As the Senate Finance Committee prepares to vote on Frank Bisignano, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Social Security Administration (SSA), a new report from Sen. Bernie Sanders warns of catastrophic consequences if the Trump administration proceeds with plans to slash the agency’s workforce by up to 50 percent. According to the findings, such drastic reductions—led by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—could result in nearly 67,000 Americans dying annually while waiting for disability benefits, more than double the 30,000 deaths reported in 2023.
“Social Security is the most successful government program in our nation’s history,” the report begins. “For more than 86 years, through good times and bad, Social Security has paid out every benefit owed to every eligible American on time and without delay.”
Sen. Sanders (I-Vt.), the ranking member of the Senate Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy, warns that the Trump-Musk strategy represents not just bureaucratic mismanagement, but a deliberate attempt to dismantle the Social Security Administration under the pretense of efficiency. “Social Security lifts roughly 27 million Americans out of poverty each and every year,” the report states. “At a time of massive wealth inequality, our job must be to expand and strengthen Social Security. Yet, instead of focusing on delivering benefits to seniors and people with disabilities, President Trump and unelected billionaire Elon Musk are systematically dismantling SSA.”
Already, roughly 3,000 SSA employees have either been terminated or taken voluntary separation. Musk, now overseeing DOGE, has repeatedly claimed—without evidence—that there is massive fraud in Social Security and other entitlement programs. Under his leadership, DOGE has proposed laying off up to 7,000 SSA workers, which would represent a 50 percent reduction in staff.
In March 2025, former SSA Commissioner Martin O’Malley warned that due to DOGE’s interference, “Americans could see the system collapse and an interruption of benefits in the next 30 to 90 days.”
The Sanders report estimates that these cuts would nearly double wait times for disability benefits and more than double the number of people dying while waiting for approval. “If SSA cuts 50 percent of employees making disability determinations, this will result in a 412-day wait for an initial decision,” the report states.
The stakes are personal for Americans like Sheryl, a disabled woman from California. “Right now I’m waiting for approval from SSDI and getting feedback from my private long-term disability insurance company that they want to try to send me back to work, while I have 13 doctors overseeing my care,” she told investigators. “If I succeed in convincing these heartless vultures that I’m disabled enough to rest, I will continue to worry that my fixed income will go less and less toward being able to live. If I don’t, I will be put in a position to ignore my health and go back to work long enough to kill myself and leave my kids with no one. Welcome to America! One thing that would relieve a lot of stress is getting an approval… so that I know what my income will be and not have to worry that I’ll end up in an economic landslide into the abyss.”
The SSA has already seen a steep rise in claim delays. In 2017, the average wait time for disability determination was 111 days. By 2023, it had nearly doubled to 217 days, and by February 2025, it had reached 236 days. If Musk’s cuts proceed, the projected wait time would climb to 412 days. Meanwhile, the number of deaths of Americans waiting for disability benefits climbed from 10,000 in 2017 to 30,000 in 2023.
Musk has characterized Social Security as “the biggest Ponzi scheme of all time,” echoing Trump’s frequent claim that the program is a “scam.” The pair has also falsely alleged that “millions and millions” of dead people receive Social Security checks.
“President Trump and Elon Musk have suggested that ‘millions and millions’ of dead people receive Social Security checks. That is an outrageous lie designed to undermine Americans’ faith in Social Security,” Sanders said Tuesday. “Here’s the truth: 30,000 people die a year waiting for an understaffed Social Security to approve disability benefits. The Trump-Musk plan to cut Social Security’s staff by up to 50% will make this tragic reality even worse, and Frank Bisignano is there to see it through. We cannot let that happen.”
The nomination of Bisignano—a former finance executive with a reputation for aggressive cost-cutting—has sparked concern among Senate Democrats. Critics have accused him of lying under oath about his communications with DOGE and of supporting a privatization agenda at SSA. “Putting Bisignano as head of Social Security is hiring an arsonist to run the fire station, plain and simple,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) ahead of the vote.
To counter the proposed changes, Sanders and Senate Democrats are pushing a legislative agenda aimed at protecting and expanding Social Security. The Sanders report recommends several policy actions, including:
• Immediately halting DOGE-driven cuts to SSA staffing and operations
• Passing the Social Security Expansion Act, which would enhance benefits by $2,400 annually, apply a payroll tax to high-income earners, and ensure program solvency for 75 years
• Enacting the Stop the Wait Act to eliminate the five-month Medicare waiting period for SSDI recipients
• Passing the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act to update outdated asset limits that currently penalize savings
• Raising the federal minimum wage to at least $17 an hour and phasing out subminimum wages for workers with disabilities
• Ensuring universal access to pensions for American workers
“Instead of slashing Social Security’s staff, closing down Social Security field offices, we should be making it easier, not harder, for seniors and people with disabilities to receive the Social Security benefits that they have earned and deserve,” Sanders said Tuesday.
In a coordinated effort to challenge the Trump administration’s agenda, Senate Democrats have launched a new initiative called the Social Security War Room. Spearheaded by Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), and Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), the War Room will focus on amplifying messaging, organizing grassroots efforts, and educating both the public and Senate staff on the dangers of Republican-proposed service and benefit cuts.
Warren emphasized the stakes for everyday Americans. “Senate Democrats are united in saying: Trump and Elon, get your hands off our Social Security,” she said. “We’re fighting back on behalf of every single senior, every single parent of a kid with a disability supported by Social Security, every single person currently paying into the program for later down the line, and every American who cares that seniors can retire with dignity.”
As staffing reductions accelerate, legislative battles over Social Security’s future appear poised to dominate the months ahead. With Bisignano’s nomination pending and DOGE continuing to wield influence, the Sanders report serves as both a warning and a call to action for preserving the federal program that millions of Americans depend on.
“The bottom line is this: Social Security belongs to the people who worked hard all their lives to earn their benefit. This is a program based on a promise—if you pay in, then you earn the right to guaranteed benefits. We cannot allow this promise to be broken,” the Sanders report concludes.
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