SSA phone waiting times, at around 60 minutes during the last year of Biden’s presidency, have risen above 90 minutes under President Trump, further disappointing tens of millions of beneficiaries. The growth arises amid staffing cutbacks, regulatory changes, and increased demand catalyzed by legislative policy shifts. As of March 2025, the average wait time for callers to the SSA’s national hotline (1-800-772-1213) is 1 hour and 39 minutes, an increase from 1 hour and 34 minutes in late 2024. This analysis considers the political and structural reasons for such delays against service levels across different administrations and tested for effect on vulnerable populations.
Phone wait times: Biden-era challenges to Trump-era gridlock
During President Biden’s administration, SSA phone wait times ranged 60 minutes in 2024 during times of staffing shortages and COVID-19 pandemic aftermaths. But implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act in December 2024-a Biden administration plan to boost benefits-stabilized a peak in calls with wait times of 1 hour and 52 minutes in January 2025. Though this was a short-lived spike, Biden’s SSA made a high priority of expanding online services, which processed 65% of claims by late 2024.
The Trump administration inherited them but has been criticized for perpetuating delays through budget cuts and operational reform. Through March of 2025, phone wait times averaged 99 minutes, with requests for calls back taking 2 hour and 30 minute waits. Mondays remain the worst day to call, and evening wait times exceed 2.5 hours. The SSA blames the delay on a 22% surge in call volume since 2023, but critics counter that Trump’s policies-a hiring freeze, and redirection of funds for fraud prevention-have stressed resources.
Field office wait times: In-person service backlogs expand
As phone delays received the spotlight, face-to-face service at SSA field offices fared poorly too. A 2023 Inspector General report said that on average, beneficiaries spent 32–45 minutes post-check-in waiting for service, with decreased staffing and decreased office hours to blame for backlogs. Under Trump, delays have grown: 30% of field offices close early due to budget reasons, and mobile check-in systems-installed by Biden-have experienced technical malfunctions in 15 states.
The Biden administration had introduced “express, schedule, and refer” processes to expedite services, but Trump’s SSA has relegated these to the long grass in preference for automated kiosks. People requiring complex service, like disability claims modifications, now have to wait 50 minutes even with appointments.
Political finger-pointing and policy reversals
The wait time crisis has become politicized. Former President Biden, in an unusual April 2025 address, blamed Trump for “taking a hatchet” to Social Security by pointing to the removal of 8,000 SSA positions and the closure of 12 field offices since January. Trump aides reply that Biden’s Social Security Fairness Act-adding the benefits to 2.1 million more beneficiaries-taxed the system. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt explained the cuts as “Streamlining services is necessary to protect taxpayers from fraud,” and she cited Trump’s enhanced fraud prosecution programs.
Legislative analysts argue that both administrations share blame: Biden’s policies increased demand without commensurate spending, and Trump’s budget cuts have undermined response capacity. The SSA budget flatlines at $14.2 billion while payments to beneficiaries have increased 19% since 2020.
Impact on vulnerable populations
Long wait times fall disproportionately on low-income disabled and elderly Americans. In 2025, a survey by AARP discovered that 41% of beneficiaries 65 and older did not have access to a stable internet to use the SSA portal, so they waited on the phone. Rural residents face other obstacles: 68% of closed field offices were located in counties with poor public transportation.
The delays also come with a price tag. In Q1 2025, 12% of disability applicants did not report for medical exams due to rescheduling issues, facing claim denial. At the same time, callback failures-in which the SSA’s system is unable to reach beneficiaries-increased to 18% of cases under Trump, up from 9% in 2024.
Roads to improvement
The SSA identifies three roads to waiting time reduction
- Expanding video services: Currently being tested in 10 states, virtual appointments can possibly cut in-person office demand by 25%.
- AI-driven chatbots: Scheduled for a 2026 launch, these are designed to answer 30% of common questions.
- Staffing booms: Sixty-day temporary hiring of 1,000 call center representatives in June 2025 can potentially shave phone waits to 75 minutes.
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