Social Security Administration fires 7,100 staffers in historic cuts, leaving cases stuck in purgatory

The Social Security Administration has eliminated more than 7,100 jobs since last year, according to reports — the largest workforce reduction in the agency’s history, which came as part of a Trump administration overhaul.The cuts, which reduced the agency’s workforce by more than 13%, came alongside office consolidations, expanded use of artificial intelligence tools and a push to move more services online.The shift at the Social Security Administration came as the White House laid off thousands of workers across the federal government in a bid to cut red tape.But at the SSA, there have been longer delays, mounting confusion and growing barriers for some of the most vulnerable benefit recipients, according to a report published by the American Association of People with Disabilities and other organizations.“We just have so many cases that are stuck in purgatory because they don’t have enough workers to work them,” a Kansas City-based paralegal told researchers.“They don’t have enough workers to answer the phone to tell me what’s happening to them.”For the March report, researchers from California State University, Sacramento, Binghamton University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison examined the fallout from the agency’s workforce reductions and operational changes during the second Trump administration.While eligibility rules have not formally changed, researchers found evidence that access to benefits has become more difficult.Still, advocates interviewed for the report described overloaded phone lines, missing paperwork, appointment bottlenecks and growing reliance on automated systems that often failed to resolve problems.The researchers interviewed 52 benefits reps from 32 nonprofit organizations that collectively assist more than 8,000 people each year seeking Social Security disability benefits.Several said experienced SSA employees who once helped untangle difficult cases had left during the workforce reductions, taking decades of...