Recent SSA policy shifts and worker cutbacks have heightened difficulties for older adults in need of face-to-face services. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) 2025 report identifies extreme geographical differences in travel time to SSA field offices, with higher lengths of travel in rural counties. This analysis presents the results of the study, places systemic explanations of the challenges into context, and discusses implications for at-risk groups.
Growing demand is met with reduced access
The SSA is paying approximately 69 million Americans each month, both retired and disabled Americans. Along with office openings and shortened business hours, however, have been personnel cuts under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which are forcing beneficiaries to make an estimated 1.93 million additional trips annually. These cuts are added to already-worsening burdens brought about by an aging population and record application backlogs.
The CBPP report combined SSA field office locations, Census elderly population data, and commute time analysis to estimate drive times. Nationally, half of all seniors must drive in one direction at least 33 minutes to reach an office, with 25% experiencing trips longer than an hour—figures not accounting for traffic delay or wait times when arriving. Rural residents’ distances are often greater as offices are much less concentrated.
Geographic disparities in service access
Urban-rural breakdowns significantly impact travel burdens. Urban areas tend to have several unrelated field offices, while rural settings would have a single or two facilities covering huge areas. For instance, rural seniors travel over 90 minutes to obtain services, while their urban counterparts would access offices in suburban areas within 15–20 minutes. These inequities disproportionately impact low-income seniors and the disabled, who can either lack means of reliable transportation or the physical ability for long journeys.
The CBPP’s own conservative projections also hide compounding stressors. In 2018, the SSA Office of Inspector General issued a report that determined field office mean wait times rose from 19 minutes in 2010 to 27 minutes up to 2016, with 4.8 million visitors waiting more than an hour each year. Post-2025 DOGE reductions literally guaranteed to compound these delays exposing individuals to a “double burden” of travel and in-office wait.
Current antifraud policies have inadvertently increased visitation requirements. Starting in March 2025, the SSA requires face-to-face authentication for direct deposit changes—a reaction to a spike in fraudulent electronic requests. While protecting an estimated $19.9 million in losses, the policy adjustment requires about 2 million more in-office visits annually, disproportionately burdening those least able to meet this requirement.
SSA’s movement towards digital options (mySocial Security portal, web applications) brings relief, but 21% of older Americans do not have internet access in their homes, and the overwhelming majority are skeptical of online systems for secure transactions. “The assumption that all people can move to digital ignores rural infrastructure disparities as well as intergenerational technology skepticism,” writes CBPP senior fellow Devin O’Connor. Readers can also go through this article, for better understanding of the long wait times for Social Security personnel to attend to inquiries, Bad news for Americans contacting Social Security – Here are the wait times to talk to the SSA that have gotten worse under Trump
States where more than 40% of seniors face travel times over an hour:
- Arkansas
- Iowa
- Maine
- Mississippi
- Montana
- Nebraska
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Vermont
- Wyoming
States where around 25% to 39% of seniors face travel times over an hour:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Virginia
In total, 31 states have at least 25% of seniors needing to travel more than an hour to reach a Social Security office.
Equitable solutions
These difficulties would be addressed with multi-perspective solutions. Additional mobile SSA offices would close gaps in under-served communities, and connections to community centers would provide satellite sites. Streamlining the in-person aspect to permit certified remote updates by trusted intermediaries (banks, health care providers) would stem fraud without overwhelming seniors.
At the same time, reversing DOGE-driven reductions in hiring is a necessity. 60%-staffed field offices cannot take on current workloads, much less additional capacity under policy reforms. Representative groups of advocates call on Congress to pass SSA’s FY2026 budget request for 12,000 new employees, which would restore phone services and reduce wait times.
A systems-level crisis
The map of travel burden underscores systemic inequities in federal provision of service. As the population explosion drives demand, policymakers need to balance fraud prevention with access—averting reforms from singling out the most vulnerable. Lacking near-term investments in staff and infrastructure, tens of millions of seniors risk losing lifeline benefits to logistical barriers beyond their reach.
Read more: A Social Security expert lays out the six steps to calculating the SSA benefits you should have to live with peace of mind: “Everyone…
Read more: Goodbye to living well with COLA adjustments in 2026 – Here’s how Social Security payments will affect U.S. Boomers
