SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
social security works
Senate Urged to Reject Trump Plot to Unleash AI for Medicare Service Denials
"The bottom line is this: Seniors who choose traditional Medicare should not have their care blocked by AI," said one campaigner.
Jul 15, 2026
Advocates for seniors on Wednesday urged US senators to vote for a resolution that, if passed, would block a new Trump administration pilot program under which claims by patients seeking certain healthcare services through traditional Medicare would be reviewed by private companies using artificial intelligence to deny care.
Upper chamber lawmakers are set to vote Thursday on a resolution introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and supported by 20 Democratic colleagues and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to stop the US Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' so-called Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction (WISeR) Model.
CMS claims WISeR "helps protect American taxpayers by leveraging enhanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, along with human clinical review, to ensure timely and appropriate Medicare payment for select items and services."
What CMS doesn't mention—and what alarms a growing number of physicians and advocates—about the voluntary model is that AI-assisted reviews could contribute to inappropriate care denials, despite the required human review. Private Medicare Advantage healthcare profiteers have been using AI to deny care for years.
Critics argue that, even if a human must sign off, AI will effectively drive many of the recommendations, making it easier and faster to deny or delay care. They also warn of inevitable financial incentives tied to reducing Medicare spending, raising concerns that AI would likely be used as a cost-cutting tool.
"WISeR is not wise at all. It is a dangerous, profit-motivated experiment that allows private third parties to use artificial intelligence to delay and deny seniors’ medical care," Social Security Works executive director Alex Lawson said Wednesday. "Under the WISeR pilot program, which went live in January 2026, reports already show Medicare beneficiaries are waiting 2 to 4 times longer to access certain care."
"This is just one more example of the harm that Republicans’ disastrous healthcare agenda has already waged on American patients," he continued. "Last year, Republicans slashed $1 trillion in Medicaid and Affordable Care Act spending to line their cronies’ pockets. Now, they are importing the worst parts of Medicare Advantage—automated care denials—into traditional Medicare."
"The bottom line is this: Seniors who choose traditional Medicare should not have their care blocked by AI," Lawson added.
Keep ReadingShow Less
David Valadao Was the Deciding Vote for Trump’s Big Ugly Bill. Randy Villegas has a Plan to Defeat Him
Villegas, a working-class champion, is running to defeat Valadao this November.
Jul 07, 2026
Just over a year ago, Republicans passed the Big Ugly Bill into law. The bill slashes over $1 trillion from Medicaid, SNAP, and the Affordable Care Act—even as it gives massive tax handouts to the wealthiest people in America. Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are richer, while working families suffer and die without the health care they need.
Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.) represents California’s 22nd district, where two-thirds of his constituents rely on Medicaid. That’s over half a million people! And it’s the highest number of Medicaid enrollees of any Republican-held congressional district in the country.
Before the vote, Valadao pledged that “I will not support a final reconciliation bill that makes harmful cuts to Medicaid.” Then, he turned around and voted for this cruel monstrosity of a bill.
The Big Ugly Bill passed the US House by one vote. That means Valadao’s vote was decisive. He could have stopped families in his district from losing their health care. He could have stopped hospitals from cutting services and even closing their doors. He could have stopped Affordable Care Act premiums from skyrocketing. Instead, David Valadao betrayed the people he represents and showed where his true loyalties lie—with billionaires and Donald Trump.
The good news is that Randy Villegas, a working-class champion, is running to defeat Valadao this November. Villegas just won the Democratic nomination. I was proud to stand alongside him last week as we rallied outside Valadao’s office to mark the one-year anniversary of the Big Ugly Bill.
Villegas electrified the crowd, reminding us that: “Rep. Valadao voted to cut Medicaid to give tax breaks to billionaires. Meanwhile, Valadao has a government-sponsored health care plan that we pay for as taxpayers. He needs to use that plan to schedule a physical — to look for the spine that he's been missing.”
Rep. Valadao voted to cut Medicaid to give tax breaks to billionaires.
Meanwhile, Valadao has a government-sponsored health care plan that we pay for as taxpayers. He needs to use that plan to schedule a physical — to look for the spine that he's been missing. - @villegas_CA22 pic.twitter.com/RE5iEWOhIC
— Social Security Works ❌👑 (@SSWorks) July 1, 2026
Yet as hard as Villegas is fighting to repeal the Big Ugly Bill and save Medicaid, he also understands that just opposing Republican cuts isn’t enough. He declares that "I will be a proud co-sponsor of Medicare for All on day one because health care is a human right."
When I asked Villegas what he would do differently than past Democrats who have tried unsuccessfully to defeat Valadao, he gave a truly phenomenal answer:
"We can't just offer people not Trump or not David Valadao.
We've got to offer people a vision for something more.
Not only are we going to stop the attempts to privatize Social Security, but we're going to expand Social Security." - @villegas_CA22 pic.twitter.com/xhnV2bzirV
— Social Security Works ❌👑 (@SSWorks) July 1, 2026
“We can't just offer people not Trump or not David Valadao. We've got to offer people a vision for something more. Not only are we going to stop the attempts to privatize Social Security, but we're going to expand Social Security.”
That says it all.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Trump-Inspired Commemorative Social Security Cards Denounced as Latest 'Political Propaganda' Effort
"The Trump administration is putting the logo of a semi-private, partisan entity, which is widely reported to be corrupt, on the Social Security cards of newborn babies."
Jul 02, 2026
As the Social Security Administration's unveiling Thursday of a 250th anniversary commemorative Social Security card coincided with a congressional report on President Donald Trump's use of the semiquincentennial to enrich himself—including by deceiving donors—advocates demanded answers from Trump officials on the decision to turn "Social Security cards into political propaganda."
The SSA unveiled the new cards, set to be issued to all babies born between July 2-December 31, 2026, and the "Freedom 250" logo that will be emblazoned on them, tying the government documents to the semi-private entity that has pushed for Trump's far-right agenda to be at the forefront of the country's 250th anniversary celebration.
Nancy Altman, president of the advocacy group Social Security Works, noted that in the 90 years since the first Social Security card was issued in 1936, "the design has never been politicized."
"Now, the Trump administration is putting the logo of a semi-private, partisan entity, which is widely reported to be corrupt, on the Social Security cards of newborn babies. They claim ‘no additional cost to families or taxpayers’, but the cost has to come from somewhere."
A commemorative Social Security card with a Freedom 250 logo. (Photo by Social Security Administration)
Altman referred to a report released Thursday by the US House Natural Resources Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, titled "From Vanity to Insanity: How the White House Cheated the American People Out of Their 250th Birthday."
The 55-page report found that Freedom 250, which is funded through taxpayer dollars as well as donations from a number of companies with regulatory business before the government, including Palantir, ExxonMobil, and Oracle, secretly diverted funds intended for the congressionally chartered, bipartisan initiative America 250, and misled donors by providing them with Freedom 250's banking information instead.
"This is abuse of Social Security, a nonpartisan institution which Trump claimed he would not hurt."
The report also detailed how Freedom 250, with former employees of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has collected Americans' personal data and has "sold access to the president and courted foreign money in America's name."
"Freedom 250’s website quietly collects an extraordinary amount of information about the people who visit it," reads the report. "Its own privacy disclosure states that Freedom 250 collects everything a user shares with it and, when a user or devices permits, tracks precise geolocation data down to 'latitude, longitude, velocity, [and] bearing.' It logs each click across the site and captures the information users type into forms, including home addresses and contact information, and sends it back to the server of the organization that designed and created the website—in this case the National Design Studio, staffed by ex-DOGE employees."
The subcommittee explained how Freedom 250 "circulated sponsorship packages starting at $500,000 and climbing above $10 million, backed by a 'historic photo opportunity' with President Trump. Its CEO solicited foreign governments, corporations, and individuals at the World Economic Forum in Davos to fund the president’s priorities. If foreign funds reach the president's vanity projects, the report finds the conduct would clearly violate the Constitution's foreign emoluments clause."
Altman emphasized, in light of the committee's findings, that "DOGE has been found in court to have mishandled our private Social Security data, and these cards may provide another opportunity for that abuse of Americans’ most personal, sensitive information."
The use of the Freedom 250 logo on Social Security cards is "corrupt and inappropriate," said Social Security Works.
The group called on SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano to disclose whether the administration is paying a licensing fee to Freedom 250, release "any and all contracts between the Social Security Administration and Freedom 250," and reveal whether Freedom 250 will have "access to data associated with beneficiaries of Social Security cards bearing their logo."
"This is abuse of Social Security, a nonpartisan institution which Trump claimed he would not hurt," said Altman. "Like issuing passports with Trump’s visage and signature, putting his name on the Kennedy Center, and destroying the East Wing of the White House, turning Social Security cards into political propaganda reveals yet again Trump’s contempt for the American people he is supposed to be serving.“
Keep ReadingShow Less
As Mike Johnson Floats Social Security Cuts, Trustees Report Shows Harm of Trump Policies
“MAGA Mike Johnson won’t show the American people his secret plan to eliminate Social Security because he knows Republican policies are wildly unpopular."
Jun 09, 2026
Social Security's trustees said in their annual report released Tuesday that the New Deal program will be unable to pay out full benefits by the end of 2032—a quarter earlier than projected last year—in the absence of congressional action, a finding that advocates said underscores the destructive impact of President Donald Trump's policy agenda and the need to make the rich finally pay their fair share into the system.
“This is the first Social Security trustees report that begins to take Donald Trump’s second term policies into account: A tax bill that largely benefited the wealthy, economy-wrecking tariffs, a needless war with Iran, and hostility to immigrants," said Nancy Altman, the president of Social Security Works. "All of these have reduced the amount of money going into Social Security, weakening the system’s finances."
The trustees report was released a day after House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) declared in a radio show appearance that "entitlement programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and things like Social Security" need to be "adjusted and fixed," which critics say is euphemistic language for benefit cuts, given past GOP proposals such as raising the retirement age.
Johnson said the GOP intends to release a new Social Security plan "next year," without providing any details.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), House Democrats' campaign arm, immediately pressed Johnson, suggesting he's delaying Republican plans for Social Security and Medicare until after the 2026 midterms to avoid consequences at the ballot box.
“MAGA Mike Johnson won’t show the American people his secret plan to eliminate Social Security because he knows Republican policies are wildly unpopular and will be resoundingly rejected by the American people in November," said Justin Chermol, a DCCC spokesperson.
The new trustees report projects that Social Security's Old-Age and Survivors Insurance will be able to pay out full benefits "until the fourth quarter of 2032, one quarter earlier than projected last year."
"At that time, the fund’s reserves will become depleted and continuing program income will be sufficient to pay 78% of total scheduled benefits," the trustees said.
Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM), stressed that the new projection "does not mean that Social Security is going ‘bankrupt’ or ‘broke.’"
"Nor does the trustees report mean that benefits must be cut to maintain the program’s fiscal health," said Richtman. "It would be grossly unfair to ask beneficiaries on fixed incomes to bear the cost of strengthening Social Security. While conservatives favor benefit cuts (such as raising the retirement age, means testing, or reduced COLAs), we advocate for revenue-side solutions where the wealthy pay their fair share."
Specifically, NCPSSM and other progressive advocacy groups and lawmakers have called for raising the Social Security's payroll tax cap, which currently exempts annual income above $184,500 from the program's dedicated payroll levy.
Richtman said that lifting the payroll tax cap and "subjecting some of high earners’ investment income to Social Security taxes" would keep the program solvent "well beyond the 2030s." He noted that Democratic lawmakers have introduced legislation to shore up Social Security's finances by taxing the rich, but the bills have gone nowhere in the Republican-controlled Congress.
In a joint statement issued in response to the trustees report, Reps. John Larson (D-Conn.), Richard Neal (D-Mass.), and Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) said that "instead of joining Democrats to protect and enhance" Medicare and Social Security, "Donald Trump and Republicans are busy sabotaging them."
"After DOGE took a wrecking ball to the Social Security Administration under false pretenses, all Americans got were slashed customer service and their most personal data put at risk—without a penny saved," the Democrats said. "Combined with their sole legislative achievement pricing millions out of coverage and putting Medicare on the chopping block, there is no greater threat to Americans’ wellbeing than Republican governance."
Keep ReadingShow Less
DOGE Wanted to Falsely List Millions of People as Dead in Social Security Database: Whistleblower
One critic accused the Trump administration of plotting "financial murder" against millions of people.
Jun 05, 2026
A federal whistleblower has revealed plans by the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency to falsely list millions of people in the Social Security database as dead in a scheme to pressure them to leave the US.
In an interview published Friday by The Washington Post, former Social Security Administration (SSA) executive Jeremiah Schofield outlined a DOGE-concocted scheme that would have potentially cut people off from wages, banking, and government benefits by falsely listing them as dead.
Schofield said a DOGE employee told him in a phone call that they wanted to add 2.7 million living people to SSA's "Death Master File," cutting them off from essential financial services so they would either leave the country voluntarily or show up to local SSA offices to complain, where they would be promptly arrested.
“That call was one of the most disappointing calls I’ve been in in my 25-year career,” Schofield, who left the SSA in October, told the Post. “I was shocked. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.”
While immigrants were the primary target of the scheme, Schofield said that the list of people created by DOGE included some US citizens and lawful permanent residents.
One anonymous former SSA employee who spoke with the Post outlined the serious ramifications for the 2.7 million people had they been added to the Death Master File.
“If you’re on the [Death Master File] you can’t have a bank account," they explained, "you can’t get credit, so no apartment, no way to save money, no way to get paid, no way to get on insurance or carry health insurance. It has a ton of devastating effects.”
Schofield said he refused to carry out the DOGE employee's request after consulting with SSA lawyers who said falsely marking living people as dead would likely be illegal.
The plan was ultimately shelved, and the Trump administration claimed in recent court filings that it has revoked DOGE employees' access to SSA data.
Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, said that Schofield's whistleblower report was yet another example of President Donald Trump's administration abusing its power and weaponizing the federal government.
"Trump ran on a promise to protect Social Security," Altman said, "but this whistleblower report is the latest evidence of how he really views it: As nothing more than a weapon to wield against his enemies."
Altman added that removing living people from the database is essentially "financial murder."
"It means losing access to your bank account, your health insurance, and your credit cards," Altman explained. "It means getting kicked out of your home. It means that your life is destroyed."
Whistleblower Aid, the nonprofit legal assistance organization representing Schofield, said their client's claims show "no one is safe from this type of weaponization of our Social Security data."
"If the administration is permitted to ‘kill people off’ and ruin their lives to pursue its anti-immigrant agenda," the group added, "it will be able to use the same cruel and illegal tactics against anyone who has a Social Security number.”
Keep ReadingShow Less
We Crisscrossed America to Tell Republicans: Stop Taking Our Healthcare
In over 35 events across the US, patients, healthcare workers, and advocates came together to highlight the pain that Republicans are inflicting on their own constituents.
May 09, 2026
Republicans voted to slash $1 trillion from Medicaid. They ended Affordable Care Act subsidies, putting healthcare out of reach for millions of Americans. All to give massive tax handouts to the Epstein class, so they can buy another yacht.
Now, America’s already rotten healthcare system is spiraling into crisis. Hospitals across the country are at risk of closing, with those in rural areas most at risk. Those that remain will have longer waits and fewer resources. Even those with private insurance are not spared the consequences of Republicans removing $1 trillion in resources from the healthcare system. If you aren’t a billionaire, your healthcare is about to get worse and more expensive—if it hasn’t already.
This spring, Americans are fighting back. The Stop Taking Our Healthcare campaign included over 35 events across the country, concentrated in congressional districts with vulnerable Republicans. Many of these events took place in front of hospitals at risk of closure.
I want to share the stories of just a few of these events, where patients, healthcare workers, and advocates came together to highlight the pain that Republicans are inflicting on their own constituents.
Everywhere I go, Americans are worried about losing their healthcare and the threats to their local hospitals.
Rahway, New Jersey is located in New Jersey’s 7th District, currently represented by Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. At our protest across the street from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, resident Theresa Luoni worried about her children’s future: “Human beings with real needs are dropped off at homeless shelters when Medicaid runs out. As I watch this happen, I can’t help but see my children’s future. I’m the mother of two autistic boys. Without the right therapies, their needs escalate. My children are not statistics. They are not just autistic. They are human. They deserve safety. They deserve dignity. We go to bed every night and wonder if the care we depend on will go away.”
When healthcare is cut, when Medicaid is reduced, when services disappear, the impact is not theoretical. It's a child losing access to therapy that helps them communicate. - Theresa Luoni, #NJ07 resident
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 28, 2026 at 9:42 AM
Sadly, Theresa is far from alone in needing to worry about her family’s healthcare: 16.5% of the residents of Rahway rely on Medicaid and 400,000 patients across New Jersey are projected to lose their healthcare as a result of the $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid thanks to the law passed by Rep. Tom Kean Jr. and his fellow Republicans.
In New York’s 17th District, currently represented by Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, Hudson Valley community members gathered at Northern Westchester Hospital to raise awareness of the dangers to their hospitals and healthcare posed by the $1 trillion in healthcare cuts Rep. Lawler and other Republicans passed into law.
Karen, a family caregiver who lives in NY-17, spoke about her efforts to take care of her parents, who are 88 and 94. One of them has dementia. Her parents need full-time support, and rely on Medicaid for round-the-clock care. Rep. Lawler recklessly voted for a law that will cut $128 billion from New York’s Medicaid program over the next decade, putting 45 hospitals in New York at risk of closing, including two hospitals in his own district. Like Karen’s parents, 211,500 people in New York’s 17th District rely on Medicaid. Rep. Lawler is willing to put the health of his constituents at risk to give massive tax breaks to billionaires.
When I hear about cuts to Medicaid, I know exactly what that means for families here in #NY17. Fewer services, overwhelmed providers, and people going without the care they need.But despite what families like mine are going through, Rep. Mike Lawler voted to cut Medicaid. - Karen Rubinson
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 29, 2026 at 11:58 AM
In Bakersfield, California, residents gathered at Kern Medical College to demand healthcare, not warfare. Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, president of Social Security Works PAC, raised alarms about the impact of Republican healthcare cuts on local residents in nearby communities, including the people living in Republican Rep. David Valadao’s district. Sam Hardman, a local resident and US Army veteran, expressed his feelings that congressional Republicans like Reps. David Valadao and Vince Fong “have no idea what it is to care for another person” while speaking about how his family’s healthcare needs.
In Montana, our protests in Missoula and Polson focused on the concerns of local community members worried about losing their healthcare. In front of Providence St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula and Providence St. Joseph Medical Clinic in Polson, several local elected officials and candidates, including MT-01 Congressional candidate Sam Forstag, joined me in bringing attention to the eight hospitals around Montana in danger of closing.
Over 218,000 Montanans have healthcare coverage through Medicaid, but Republican cuts are putting the health of Montanans at risk and leaving vulnerable communities without access to affordable care.
In Colorado’s 8th District, currently represented by Republican Rep. Gabe Evans, neighbors gathered outside the Clinica Family Health clinic in Westminster. At least nine hospitals in Colorado are at risk of closing or reducing services. In Colorado’s 8th District, 1 in 4 people are covered by Medicaid. Yet Rep. Gabe Evans supported $1 trillion in healthcare cuts, so the richest of the rich don’t have to pay their fair share.
Alex Lawson: Let's remind ourselves WHY they cut $1 trillion out of Medicaid. Why 56K people are going to die every year.To give TRILLIONS in tax handouts to the richest people the world has ever known so they can buy another golden yacht to sail to Epstein's Island or whatever it is that they do.
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) May 5, 2026 at 1:58 PM
Donna Smith, a local resident, attended the protest, and described standing in the freezing rain to deliver a message of defiance. Joining Donna in demanding that those who take away healthcare be held accountable, Dr. Vince Markovchick spoke about his experience running the emergency medicine department at Denver Health for 26 years, and what happens when patients cannot afford the care they need.
To conclude our Stop Taking Our Healthcare campaign, Michigan’s Democratic Rep. Debbie Dingell and other lawmakers joined us as part of a national virtual town hall to discuss the effects of the $1 trillion in Republican healthcare cuts. Rep. Dingell declared: “Across this country, people are feeling the continued attacks on their healthcare.” Rep. Dingell mentioned hearing from parents, seniors, and workers who are all worried about losing their healthcare and what could happen to them next.
While the Stop Taking Our Healthcare campaign has finished, the fight for our healthcare must continue. Everywhere I go, Americans are worried about losing their healthcare and the threats to their local hospitals. The Republicans who decided to cut $1 trillion from our healthcare to hand out massive tax giveaways to the richest of the rich will face the consequences this November.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Ted Cruz Admits Trump Accounts Are Designed to Privatize Social Security Over Time
One advocate said the Texas Republican laid bare the "two-pronged strategy to push Social Security privatization: Creating the Trump accounts with one hand and gutting the Social Security Administration with the other."
May 08, 2026
Republican Sen. Ted Cruz said during a public conference this week that the so-called Trump Accounts established under the GOP's 2025 budget law represent a viable path toward Social Security privatization—something the Texas lawmaker described as a "dirty little secret."
During a panel discussion at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California, Cruz said that "conservatives in America, for 50 years... have been trying to do Social Security personal accounts." Cruz, who lamented the failure of Bush-era efforts to privatize Social Security, described such personal accounts as vehicles into which the payroll taxes that finance current Social Security benefits could be diverted.
In the not-too-distant future, Cruz envisioned, "we're going to be able to go to parents and say, 'Hey, you know that Trump Account your kid has? ... Wouldn't you like to be able to keep a portion of your tax payments that you're paying already and, instead of sending it to Uncle Sam, wouldn't you like to have a Trump Account just like your kid does?'''
"My prediction is, within five years, that is going to have a really compelling constituency," the Texas Republican added.
🚨🚨🚨
Ted Cruz says the quiet part out loud…
Trump Accounts are a scheme to privatize Social Security.
HANDS OFF OUR EARNED BENEFITS! pic.twitter.com/Oo3owRF7bM
— Social Security Works ❌👑 (@SSWorks) May 8, 2026
Linda Benesch, vice president of communications at the progressive advocacy group Social Security Works, told Common Dreams that Cruz's comments laid bare the "two-pronged strategy to push Social Security privatization: Creating the Trump Accounts with one hand and gutting the Social Security Administration with the other."
Benesch pointed to the remarks of an anonymous Social Security Administration (SSA) worker, who warned in comments to The New Yorker earlier this week that privatization advocates plan to point to the decimated agency and declare, "Look how Social Security sucks."
"They’ve been trying to privatize it for decades," said the SSA worker. "Now this will give them the excuse.”
Benesch said Friday that Cruz is "giving away the other half" of the Republican scheme by promoting the eventual expansion of Trump Accounts, investment vehicles under which children born between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2028 are eligible for $1,000 in "seed money" from the federal government. Parents of eligible children can contribute up to $5,000 per year to the accounts.
Cruz's comments are not the first time a Republican official has openly characterized Trump Accounts as a potential avenue for Social Security privatization.
"In a way, it is a backdoor for privatizing Social Security," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last summer. "Social Security is a defined benefit plan paid out that—to the extent that if all of a sudden these accounts grow, and you have in the hundreds of thousands of dollars for your retirement—then that's a game changer, too."
It’s been twenty years since Bush tried to do Social Security private accounts and they still haven’t realized workers’ Social Security taxes pay for *current retiree* benefits and not future benefits so you can’t do this without cutting current retiree benefits. https://t.co/eq9OnuhXVr pic.twitter.com/vguJN6pfuO
— Brendan Duke (@Brendan_Duke) May 8, 2026
Axios reported Friday that "the idea that Trump Accounts could replace or augment Social Security is something that has been talked about behind closed doors with lawmakers."
"But no one has wanted to touch that third rail, at least publicly," the outlet added, citing a person familiar with the private conversations.
Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, noted in a Friday statement that polling has found little support for privatizing Social Security, with a 2022 survey finding that just 15% of American voters back the idea.
"Turning over Americans’ hard-earned benefits to Wall Street would expose future retirees to unnecessary risk while lining the pockets of the financial elites who donate to Republicans," said Richtman. "Ted Cruz, Donald Trump, and their Republican allies should realize that the people will not stand for privatization of their hard-earned benefits, and we in the advocacy community will continue to ensure that it never happens."
Keep ReadingShow Less
The GOP Is Taking Our Healthcare to Fund Bombs and Tax Cuts; We’re Fighting Back
Republicans have decided that they don’t care about what the American people want, only about enabling Trump’s worst impulses. Our job is to make sure they regret that this November.
Apr 03, 2026
Last year, Republicans cut $1 trillion from Medicaid in the same bill that gave billionaires massive tax cuts. They also slashed funding for the Affordable Care Act, making healthcare unaffordable for Americans across the country.
As a result of these cuts, at least 1.5 million Americans have already lost their healthcare coverage, with an estimated 15 million set to lose coverage in the coming years. Nearly 450 hospitals, many of them in rural areas, are at risk of closing or shrinking.
Despite this devastation, Republicans are planning to make even deeper cuts to healthcare. Top Republicans, including House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), want to make even more cuts to the Affordable Care Act—to fund President Donald Trump’s catastrophic war with Iran. Trump himself is threatening cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, saying, “We’re fighting wars… It’s not possible for us to take care of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things.”
Republicans have decided that they don’t care about what the American people want, only about enabling Trump’s worst impulses. Our job is to make sure they regret that this November, when every member of the US House and one-third of the US Senate is on the ballot.
The Trump regime and their Republican minions in Congress think they can ignore the people, but when we stand together, when we raise our voices together, we cannot be ignored.
That’s why we are launching the Stop Taking Our Health Care Campaign to hold Republicans accountable. This month, members of Congress are home for recess—and we’ll make sure that they hear from their constituents.
We are holding dozens of events in targeted congressional districts across the country, demanding that Republicans Stop Taking Our Health Care. But, we need your help to host even more. Take a look and see if there is an event near you. If there isn’t one, then please sign up to host one yourself. We will help make it a success.
To kick off the Stop Taking Our Health Care Campaign, we held a live stream with guests including Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) and Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas).
Rep. Underwood said: “Donald Trump and Republicans’ failure to address these tax credits has created a healthcare crisis for working families. When premiums go up and help disappears, families are forced to make impossible choices. Do they keep their health insurance, or do they pay their rent? Do they refill their prescriptions, or do they buy groceries?”
Every day, the Trump administration is spending at least a billion dollars of taxpayer money in Iran.The American people do not want this war. They want affordable healthcare. - @underwood.house.gov @unrigoureconomy.bsky.social
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 2, 2026 at 12:01 PM
Rep. Casar said: “They’ve already gutted Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, kicking 15 million Americans potentially off of their healthcare. And now they want to kick off hundreds of thousands more everyday working families from their healthcare to pay for Trump’s completely unnecessary war of choice in Iran. We’ve got to put everyday Americans’ lives above more and more profits for the Trump administration and their rich friends.”
The Trump Administration already gutted Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.Now they want to kick off hundreds of thousands more working families from their healthcare to pay for Trump's completely unnecessary war in Iran. - @repcasar.bsky.social @unrigoureconomy.bsky.social
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 2, 2026 at 12:05 PM
Theresa Luoni, a New Jersey mom and caregiver whose family relies on Medicaid, said: “Republicans in Washington have worked day and night to raise costs for families like mine and make it harder for us to make ends meet, and now they're doubling down, threatening even deeper cuts to Medicaid so they can pay for their war and continue handing out tax breaks to billionaires.”
Republicans in Washington have worked day and night to raise costs for families like mine.Now they're doubling down, threatening even deeper cuts to Medicaid, so they can pay for their war and continue handing out tax breaks to billionaires. - Theresa Luoni@unrigoureconomy.bsky.social
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 2, 2026 at 12:19 PM
Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, senior adviser at Social Security Works, said: “Our campaign and this month of action is designed to hold these people accountable for their vote on things like the Big Ugly Bill, which failed to extend the tax credits for the Affordable Care Act and cut a trillion dollars out of Medicaid. Our message is simple: Stop taking our healthcare.”
During this month of action, we will hold Republicans accountable for the Big Ugly Bill.Rural hospitals and nursing homes are already closing because of them. - @jonbowzerbauman.bsky.social @unrigoureconomy.bsky.social
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 2, 2026 at 12:17 PM
Unrig Our Economy Campaign Director Leor Tal said: “Republicans in Congress promised to lower costs, but instead, they cut our healthcare and made life even more expensive for working families. Now Republicans in Congress want to cut healthcare even more to pay for this unnecessary and expensive war that they've started, which is already driving up costs for working families. That's why we’re launching Stop Taking Our Health Care, a nationwide campaign fighting back against Republican efforts to rip healthcare coverage away from working families.”
Republicans in Congress promised to lower costs. Instead they cut our healthcare and made life even more expensive for working families. And now they want to cut health care even more to pay for this unnecessary and expensive war.- Leor Tal, @unrigoureconomy.bsky.social
[image or embed]
— Social Security Works (@socialsecurityworks.org) April 2, 2026 at 11:55 AM
The Trump regime and their Republican minions in Congress think they can ignore the people, but when we stand together, when we raise our voices together, we cannot be ignored. It’s time to demand healthcare not warfare!
Keep ReadingShow Less
'Now We Know Why Trump Fired the Inspector General at Social Security,' Says Watchdog Group
New revelations show an IG report about wait times for people seeking help or services was altered after it was submitted to the administration.
Mar 19, 2026
A Social Security advocacy organization on Thursday blasted the Trump administration for covering up damaging information contained in an inspector general report released in December.
According to The Washington Post, a report from the Social Security Administration's (SSA) inspector general (IG) about call wait times for beneficiaries was altered to make it seem as though wait times to speak to representatives had been reduced to under 10 minutes per call.
"An unpublished draft of the report... showed that the inspector general had planned to report another metric—called the 'total wait time'—to measure the overall time it takes for callers to be connected with an SSA employee," the Post explained. "According to that draft report, in 2025 total wait time averaged 46 minutes to over two hours."
The Post added that this "information was deleted from the draft after the agency reviewed it before publication."
Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, responded to the report by saying that "now we know why [President Donald] Trump fired the inspector general at Social Security," noting that the SSA IG was one of several fired across multiple agencies at the start of Trump's second term.
Altman then argued that the attack on inspectors general was part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to dismantle government transparency all together.
"Inspectors general are the American peoples’ eyes and ears in these agencies," said Altman. "The Trump administration is undermining that oversight at every turn. Under this administration, the IG has no ability to conduct independent oversight. There is no meaningful check on the Trump administration’s Social Security sabotage."
Democratic communications consultant Jesse Lee linked the damage to the SSA documented in the draft IG report to efforts by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which went on a firing spree of federal workers last year.
"So DOGE did a smash and grab at the Social Security Administration, breaking into the most sensitive data, firing phone and in-person case workers," Lee wrote. "Trump appointee waved around an IG report claiming wait times were fine—after burying the real report saying they were up to two hours."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Criminal Investigation Demanded for DOGE Theft of Social Security Data
"This week’s revelations are just the tip of the iceberg," said the executive director of Social Security Works. "We need to know exactly who has our data and what they are doing with it."
Jan 21, 2026
Advocates and Democratic members of Congress are calling for a criminal investigation after a court filing revealed that operatives at the Department of Government Efficiency—previously headed by Elon Musk—pilfered and leaked Social Security data through a non-secure private server.
Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said Wednesday that his organization supports Reps. John Larson (D-Conn.) and Richard Neal (D-Mass.) in their call for "a full criminal investigation into DOGE leaks of private Social Security data to Elon Musk’s associates and immediate congressional action to safeguard Americans’ privacy."
"This reported malfeasance was enabled by a culture created by the Trump administration, Elon Musk, and DOGE soon after the president took office—a culture of recklessly interfering in the legitimate functions of the federal government with questionable intent and zero accountability," said Richtman, calling the data abuses part of a "relentless attack on the functioning of the Social Security Administration."
Richtman's statement came a day after the Trump administration acknowledged that DOGE operatives accessed and divulged highly sensitive Social Security data in ways that "were potentially outside of" SSA policy and in violation of a March 2025 court order. The Justice Department maintains that SSA doesn't know data was shared on the third-party server.
As the New York Times reported, the Trump DOJ also disclosed that "a political advocacy group contacted two members of the DOGE Social Security team, asking for an analysis of state voter rolls the advocacy group obtained."
"One of the DOGE employees signed an agreement with the advocacy group, which the Social Security Administration appeared to learn through a review of emails," the Times noted. "The Justice Department did not provide details about what came of the agreement and whether sensitive data was shared inappropriately."
In a joint statement responding to the revelations, Larson and Neal said that "we have been warning about privacy violations at Social Security and calling out Elon Musk’s ‘DOGE’ for months."
"DOGE signed an agreement to share Social Security data with an organization trying to undermine state election results, sent 1,000 Americans’ personal records directly to one of Elon Musk’s top consiglieres, and shared the confidential data of Americans on a private server," the Democratic lawmakers continued. "The 'DOGE' appointees engaged in this scheme—who were never brought before Congress for approval or even publicly identified—must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for these abhorrent violations of the public trust."
Alex Lawson, executive director of Social Security Works, echoed that call on Wednesday, saying that "those who have committed illegal acts must be prosecuted."
Lawson also demanded that Congress launch "a long-overdue investigation into just what DOGE is doing with our earned benefits and our private data."
"Thanks to Donald Trump and the Supreme Court, Elon Musk’s DOGE minions have access to our private Social Security data. So does anyone they choose to share it with—and anyone who can hack the unsecured server they’ve stored it on," said Lawson. "This week’s revelations are just the tip of the iceberg. We need to know exactly who has our data and what they are doing with it."
Keep ReadingShow Less
See More
Most Popular
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy