (slash/once) the system does go down, he gets to crow about being right. It's not a bad bet to make, considering the suicidal speed DOGE has been running at in not only changing policy programs but actual back-end code.
Shows how much he ever learned about SSA, nada.
Internal systems are breaking down as I write this. Overnight runs are spotty and many are missing and incomplete. Automation fallout has increased exponentially, thus requiring manual PSC intervention by greatly reduced staff that is virtually swamped without directives or coherent instructions and are unable to process. To say things are not that bad are the rantings of a fool!
O’Malley, you are obviously a man that wants to be the center of attention and you put out numerous videos during your tenure at SSA. Many SSA beneficiaries rely on Social Security to survive. You can’t make these public statements without concrete evidence. Time will tell if your fifteen minutes of fame are up.
Letting DOGE tamper with SSA code is a legitimate threat to system integrity. If it breaks, the current administration buys the massive political fallout. They’ve been warned of the risk.
Watch the Weekly Operations Report on YouTube and the problem is the press scaremongering, not SSA. And while there are problems, they are soft served, and in response they get additional tasks from the ACOSS that aren't related to the problem, followed by a toady response from the person. It's not uninformative but it comes across as scripted and stilted. Contrast that to reports by actual staff on what is going on, and the gulf is large. I think staff may not get the underpinnings of things well but they report on the actual effects. ane I believe them more. O'Malley knows when the system breaks it'll break, but predicting when has too many variables.
So, Elon and your dear leader Trump can spout off whatever dangerous lies they want, but the democrat can‘t even express a reasonable fear unless he has incontrovertible proof to satisfy your double standard?
Do us all a favor and go crawl in a cave and stop eating.
He is shooting from the hip.
There's already interruption of benefits, for many SSA claimants. How long does it take for court remands to be processed into pay, after the favorable ALJ decision? Up to a year in PC7, which is ridiculous.
And several of the CS staff who worked these court remands in PC7 just took the incentive of $20,000 and retired, so the delays may get even worse. Front line staff shouldn't be offered incentives to walk out the door.
Processing cases is being seriously delayed. Systems issues galore and no support. Dufus can't see what is happening. People are at the tipping point. The only hope is the organization go back to what it was before dudek and restore services then see what can be cut.
Essentially the entire disability adjudication program is being moved to schedule F, which makes you wonder what they have planned. So I don’t see how this bodes well for the continuation of receiving or applying for disability benefits.
They don't care. They'll blame Biden, Obama, the libs, and the illegals. And, their die-hard supporters in Congress will hold hearings on the lies, and their stupid voter base will eat it up.
If it wouldn't cause so much hardship for so many people, I'd welcome it just happening for a month so people can experience what is at stake. Apparently, just warning them what is coming isn't enough.
You will welcome missed benefits for a month in order to bring a brighter light on what is happening to the agency? How selfish can you get? You are in the wrong job if that’s your thought process.
Probably send all the cases back to the states
Houston-area seniors and elected officials are increasingly alarmed at longer wait times on the phone and in-person at Social Security offices, fearing that the Trump administration is pushing more staffing cuts and potential slashes to benefits.
Calls to Social Security offices spiked 65% in March, year over year, department data shows, and many are waiting more than two hours on the phone simply to speak to someone.
“I can wait here for three or four hours,” said William Diamond, 70, as he left the Social Security office near NRG Park on April 16. “What if you can’t? My neighbor, she can’t do this, but it is her only income.”
Waits of four hours at offices are not uncommon, elected officials and the union representing Social Security workers said. Sometimes seniors and disabled callers are met with a busy signal, meaning the entire system is overloaded.
Social Security workers and those currently waiting on benefit approvals say they expect the delays and problems to get worse as the system becomes overwhelmed, unless something changes. Losing Social Security would put millions of Americans in peril, they say.
“These are not luxuries,” U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, a Houston Democrat, told a Social Security town hall in Aldine on Tuesday. “They are not handouts, and they sure as hell are not up for debate.”
In their latest move to defend Social Security, U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), led Senate Democrats in writing to the Acting Inspector General (IG) of Social Security, requesting a report into how the recent cuts by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cuts have affected Americans who rely on Social Security.
In the last two months, DOGE has moved to dramatically reduce the workforce of the Social Security Administration, including through laying off staff, pressuring employees to resign, and closing regional offices. This includes staff that work in field offices, who directly support Social Security beneficiaries, and that maintain and protect the SSA’s online systems millions rely on to access their benefits—which have been plagued with technical difficulties and service blackouts since DOGE initiated its takeover of SSA.
“These actions have already created a chilling effect among the agency’s workforce, with several senior SSA officials with centuries’ worth of institutional knowledge and experience having already left the agency,” wrote the senators.
I have already had to restart my computer twice today because the system quits. Can’t adjudicate claims when you are staring at a spinny wheel. Benefits are certainly being impacted.
Severe online and offline systems issues again today. No resolution expected due to destruction of Regional, PSC and HQ supporting staffs. Programs are not being run and accuracy is not being observed in those that do run. Local managers have many issues and questions that are not being addressed, let alone solved. No one knows what is going on as there is apparently no master plan when you dismiss your most technically astute employees.
All the years I worked at the agency the mantra from upper management was "Do More With Less"...Yeah...till you hit the breaking point...
They are probably doing this to make it easier to fire ALJs. No way the courts let all of OHO get converted IMO…if they do all federal employees next up.
Yes can someone explain to me how people in field offices are “mission critical” yet are still available (assuming they are eligible ) to take a VERA ?
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